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The Bay

The Residents Keeping South Berkeley’s Black History Alive

Ericka Cruz GuevarraMaria EsquincaJehlen HerdmanAlexander Gonzalez
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The first Black woman elected as Berkeley's vice mayor, Carole Davis Kennerly, made opening remarks during the walking tour. Tina Jones Williams, author and folklorist, leads a Black History walking tour through South Berkeley Neighborhood, the heart of the African-American community in the city, on Saturday, February 11th.  (Credit: Ximena Natera, Berkeleyside/CatchLight)

If you’ve ever driven down Sacramento Street in South Berkeley, you’ve probably seen the statue of William Byron Rumford Sr. prominently displayed on the median off Ashby Ave. Rumford was a civil rights advocate who became the Bay Area’s first African American elected to the California Legislature in 1948. He also owned the pharmacy across the street from the site of the statue. Both are stops on the South Berkeley Legacy Project’s Black History walking tour. 

The tour is led by local historian and lifelong South Berkeley resident, Tina Jones Williams. The tour highlights cultural pillars in Berkeley’s Black community amid displacement and rapid change.

Episode transcript

Guests:  Corey Antonio Rose, producer Its Been a Minute and Bria Suggs, a journalist at UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism.


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