Civil rights pioneer Willis Edwards dies at 66

Source: CNN

Willis Edwards, longtime president of the Beverly Hills/Hollywood branch of the NAACP and key to launching the NAACP Image Awards on national television, died Friday in Mission Hills, California, according to a spokeswoman for Providence Holy Cross Medical Center.

Edwards, born in Texas and raised in Palm Springs, California, was 66.

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Edwards became active in politics while attending California State University, Los Angeles, according to TheHistoryMakers.com, which preserves the life stories of thousands of African-Americans.

Edwards served on the Social Services Commission after Tom Bradley was elected Los Angeles mayor, according to Lauren Tobin, a spokeswoman for the Edwards family.

Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2012/07/13/us/naacp-leader-dies/index.html