Stewart played an active role in the
civil rights movement from the 1930s until his death. Stewart was, over the course of his life, in a leadership role in over 25 organizations, including: the Citizens' Chamber of Commerce, the
Governor of Oklahoma's Energy Committee, the
United Way of Oklahoma City, the YMCA, the
Langston University Alumni Association, and the University of Oklahoma Foundation.
NAACP Stewart became involved in the local Oklahoma City NAACP Chapter in the 1930s and served on several committees. Roscoe Dunjee nominated him for vice-president of the OKC Chapter in January 1942, but after the sudden departure of the chapter president, Stewart filled the vacancy a month later at Dunjee's behest. He left the position when he joined the Marines, but was re-elected President of the Oklahoma City NAACP Chapter upon his return, where he began working to ensure equal employment opportunities for black people. This started with a letter-writing campaign to open the local postal service to hiring black postal employees. Stewart worked to get jobs for blacks in several places where they had been previously rejected or unable to move up the chain of command, such as
Tinker Air Force Base. As president of the OKC Chapter of the NAACP, a position he would hold until 1957, Stewart helped to end the
segregation of schools, especially with the integration of the
University of Oklahoma, on which he worked with
Thurgood Marshall and others to help
Ada Lois Sipuel Fisher become the
first black law student to attend and
Prentice Gautt become the first black athlete to attend. Stewart also held several national roles within the NAACP. In 1947, Stewart and other leaders drafted a plan to create regional offices in order to allow for the better management of the organization. In 1948, following the approval of the plan, Stewart was selected to be on the board of directors for the Southwest Region, a role he held for 24 years. In 1952 Oklahoma City hosted the NAACP National Convention as a result of Stewart's lobbying of the National Board. The conference was attended by 2,000 people and organized by Stewart with the help of other local NAACP officials. In 1958, Stewart assisted
Clara Luper, advisor to the local
NAACP Youth Council, in the organization of several sit-in protests against the segregation of lunch counters in Oklahoma, the first of which occurred on August 19 at
Katz Drug in Oklahoma City. Stewart helped to address was the housing crisis in Oklahoma City, where he helped with the Urban Renewal Authority's plans to renovate the dilapidated homes owned by poor blacks. The plans included over 3,000 buildings for repair and grants and low-interest loans, and Stewart worked to ensure the people affected by the plan were included in the discussions.
Oklahomans for Progress In the early 1960s, following the end of his presidency of the OKC Chapter of the NAACP and while still sitting on the National Board of the NAACP, Stewart founded a new organization called "Oklahomans for Progress". The organization was intended to be an independent coordinator for issues of race in Oklahoma and was made up of leaders from black and white organizations. ==Personal life==