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Reading: Meet The African-American Female Disc Jockey Who Used 15 Minutes To Shattered Racial Barriers
Reading: Meet The African-American Female Disc Jockey Who Used 15 Minutes To Shattered Racial Barriers

Meet The African-American Female Disc Jockey Who Used 15 Minutes To Shattered Racial Barriers

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Sallu Kamuskay
By Sallu Kamuskay 282 Views 4 Min Read
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In 1948 Mary Dee Dudley became the country’s first African-American female disc jockey shattering both racial and gender barriers to achieve this feat.

She was allowed only 15 minutes on air because the radio station owners did not know how well her show will be received.

Her daily show “Movin’ Around” aired on August 1, 1948 on WHOD in Homestead, Pittsburgh. In a period of six months her 15 minutes show was extended to an hour. In 1950, about two years later it became a two-hour show.

Dudley was born in 1912 in Homestead, P.A. to William and Mary Hunter Goode.

William Goode owned the Hill District’s 24-hour pharmacy. The Hill district is the oldest neighbourhood in Pittsburgh.

Her family was quite popular in Pittsburgh as her brother Mal Goode was a notable broadcaster and James Goode was also Pittsburgh’s first black realtor.

She attended Homestead high School and went to Howard University after and then to St. Mann Radio School in Pittsburgh.

Not long after her graduation from St. Mann, she applied to work at the WHOD radio station that was about to be launched. According to Dudley’s nephew, the station told her she would be offered a 15 minutes show if she could get three sponsors.

 

Mary Dee got three sponsors, her father with his 24-hour pharmacy, her brother James with his realty business and a florist.

Dudley’s show was different from what people were used to listening. She played the latest records by African American artistes and made room for local talents to be unearthed.

She also brought her brother, Mal Goode on board when the show was extended to two hours to broadcast daily news as a correspondent for The Pittsburgh Courier.

It is said that the Courier was the most widely circulated black newspaper in the country at some point in time.

Goode touched on everything that pertains to the black community in Pittsburgh. From police brutality to the Jim Crow Segregation to prejudiced politicians and housing options for blacks.

Later in his career, Mal also became the first black correspondent for a major television network, ABC TV network.

To add to the diversity of her show, Dudley brought on Toki Johnson and Hazel Garland to report on women’s issues and to cover the community. She made sure her show was a true representation of her community.

She established the basic African American radio show format with music, news and community affairs.

She interviewed renowned celebrities at the time like Jackie Robinson, Sarah Vaughan and Cab Calloway.

What catapulted Dudley’s show into the national media was her interview with Ebony magazine. Her show moved to “Studio Dee” in August 1951 at the corner of Herron and Center avenues in the Pittsburgh Hills area.

This storefront presented her the opportunity to relate with her listeners and for them to request songs for the show while enjoying her prowess. This act cemented Dudley’s show as a staple in the neighbourhood.

Her show got yet another extension. It moved from two hours to four around 1954 and “Studio D” relocated to Center Avenue in the Courier Building.

Dudley worked at WHOD for another two years before moving to Baltimore in 1956 when WHOD changed its call letters to WAMO.

Her time in Baltimore was short-lived. She settled in Philadelphia and worked on a show called “Songs of Faith” at WHAT until she died from cancer at the age of 48 in 1964.

Source: Face2face Africa

 

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Sallu Kamuskay is a Sierra Leonean communication strategist, fixer, blogger, youth organiser, event manager, spokesperson, and public relations expert. His work has been regularly referenced and published by national and international media and public policy institutions. Sallu Kamuskay was a child during the brutal war in Sierra Leone. Growing up in the midst of conflict, Sallu witnessed unimaginable abuse of children and gross violations of human rights. The horrors he witnessed during the Civil War had a terrible impact on him at a very tender age. But despite the shock of the war, Sallu never lost hope. He started on a journey of recovery, studying, and working for a better future. At age 15, Sallu entered into the world of activism and advocacy. Sallu Kamuskay was the Vice President of the Young Leaders Organisation, a member of the National Youth Council. The Young Leaders is one of the oldest youth-led organisations in West Africa. The organisation was formed by a group of young leaders, and launched by the then Head of State/President of Sierra Leone. Sallu was part of the group of young leaders who participated in and contributed to the establishment of the National Youth Council. The Commonwealth supported the training for trainers programme with line ministries and youth stakeholders in which key, representatives of youth council, student union and civil society/private sector youth platforms were engaged and empowered in the effective engagement and inclusion of youth. Sallu is co-founder and Executive Director of the Salone Messenger, a global multimedia and public relations firm based In Sierra Leone. Sallu has worked on various developmental and policy issues such as Poverty, Climate Change, Human rights, Child Rights, Education, Health, Gender Equality, Civic Engagement, Government policies, Information Communication Technology for Development and the Sustainable Development Goals, and has also been contributing to various global events and advocacy campaigns. Sallu Kamuskay is the co-founder and Executive Director of the Salone Messenger, a global Multimedia and Public Relations Firm based in Sierra Leone with the latest news and information, on top stories, business, politics, entertainment, and more. Sallu is working with a leading technology company in Africa, Techfrica, that has recently developed and launched a social media, messaging Supfrica with over 150,000 downloads on the Google play store in less than 4 days. He is the Adviser and Media coordinator for the App to give people the platform to connect and communicate to help shape their future with a very fast internet that allows users that live in deprived and hard-to-reach areas with poor internet facility to be able to communicate as it allows and stronger on 2 and 3 G network reception. Sallu has over 9 years of experience in youth engagement, inclusion, and coordination both at local and global levels, giving voice to young people and engaging young people to build a better world. He has served as coordinator for the Wave Alliance which brought together youth-led organisations who attended an international training in South Africa organized by the International Organization – Waves for Change. Sallu is working with the MLT, Waves For Change, and the Government to develop safe spaces for young people, with a view to contributing to the overall development goals of young people including health, as well as to community rebuilding. Sallu is currently the Programme Director for the Wave Alliance, which is a coalition of youth-led and community-based organisations that have successfully introduced evidence-based Surf Therapy programs to young people in communities, with a focus on mental health, peace building and sustainable development. Sallu is currently the focal point and face of Africa’s Faces Social media platform which is a global Social media platform that brings together people from across the world to share their moments, connect, share videos, and interact with friends giving more preference to excluded continents like Africa. Sallu Kamuskay has devoted his time to working for or contributing to a number of national and international organizations and companies, including the Techfrica Technology Company, United Nations, ECOWAS, European Union, Commonwealth Africa Initiatives. This work has led him to travel to a number of countries to contribute to global youth platforms. Sallu is the lead Coordinator for Peace Tour programme, an initiative supported by the European Union, Africa Union, ECOWAS focusing on uniting and empowering young people and local communities. Over the years, Sallu Kamuskay has been using his Techno phone to be able to tell stories, the phone he used to tell the story of Gbessay during Ebola who was admitted at one of the Ebola treatment centers after rumors that she had Ebola when the actual sickness was ulcer, she was almost abandoned at the treatment canter with no medication provided to her. She could have died. Sallu told the story via social media and was able to secure funding from the United Sierra Leone to buy her medication and advocated for her. She was later discharged and taken home, He did the same to a patient that died and was abandoned in the street, Sallu Kamuskay used his phone and shared the message across, the corps was later taken and buried. It could have been more disaster without his voice. The story of late America Stress 3-year-old daughter. The hero’s daughter was abandon after his father's death. He shared her sad story and was able to get a sister who has taken the child as her own and is currently providing her with educational support. The article of America Stress can be read on the link below http://ayvnewspaper.com/index.php/k2-categories/item/7350-america-stress-a-hero-to-recognize. Sallu Kamuskay feels the stories of Gbessay, America stress and that of many others need to be told. The media house we have cannot better tell these stories, they are better reporters than telling human interest stories. He created the Salone Messenger platform and brought together passionate storytellers to be able to tell these compelling stories.