Jesse L. Douglas
American minister, civil rights activist and vocalist (1930-2021)
Jesse Lee Douglas Sr. (August 19, 1930 – February 17, 2021) was an American civil rights activist. He was a key figure in the planning of the successful Selma to Montgomery march.
Early life and career
Douglas was born in New Orleans on August 19, 1930. His father was Willie Lee Douglas, a chef for the United States Merchant Marine, and his mother was Isabella Douglas, a maid. He was an African American born with albinism, a trait that spared him from much of the police brutality of the era. He studied at Dillard University before transferring to and graduating from Lane College in 1959. He would later receive his Doctor of Ministry degree from the Interdenominational Theological Center in Atlanta, Georgia.
Later in his life, Douglas continued to serve in the ministry until his retirement in 2004. He served at Christian Methodist Episcopal churches across the nation until that time.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Jesse L. Douglas” is american minister, civil rights activist and vocalist (1930-2021). The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Jesse, Douglas and American, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “american minister, civil rights activist and vocalist (1930-2021)” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated May 15, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q116676931. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1930, 2021, 1959 and 2004.
A concise general-reference account can conceal disagreements about scope, terminology or the weight assigned to individual sources. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Jesse L. Douglas”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Jesse L. Douglas primary sources, Jesse L. Douglas archive and Jesse research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Jesse L. Douglas”?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Jesse L. Douglas” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.