Dr' Percy Lavon Julian

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Dr. Percy Lavon Julian

• Chemist and Pioneer for treatment of glaucoma in
  African Americans

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Challenges

• Racial Inequality in the South
• Moving
• Hate Crimes and Violence

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Basic Educational Hurdles

• Family history in education
• Had to dig ditches to pay for college
• Denied admittance to college prep in the south
• Discouraged by college professors

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Advancing Blacks in Society

• Worked Hard to raise the level of education
  received by blacks
• Worked at a prominently black school
• Moved to Austria to avoid racial prejudices

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Professional Obstacles

• Rejected from Harvard
• DePauw Board of trustees deny his professorship
• Racist community closes the door

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Career Accomplishments

• Perfected physostigmine for glaucoma
• Developed artificial sex hormones
• Used organic compounds from soy to develop new
  products
• Created food supplements from soybeans
• Made cheaper and easier drugs from plants
• Over 100 patents and 50 reports

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Significance of Contributions

• Tore down racial barriers
• Modeled success for other minority scientists
• Earned recognition from the American Chemical
  Society
• New Products developed after him resulted in over
  160 patents

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Passing the Baton

• Supervisor of the Research division
• Inspired by co-worker Ernst Spath
• Motivated the civil rights movement
• Found his own company, employing and teaching
  research scientists

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Remembering a hero

• Honored in Oak Park, Illinois
• US Postal Service
• National Academy of Sciences
• American Chemical Societies