LU-MRRL Lecture Series: Althea Gibson--Obstacles and Obscurity

Althea Gibson went from becoming the first African American tennis player to win a Grand Slam event to dying as an abandoned legend. In this talk, Will Sites, associate professor of journalism, will discuss how the world's first Black Grand Slam tennis player went from Lincoln University to world fame to obscurity.

Billie Jean King credits Gibson with transforming tennis. And Serena Williams said of Gibson's contributions: "For me, she was the most important pioneer for tennis. She was Black, she looked like me, and she opened up so many doors."