Professor, civil rights leader to speak at UNO graduation
April 24, 2021
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NEW ORLEANS (AP) Raphael Cassimere Jr., an academic and civil rights activist who was the first Black instructor hired at the University of New Orleans, will speak at the university s spring graduation ceremony, the university announced.
Cassimere was hired in 1969 when the university was known as Louisiana State University in New Orleans and taught for nearly four decades, UNO said in a news release announcing his role in the spring commencement ceremony. He was also active in the NAACP where he was the president of the organization s Youth Council from 1960-1966 and helped lead local boycotts. He also served as secretary of the New Orleans branch of the organization, chairman of its southwest regional branch and has been a NAACP certified trainer since 1985.