Melvin X

Melvin X (born Melvin Bishop Williams; died June 22, 1970) was the cofounder of the Black Student Union at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in 1966.

Early life Melvin X, born Melvin Bishop Williams, was born in Texas. He moved as a young child to Richmond, California and then finally moved to Los Angeles at age 11. He attended Fremont High School before attending college at UCLA.

College and adult life Melvin attended the UCLA. He, along with a group of black athletes, cofounded the Black Student Union in 1966 to advocate for the needs of black students on campus. He served for part of his time at UCLA as the club's president. According to Melvin, "We formulated our demands before we even formulated the BSU." He described the BSU as a "vehicle" to carry demands of black students just as better conditions on campus for people of color, mainly through acknowledging and eradicating the presence of racist individuals on campus, specifically in regards to faculty. He was respected among his peers for his "integrity, his consistency, and the courage and the rage that moved him to phenomenon." He related "to all mental levels and had "developed great revolutionary savvy."

Just before Malcolm X was assassinated in 1965, Melvin joined the Organization of Afro-American Unity. Like Malcolm X, Melvin promoted the idea that the civil and political rights of African Americans would next be advanced through violence: In 1969, Melvin became the father of twin sons.

ASU at UCLA The Black Student Union at UCLA was formed in 1966 to advocate for the needs and interests of all UCLA students of African descent. Initiated largely by African-American student athletes, the organization's founding ideology was shaped by the national Civil rights movement, the 1965 Watts riots and the local manifestations of the Black Power movement which emerged in the aftermath of the death of Malcolm X. The charges were dropped after Gay submitted and passed a polygraph test on Friday, October 16, 1970. Two other men also submitted tests, as authorities attempted to find out if they had any knowledge regarding the murder. However, no useful information was pulled from these two tests.