Death of Sentinel publisher mourned

Published: Thursday, December 4, 1997

Wednesday, December 3, 1997

OBITUARY:

Leader of African American community in L.A. touched many lives throughout his careerBy Victor Patton

Daily Bruin Contributor

This Monday, members of Los Angeles's African American community visited the headquarters of the Los Angeles Sentinel to give condolences and express grief and devastation at the loss of one of the most respected members of the African American community, Sentinel publisher and chief executive officer Kenneth Thomas. Thomas passed away Friday morning from respiratory distress. He was 68.

"Ken Thomas proved the truth of the statement, 'The pen is mightier than the sword.' He proved the truth of the statement of Jesus, 'You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free,'" said Rev. Cecil Murray of South Central Los Angeles's First African Methodist Episcopal Church, in memorial of Thomas.

"Ken and his best friend Jennifer are liberators in the best sense of the word," continued Murray. "The truth they ignited will endure beyond life and death, for it starts a fire that burns eternally in the hearts of all of God's children."

Thomas became involved with the Los Angeles Sentinel in 1983 on behalf of Ruth Washington, wife of Leon Washington, who founded the Sentinel in 1933. At the time of Thomas's arrival, the paper was in a state of disarray and behind the times in technology, remembered Virgie Washington, religious editor to the Sentinel.

Thomas, in turn, brought the Sentinel up to operating standards by supplying numerous new computers and moving the newspaper headquarters from East 43rd and Central to the heart of the African American community at 3800 Crenshaw Blvd., near the cultural and art mecca, Leimert Park.

Thomas's involvement with the L.A. community goes all the way back to the turbulent days of the Watts riots. Thomas defended and succeeded in freeing the young men who were falsely accused of inciting the riots.

Danny Bakewell, president of the Los Angeles Brotherhood Crusade, knew Thomas for over 20 years.

He brought a sense of decency, a sense of vigilance and always a sense of pride and honor in representing African Americans, making sure that the story of African American life was portrayed with a face which was different than that portrayed in the white community: a face of family; a face of justice; a face of people longing to be free but struggling against great odds, Bakewell said of Thomas.

Bakewell further stated that while the public persona of Thomas was a "very hard-hitting, focused, attentive businessman," he was at the same time a "very gregarious kind of guy, very fun-filled, and very loving, and very few people knew that side of him."

Thomas served as a delegate for the Ohio state and California state bar associations, and as former vice president of both the Los Angeles Trial Lawyers Association and the National Lawyer's Guild. Thomas also served as an advisor to the Los Angeles Fair Housing Counsel and the NAACP, and was a member of the board of the Los Angeles Urban League.

Thomas, besides being an astute publisher, lawyer and businessman, also organized events for the community such as annual Christmas parties for children and annual banquets for mothers. According to Bakewell, he was by no means an "absentee publisher," but one who "changed the newspaper from one which published news to one which made news."

Brik Booker, chief administrative officer of the Sentinel, thought of Thomas not only as a boss, but a "friend and surrogate father." Booker went further to say, "Kenneth was always ready to fight the good fight for the community. ... His legacy really extends far past the Los Angeles Sentinel. ... I cannot convey what he meant to the community with mere words. I think many people for his accomplishments view him as being a hero, but there are so many cases in which he was really an unseen and unsung hero, and he preferred it that way. He didn't care about the glory and the credit; he cared about what needed to be done in the interests of the black community. The good fight must go on, but we have lost one of our greatest warriors."

Geraldine Washington, president of the Los Angeles NAACP, described Thomas as "a stalwart for anything which was in the best interests of the African American community; he was very much concerned about freedom, fairness, the opportunity for all people to enjoy the provisions of the Constitution, and worked tirelessly to present that point of view.

"The thing that I admired most about him was the fact that he was always interested in the pursuit of equal opportunity and justice, and that's the way that he lived his life, through his profession as a lawyer and his work with the Los Angeles Sentinel. This community, city and state will certainly miss Kenneth Thomas. His passing has left such a void, and it is certainly going to be difficult to fill that void."

Thomas is survived by his wife Jennifer and daughter Maria. Friends and family can pay their respects at Angela's Funeral Home on Crenshaw Boulevard today from 8:30 a.m. to 9 p.m., and at the First African Methodist Episcopal Church at 2270 Harvard St. in South Central Los Angeles today at 9 a.m. Funeral services will begin 10 a.m. Friday at the First African Methodist Episcopal Church. Thomas will be laid to rest at Forest Lawn in the Hollywood Hills.

Kenneth Thomas