Carl Thomas Rowan (August 11, 1925 - September 23, 2000) was a nationally-syndicated African American op-ed columnist for the Washington Post and the Chicago Sun-Times. August 11 is the 223rd day of the year (224th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1925 (MCMXXV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... September 23 is the 266th day of the year (267th in leap years). ... This article is about the year 2000. ... An African American (also Afro-American, Black American, or simply black), is a member of an ethnic group in the United States whose ancestors, usually in predominant part, were indigenous to Africa. ... ... New Chicago Sun-Times building located at 350 N. Orleans St. ...

Background

Carl Rowan was born in Ravencroft, Tennessee, but his family soon moved to nearby McMinnville, where he was reared. He received a bachelor's degree from Oberlin College in 1947, and a master's degree from the University of Minnesota in 1948. McMinnville is the name of two cities in the United States of America, one in Tennessee, and the other, its namesake, in Oregon. ... Oberlin College is a small but very highly respected liberal arts college in Oberlin, Ohio. ... 1947 (MCMXLVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... UMN redirects here. ... 1948 (MCMXLVIII) is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ...

In 1961, Rowan was appointed Deputy Secretary of State by President John F. Kennedy. The following year, he served as a delegate to the United Nations during the Cuban Missle Crisis. Rowan became the U.S. Ambassador to Finland in 1963. In 1964, Rowan was appointed director of the United States Information Agency by President Lyndon B. Johnson, but resigned in 1965 when both Johnson and Rowan were accused of trying to dictate a pro-administration bias to Voice of America broadcasts. He was the first African-American to attend meetings of the National Security Council. 1961 (MCMLXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... In several countries, Secretary of State is a senior government position. ... For other uses, see John Kennedy (disambiguation) John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to as John F. Kennedy, JFK, or Jack Kennedy, was the 35th President of the United States. ... The United Nations (UN) is an international organization that describes itself as a global association of governments facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, and social equity. ... The Cuban Missile Crisis was a tense confrontation between the Soviet Union and the United States over the Soviet deployment of nuclear missiles in Cuba. ... An ambassador, rarely embassador, is a diplomatic official accredited to a foreign sovereign or government, or to an international organization, to serve as the official representative of his or her own country. ... 1963 (MCMLXIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... For the Nintendo 64 emulator, see 1964 (Emulator). ... The United States Information Agency (USIA), which existed from 1953 to 1999, was a United States agency devoted to what it called public diplomacy. ... Lyndon Baines Johnson (August 27, 1908 – January 22, 1973), often referred to as LBJ, was the 36th President of the United States (1963–1969). ... 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link goes to calendar). ... The Voice of America (VOA) is the official broadcasting service of the United States government. ... NSC can also stand for National Safety Council in several countries such as the US and Ireland. ...

From 1966 to 1998, Rowan wrote a syndicated column for the Chicago Sun-Times and, from 1967 to 1996, was a panelist on "Inside Washington." His name appeared on one of President Richard M. Nixon's Enemies Lists. Rowan was a 1995 Pulitzer Prize finalist for his commentaries. He is the only journalist in history to win the Sigma Delta Chi medallion for journalistic excellence in three successive years. New Chicago Sun-Times building located at 350 N. Orleans St. ... Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913 – April 22, 1994) was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. ... Nixons Enemies List is the informal name of what started as a list of the Nixon administrations major political opponents compiled by Charles Colson and sent in memorandum form to John Dean on September 9, 1971. ... Listen to this article (help) Listen to this article · (info) This audio file was created from the revision dated 2005-04-13, and does not reflect subsequent edits to the article. ...

Thurgood Marshall's only interview while serving on the Supreme Court of the United States was for Carl Rowan's 1988 documentary. The National Press Club gave Rowan its 1999 Fourth Estate Award for lifetime achievement. On January 9, 2001, United States Secretary of State Madeline Albright dedicated the press briefing room at the State Department as the Carl T. Rowan Briefing room[1]. Thurgood Marshall (July 2, 1908 – January 24, 1993) was an American jurist and the first African American to serve on the United States Supreme Court. ... The Supreme Court of the United States is the supreme court in the United States. ... The National Press Club is an association of journalists based in Washington, DC. It is well-known for its gatherings with invited speakers, including many presidential candidates and other influential politicians. ... Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. ... Madeleine Korbel Albright (born May 15, 1937 in Prague, Czechoslovakia), American diplomat, served as the 64th United States Secretary of State. ...

Controversy

Rowan gained public notoriety on June 14, 1988, when he shot a teenage tresspasser, Neil Smith, who was taking a dip in Rowan's swimming pool in Washington, D.C.. Rowan used an unregistered .22 caliber pistol. Critics charged hypocrisy, since Rowan was a strict gun control advocate. In a 1981 column, he advocated " a law that says anyone found in possession of a handgun except a legitimate officer of the law goes to jail -- period." In 1985, he called for "A complete and universal federal ban on the sale, manufacture, importation and possession of handguns (except for authorized police and military personnel)." [2] [3] June 14 is the 165th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (166th in leap years), with 200 days remaining. ... 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII in Roman) was a leap year starting on a Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Nickname: the District Motto: Justitia Omnibus (Justice for All) Official website: http://www. ... The phrase Gun politics refers to the views of different people within a particular country as to what degree of control (increased gun rights vs. ... 1981 (MCMLXXXI in Roman) is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year. ...

Immediately after the shooting, Rowan offered several conflicting accounts about where he got the handgun. He first said that he had purchased the gun himself in response to threats on his life (which he later claimed had been made by the Ku Klux Klan). He also initially claimed that the gun had been properly registered. However, when District of Columbia police disclosed that the gun had not been registered, Rowan changed his story, claiming that the gun belonged to his son, who "was an FBI agent and did not have to register it [because it was] properly registered federally." Police officials pointed out that under D.C. law, all guns must be registered locally; failure to do so was punishable by up to a year in prison and a $1,000 fine. Members of the second Ku Klux Klan at a rally during the 1920s. ... ... The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is a Federal police force which is the principal investigative arm of the United States Department of Justice (DOJ). ...

Rowan was tried but the jury was deadlocked, the judge declared a mistrial and he was never retried. In his autobiography, Rowan said he still favors gun control, but admits being vulnerable to a charge of hypocrisy [4].

Bibliography

• South of Freedom (1952)
• The Pitiful and the Proud (1956)
• Go South to Sorrow (1957)
• Wait till Next Year: The Life Story of Jackie Robinson (1960)
• Just Between Us Blacks (1974)
• Breaking Barriers: A Memoir (1991)
• Growing up Black: From The Slave Days to the Present - 25 African-Americans Reveal the Trials and Triumphs of Their Childhoods (contributor, 1992)
• Dream Makers, Dream Breakers: The World of Justice Thurgood Marshall (1993)
• The Coming Race War in America: A Wake-Up Call (1996)