Dr. Carla and Cleophus Thomas, Jr., Esq.
F ew have achieved the recognition in Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc., that Cleophus Thomas, Jr., Esq. (Epsilon Epsilon 1974) has. He is the 4th Guy L. Grant Awardee, the 77th Elder Watson Diggs Awardee and the 77th Laurel Wreath Laureate. He is currently Kappa Alpha Psi’s General Counsel. Few names in the fields of law, education, and African American cultural preservation carry the weight of Cleophus Thomas Jr., Esq. and Dr. Carla Thomas. Their lifelong dedication to community service, education, and the arts has led to the establishment of the Cleophus Thomas Jr. and Carla Thomas Library for the Study of African
American Art, a resource dedicated to the preservation and exploration of Black artistic expression. “It is not what, but who inspired the establishment of the library,” Brother Thomas reflects. “Professor David Driskell inspired it. Carla and I were faithful annual donors to the fund at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta that supported the David Driskell Prize and related activities. What Professor Driskell saw was that this great project was important, but so was supporting the Driskell Center. So he asked us to support a library, and we have done so.” Born in Sylacauga, Alabama, Brother Thomas graduated from Anniston High School in 1973 before attending the University of Alabama (UA). His groundbreaking election as the first African American Student
Government Association president in 1976 set the stage for a lifetime of lead- ership. He later became the first Black member of UA’s board of trustees, serving for an impressive 19 years. After earning a George C. Marshall Scholarship, Thomas attended Oxford University in England, obtaining a degree in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics in 1980. He went on to Harvard Law School, graduating in 1982, and clerked for U.S. District Judge J. Foy Guin. His legal career has included serving as chief legal counsel to Birmingham, AL businessman and civil rights icon A.G. Gaston, and today, he practices law in Anniston, AL. His wife, Silhouette Dr. Carla Thomas, is a distinguished medical professional who has dedicated her career to family and emergency medicine, as well as public health
WINTER 2023-2024 ♦ THE JOURNAL 33
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