Dr. Leon H.
Sullivan
October 16, 1922 - April 24, 2001
On a
cold Sunday morning, January
26, 1964, the
very first OIC opened in Philadelphia, PA.
135 men and 165 women joined the organization, training in
typing, drafting, electronics, machine tooling, culinary
arts and hospitality.
The OIC movement has grown from that first class of young
adults, meeting in an old
jailhouse-turned-job-training-center, to
60 affiliates in 30 states across the country and the
District of Columbia.
Sullivan's work was built on the
principle of "self-help",
which provides people with the tools to help themselves
overcome barriers of poverty and oppression. African
Americans had been excluded from the types of training
which led to better paying jobs. Sullivan realized that
simply making jobs available was not enough. He said,
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I found that we needed training. Integration without preparation is frustration. |
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