The Amazing Lucy Diggs Slowe

Lucy Diggs Slowe

A Tennis player's ability to excel in the face of difficult and daunting challenges leaves us “mere mortals” in awe.  When watching Coco Gauff showcase an amazing arsenal of backhand passing shots. In all thing’s tennis, she is iconic. However, let’s suppose that not only could Gauff play championship-level tennis and

earn several advanced degrees in various fields of study, but also become an esteemed professor at a major university and establish an organization that would impact the lives of people for generations. As much as we admire him now, his name deserves recognition beyond the sports world. What if I told you that such a tennis champion did exist? What makes this person’s story even more incredible is that she achieved these milestones at a time when such accomplishments would have been considered impossible, even criminal, for an African American and a woman. Welcome to the amazing life of Lucy Diggs Slowe.

The seventh of seven children. Born 20 years after the end of the Civil War on the 4th of July, in Berryville, Virginia, even the origin story of Lucy Diggs Slowe was extraordinary. Her father, a farmer and restaurant owner, died before her first birthday. Sadly, her mother would also pass away soon after that. She and her siblings were parceled out to various relatives to be raised. Lucy and her sister Charlotte would live with their aunt Martha Price and move to Lexington, VA. When she was 13, they would move, again, to Baltimore, MD. A gifted student, Lucy would attend Baltimore Colored High and Training School. In 1904, she would graduate number 2 in her class. She would be the recipient of one of only two academic scholarships from the Baltimore City School Board. These awards were given out for the city’s brightest stars to attend the prestigious Howard University, the nation’s top historically black college. This was an incredible achievement due to the fact that at this time, in our nation’s history, only 1/3 of 1% of African Americans were able to attend any college, and as a black woman, it was nearly impossible. While a student at Howard, Slowe would continue to distinguish herself and accomplish many “firsts”. In 1908, she was one of the original founders of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, the first sorority founded by African American women. After graduating, at the top of her class in 1908, she would return to Baltimore and teach High School English. She would use her summers to attend Columbia University in New York and would earn her Master of Arts degree in 1915. Lucy Slowe would later return to Howard and would be appointed Dean of Women for the school, and was the first Black woman to hold that position at any American university. Of her many academic gifts and talents, she was also a fine athlete who excelled in the sport of tennis. An avid player, she would compete in tournaments through the American Tennis Association. The ATA gave African American tennis players the ability to compete since they were not allowed to play in White tennis events. In 1917, the various black tennis clubs around the country would come together for the inaugural American Tennis Association National Championships. Baltimore’s Monumental Tennis Club would be the host for this historic event. The matches would be played on the courts at Druid Hill Park. Lucy Diggs Slowe, a steady baseline player, would emerge victorious and win the very first ATA Women’s singles title. This achievement would add another “first” to her list of accomplishments. Her win would make her the first Black woman to win a national championship of any sport. Throughout her competitive tennis career, she would win 17 titles in ATA events. The success of this event would increase black participation in the

sport of tennis. It would become the single incubator of the very best black tennis players for decades.

As we take the month of February to observe the contributions of African Americans to the fabric of our nation, we have to view these accomplishments in their entirety. At a time in our history when Jim Crow legislation made racism the law, opportunities for the “American Dream” only existed as an American Nightmare for its black citizens. This is what makes the achievements of Lucy Slowe even more remarkable. As a woman of color, there was no path out of darkness for her, but she refused to let that circumstance dictate her limits.