Life Edwards was a native
Houstonian. He was the sixth child out of the sixteen children of Reverend E. L. Edwards Sr. and Josephine Radford Edwards. Edwards graduated from
Wheatley High School in Houston. Edwards was a member of
Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity. He received a bachelor's degree from
Texas Southern University in 1966 and a Certificate in Corrective Therapy at
Tuskegee Institute in Alabama. He became a realtor and mortgage broker.
Career He was involved in the
Civil Rights Movement, where he participated in peaceful marches and demonstrations throughout the United States of America with Dr.
Martin Luther King Jr., Reverend
Jesse Jackson, Mr.
Carl Stocks, Reverend William (Bill) Lawson, and others. Edwards was a thirteen-term elected member of the
Texas House of Representatives, serving in that capacity from 1978 to 2007. In 1979, he authored and sponsored House Bill 1016, making June 19 ("
Juneteenth") a state-paid holiday in Texas. He founded Juneteenth, U.S.A., in 1979 along with Al Edwards Real Estate and Mortgage Company.
1980s He served as a member of the board of Push International Trade Bureau of
Chicago, Illinois from 1983 to 1989. Al Edwards served as the State Chairman for
Reverend Jesse Jackson's campaign for President of the United States in both 1984 and 1988. In 1986, he founded "Operation Justus", a community-based organization that serves as a referral service for persons with social problems and concerns. In 1987, he was arrested in Houston and went to jail for peacefully demonstrating against
apartheid in South Africa. Others demonstrating on the national level included
Reverend Jesse Jackson,
Dick Gregory,
Aretha Franklin,
Harry Belafonte along with many others. In 1989, he traveled to
Mozambique,
Angola, and
South Africa on a peace-seeking mission.
1990s Representative Edwards served as Chairman of the Texas Legislative Black Caucus from 1991 to 1997. Al Edwards was called to ministry in April 1993. Revered Al Edwards is a member of Progressive New Hope Church. During the
Clinton administration, Al Edwards was often invited to the White House as the guest of
Bill and
Hillary Clinton. In May 1994, he was inducted into the Hall of Fame of the African American Biographic Association in
Atlanta, Georgia. Al Edwards was elected Chairman of the Democratic National Committee Black Caucus and held that position for six years. He was Vice-Chairman for ten years. Edwards received his Doctorate of Divinity from World Bible Christian University in
San Antonio. In 1999, Edwards was appointed Chairman of the Texas Emancipation Juneteenth Cultural and Historical Commission by Governor
George W. Bush.
2004 On January 15, 2004, Al Edwards helped to lead a successful march of over 5000 people in
Waller County in order for the students of
Prairie View A & M University to be able to vote. As a senior member of the State Legislature, Al Edwards served on three of the most influential Committees. He was the Chairman of the Rules and Resolutions Committee, Chairman of Budget and Oversight of the Ways and Means Committee and a member of the Appropriations Committee.
Awards He was inducted into "Who's Who in America" in 1989 and "Who's Who of Global Decision Makers" in 2006. In 1983, he received an honorary doctoral degree from the
University of Belize. Edwards is memorialized with a statute near
Ashton Villa in
Galveston, depicting him holding up a copy of the Juneteenth legislation. ==Death==