C. L. Dellums

Who was C. L. Dellums?

Cottrell Laurence "C. L." Dellums was one of the organizers and leaders of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters.

He was born in Corsicana, Texas on January 3, 1900, and died on December 6, 1989, in Oakland, California. He is the uncle of former Congressman and Mayor of Oakland Ron Dellums.

Dellums worked as a porter for the Pullman Company from 1924 to 1927 and was discharged in part due to his open support of unionization. In 1929, Dellums was elected vice president of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters and became president in 1966. In the 1930s, Dellums was an officer in the NAACP Branch Office in Berkeley, California.