FORT WORTH, Texas — At 95 years old, Opal Lee is simply trying to figure out how to help the next person.
In her lifetime, Lee has witnessed some of the worst of humanity, seeing her home attacked by an angry mob, attending segregated schools and becoming an educator because that was one of the few professions she saw available for Black women.
But in the same lifetime, the “Grandmother of Juneteenth” stepped up and has spent decades aiding her Fort Worth neighbors who were hungry or homeless. She played a key role in gaining national recognition for a momentous moment in Black history — the celebration of independence for Black Americans on Juneteenth — and is now nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize. Thirty-three members of Congress, led by U.S. Rep. Marc Veasey, D-Texas, signed Lee’s nomination letter.
