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Saving Stories: P.G. Peeples and the enduring belief of 'passing the baton'

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PG Peeples gives a talk on the history of the Urban League at the Lexington Public Library - February 2020
Alan Lytle
PG Peeples gives a talk on the history of the Urban League at the Lexington Public Library - February 2020

In this edition of WUKY's Saving Stories, Nunn Center Director Dr. Doug Boyd shares audio from two oral history interviews with former Urban League of Lexington president P.G. Peeples who recently passed away at the age of 81. Both audio clips take you inside the mind of one of Kentucky's most influential civil rights and community leaders.

P.G. Peeples was born in Lynch, Kentucky, the son of a coal miner. And after earning his degree from the University of Kentucky and beginning a career as a teacher, he joined the Urban League of Lexington and eventually led that organization for more than 50 years. The Nunn Center has 23 interviews with P.G. Peoples.

This first excerpt comes from an interview in 1993 conducted by Terry Birdwhistle. P.G. is reacting to the fact that his principal in Lynch, Kentucky made predictions and recommendations for the graduating high school seniors and recommended that P.G. become a shoe salesman.

https://nunncenter.net/ohms-spokedb/render.php?cachefile=1993oh054_ul030_ohm.xml

Whether working in education, mentoring young people, or leading the Urban League, P.G. never lost sight of the sacrifices made by earlier generations. Twenty years after that 1993 interview he reflected on the responsibilities of leadership and the importance of carrying forward the work of those who came before him.

https://kentuckyoralhistory.org/ark:/16417/xt70zp3vwp09