I will let you read about Ed Dwight from an AP story (the full story is here). The super-short version is as follows: Ed Dwight was part of the first class to select astronauts. He was championed by JFK (President John F. Kennedy) and was the only Black candidate who met the difficult requirements to join.
Authorities and his colleagues ignored him. He was forced out of the program because he was not included among those who graduated from the training program into the astronaut program.
After his stint in the military, he ultimately became a famous artist. Some of his work is below the article).
At the ripe old age of 90, he was one of the first people in space via private flights on the Blue Origin flight.
“I said, ‘Oh my God, they’re letting Black people fly,’” Dwight says. “I went straight to the recruitment office and said, ‘I want to fly.’”
With that decision, Dwight set in motion a series of events that would very nearly lead to him being among the first astronauts. As Dwight progressed through the Air Force, he was handpicked by President John F. Kennedy’s White House to join Chuck Yeager’s test pilot program at Edwards Air Force Base in California’s Mojave Desert.
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That fabled astronaut breeding ground, site of “The Right Stuff,” might have turned Dwight into one of the most famous Americans and the first Black man in space. But at Edwards, Dwight was discriminated against even with Kennedy championing him. After Kennedy was assassinated, Dwight’s path to NASA disappeared and he was never selected for the space program. Dwight departed for civilian life and largely receded from history.me
It nice to hear he got his dream in space. And impressive he did it at 90.
Here is some of his art:
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