Angela Davis

Angela Davis is an American political activist, professor, and author. She was member of the Community Party and the Black Panther Party.

Davis was born in Birmingham, Alabama on January 26, 1944. Davis attended Brandeis University for her undergraduate degree. For her graduate degree, she attended the University of California, San Diego. During her graduate education, she became involved with the Communist Party, through the Che-Lumumba Club, an all-black branch of the party.

Following her graduate degree, she was hired to teach at the University of California, Los Angeles. She was fired for her connections to the Communist Party. She challenged the firing in court and won. She left the school in 1970. Outside of academia, Davis had been a supporter of three men, known as the Soledad Brothers, who were incarcerated at Soledad Prison. Davis was involved with the trial of one of the men, George Lester Jackson. She was accused of murder during the trial but was acquitted in June of 1972.

Davis returned to teaching at the University of California, Santa Cruz. She retired from teaching in 2008. She continues to be a speaker and active in political activism.