Giving Our Thanks to Men Who Made a Way

Dr. Lonnie G. Wright, founder of The Golden Legacy 50 and a Hall of Honor award recipient for education, reflects on those who laid a path for Black excellence in Las Vegas.

“For we walk by faith, not by sight.” — 2 Corinthians 5:7

On September 25, 59 men were honored at the West Las Vegas Library: the 51 members of The Golden Legacy 50’s inaugural class and eight Hall of Honor recipients. 

Before we give thanks for what Las Vegas has become, we should remember the people whose work helped make it possible. 

There was a time when Black entertainers could fill the city’s showrooms yet be denied accommodations in the hotels where they performed. Black workers welcomed visitors, carried luggage, cleaned rooms and prepared meals while facing discrimination themselves. 

Segregation earned Las Vegas the reputation of the “Mississippi of the West.” Within that divided city, the Historic Westside became a center of Black family life, enterprise, faith and community. 

In 1960, Dr. James B. McMillan’s threatened NAACP march helped secure the Moulin Rouge Agreement, ending formal casino segregation. A 1971 federal consent decree expanded employment opportunities for Black workers. 

But discrimination alone cannot tell our story. We must also remember the pride. As someone who was part of that hospitality culture, I saw it every day. 

Bob Bailey, the Moulin Rouge’s master of ceremonies and a television pioneer, showed me what a Black man in this city could be: gifted, educated, dignified and determined. His example stayed with me. When I look at our honorees, I see men who became that example for someone else. That is how a legacy passes from one generation to the next. 

Entertainers drew audiences; workers helped make their visits memorable. Their service helped build the city’s reputation for hospitality. 

Our honorees carry that story forward. Hall of Honor recipient Chief Dave Washington became the city’s first Black fire chief in 2001. Others advanced education, business, faith, military service and hospitality. 

Behind their accomplishments were families to support, children to raise and sacrifices rarely reflected in a professional title. Breaking a barrier meant someone else might have a better chance of walking through the door. 

This November, as we honor military veterans and gather in thanksgiving, we recognize service in its many forms. We salute those who served our country, strengthened our neighborhoods and taught younger generations how to persevere. 

Our responsibility continues beyond the Summit. Flowers Filmworks, led by Kim Flowers and Mel Jackson, is recording these men’s stories, with Kim conducting the interviews. We are preserving their wisdom online so families and future generations can learn from the people behind this city’s progress. 

Giving thanks begins with recognition. It continues when we listen, preserve what we learn and pass it forward. 

These men helped make a way. Let us make sure the generations coming behind them know it. 

Subscribe to The Golden Legacy 50 Network on YouTube and learn more at GoldenLegacy50.com. Editorial development and refinement by Mel Jackson, Marguerona Value Partners.