1889-1979

Asa Philip Randolph was born in Cresent City, Florida on April 15, 1889. He attended Cookman Institute in Jacksonville, Florida, before moving to New York City. In New York Randolph worked as a porter, railroad waiter, and an elevator operator.

A. Philip Randolph founded the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, a union for Black Pullman railroad car attendants. The union struggled with the Pullman Company, one of the most powerful businesses in the country, for 12 years but eventually negotiated a contract. The historic union was the first controlled by Blacks. It represented the Pullman Sleeping Car porters, who were hired after slavery's end. Their inexpensive labor was basically transplanted from plantation to the railway. The working conditions spurred these Ambassadors of Hospitality© to unite.