The publication is reproduced in full below:
HONORING THE LIFE OF REVEREND GAMALIEL MANSFIELD COLLINS
______
HON. KAREN BASS
of california
in the house of representatives
Friday, October 14, 2022
Ms. BASS. Madam Speaker, today I celebrate the life and legacy of civil rights activist and Tuskegee Airman G. Mansfield Collins.
Collins was a key figure in the civil rights movement on the west coast. Under his leadership as executive director, the Western Christian Leadership Conference (WCLC) raised more than $6 million in the struggle for civil rights, mostly through fundraisers at the homes of stars like Burt Lancaster, Charlton Heston, and Sammy Davis, Jr., and through events that attracted the likes of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Dick Van Dyke and Mahalia Jackson.
In 1963, Collins played a key role in organizing and coordinating the
``Los Angeles Freedom Rally,'' which drew nearly 40,000 people including many celebrities to hear Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. In 1965, Collins personally chartered four airliners to the Selma-to-Montgomery marches. On one occasion, Dr. King asked him to organize a singing tour for his wife, Coretta Scott King. In August of 1965 during the Watts uprising, an LA Times account credited him with saving the life of a white man targeted by a group of rioters.
Born 102 years ago to Reverend H. Mansfield Collins, a pastor in the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, and Amelia Davis Collins, a former schoolteacher, Gamaliel Mansfield Collins moved to Los Angeles, California at age 15 when his father was appointed to lead at what is now known as First AME Church. Collins attended high school with Tom Bradley, who would become Los Angeles' first Black mayor.
During World War II, Collins was drafted, and assigned to the 2044th Quartermaster Unit. With recommendations from a Congressman and an army general, Collins tested for the segregated Air Force Flight School and became one of the renowned Tuskegee Airmen. Collins' lifelong fight against racism began when, in 1945, he and members of the 447th Bombardment Group attempted to integrate an all-white officers club. This action led to the arrest of 162 black officers.
Honorably discharged, Collins returned to L.A. and his father's church, serving as assistant pastor and musical director, and singing with famed actor and composer Jester Hairston. This led to bit parts in the films Mighty Joe Young, Imitation of Life and Porgy and Bess. By 1961 he had worked with Rev. Maurice Dawkins, Rev. Larry Odom, Bishop H. Hartford Brookins, Rev. John Doggett, Rev. E.V. Hill, and Rev. James Hargett to establish the WCLC.
Some years later, Collins became an AME minister and served out his years with pastorates in Tacoma, Washington; Perris, California; St. Louis, Missouri; and Oakland, California. In 1995, he served as a founding board member and advisor to his daughter, Lisa Collins, in the establishment of L.A. Focus Newspaper, which has become a significant outlet serving the African-American community. I am proud to honor his memory and to share the story of his century of contributions.
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SOURCE: Congressional Record Vol. 168, No. 163(1), Congressional Record Vol. 168, No. 163(2)
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