Dymally: The First of His Kind

Mervyn M. Dymally was an African American educator and forty-year public servant in the state of California. As an immigrant from Cedros, Trinidad, in the British West Indies, he traveled to the US in 1946 to begin a career as a teacher of exceptional children in Los Angeles. We follow his life from schoolteacher to US Congressman, a career that takes him all around the world helping the under-served and the voiceless. His journey was not without hardship. He talks openly about the struggles and sacrifices in his personal life and professional career. We learn of the attacks on his character and attempts to take away his freedom. Former and current political figures reflect on their memories of him and credit much of their successful careers to Dr. Dymally. (Pan African Film Festival)