Turner, Thomas Wyatt

Turner, Thomas Wyatt (1877–1978) social activist; born in Charles County, Md. An African-American Catholic who taught biology at Howard University (from 1913), he organized and chaired a Committee for the Advancement of Colored Catholics (later Federated Colored Catholics) to combat racial discrimination in the church; it was active especially from 1919 until 1932, when it was splintered by a dispute over Turner's then-controversial emphasis on protest and confrontation.