Did you know that Crest Toothpaste, Folgers Coffee, Bounce Fabric Softener and Safeguard Soap were all created by an African-American Man?
Dr. Herbert Smitherman
was a pioneering executive and professional chemist at Proctor &
Gamble who led the way for other African-Americans at the prestigious
company in the 1960s. He was the first black person with a doctorate
hired at Proctor & Gamble.
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With a Ph.D in physical organic
chemistry, Dr. Smitherman developed a number of incredibly popular
patents, including Crest toothpaste, Safeguard soap, Bounce fabric
softeners, Biz, Folgers Coffee and Crush soda, to name a few. Not only
are they still on the shelves, but many of them are on display at the
Cincinnati Museum Center in the featured exhibit, “America I AM: The
African-American Imprint.”
Nicknamed the “Jackie Robinson of
Proctor & Gamble,” Dr. Smitherman spent 29 years there before
turning in his labcoat to work as a professor at Wilberforce University.
But after serving at the historically black college, Smitherman turned
his attention to starting a high school called the Western Hills Design
Technology School to help black students perform better in math and
science.
A child of the south, Dr. Smitherman’s family lived
in Birmingham, Alabama, where his father served as a reverend. A young
Smitherman would see his father’s church burn down twice during their
push for voting registration and voting rights.
He died on Oct. 9, 2010.
Read more here:
http://blackhistorymonth.blackamericaweb.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=562:dr-herbert-smitherman&catid=112:general&Itemid=292
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