Born: 27 April 1906, United States
Died: 6 May 1983
Country most active: United States
Also known as: NA
The following bio was written by Emma Rosen, author of On This Day She Made History: 366 Days With Women Who Shaped the World and This Day In Human Ingenuity & Discovery: 366 Days of Scientific Milestones with Women in the Spotlight, and has been republished with permission.
In 1961, President Kennedy acknowledged Alice Dunnigan as the first African American White House correspondent after two years of being ignored. She became the first Black woman in the Senate and House of Representatives press galleries.
Alice Allison Dunnigan (1906 – 1983) began her journalistic career at 13 when she started writing for the Owensboro Enterprise. She worked as a teacher in Kentucky public schools and, noticing a lack of awareness of African American contributions to the state, prepared “Kentucky Fact Sheets” to supplement required texts. In 1947, she became the chief of the Washington bureau of the Associated Negro Press, and in 1948, she became a White House correspondent, covering President Harry S. Truman’s campaign trip in 1948.
Throughout her career, Dunnigan faced racial discrimination, including being barred from certain establishments and facing racial slurs while covering events. Despite these challenges, she was known for her straight-shooting reporting style, asking tough questions about race issues.
Dunnigan’s career also involved work as an education consultant, and she received numerous journalism awards. She authored books like “The Fascinating Story of Black Kentuckians” and her autobiography, “A Black Woman’s Experience: From Schoolhouse to White House.”