Gary attorney and activist honored with new award

VALPARAISO | Hilbert Bradley got standing ovations coming and going as he accepted the first bestowing of a new award for contributions to racial equality and social justice in the region during Monday's Martin Luther King Jr. Day convocation at Valparaiso University.

The retired Gary attorney received the university's inaugural Andrew Schulze Award for the long-term positive impact he has created throughout the region.

In 1947, Bradley was the first African-American admitted to the Valparaiso University School of Law, and in 1950 became its first black graduate.

In 1957 he helped create Fair Share, an organization founded to establish a political base for black candidates. And he led the Gary contingent that marched with Martin Luther King Jr. in the March on Washington in 1963.

In 1987, Bradley helped form the Indiana Coalition for Black Judicial Officials, helping to enhance the diversity of the state's judiciary. For a time, he served as an interim judge on the Lake County Superior Court.

VU President Mark Heckler thanked Bradley for his lifetime of service.

"Your alma mater is proud of you," Heckler said.

The new award honors Schulze, a white Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod pastor who began his ministry serving black mission churches in Springfield, Ill., St. Louis and Chicago. An early proponent of integration, he lived in the communities he served and worked to get black students admitted to Lutheran schools. During the early 1960s, he was among northern white clergymen arrested in the South for participating in civil rights demonstrations.

The university's annual Martin Luther King Jr. Award went to joint recipients.

The campus' annual Peace and Social Justice Symposium was recognized for promoting civic engagement, social responsibility and social action.

History professor Alan Bloom was recognized for his efforts to make the university and city more welcoming to all. He co-founded and has co-directed a mentoring program for black males, facilitated study circles on race relation classes and participated on VU's diversity concerns committee.

Bloom also serves on the city's Council on Human Relations and has been involved with Habitat for Humanity and the Coalition for Affordable Housing in Porter County.