Because he served humanity in many ways, the legacy of Dr. Silas Norman Jr. is felt today
'A driving force for diversity, fairness and compassion.'
That is how many people described Dr. Silas Norman Jr. (May 25, 1941-July 17, 2015) during his lifetime. And a comprehensive study of Black history makers that impacted Detroit and beyond would not be complete without paying tribute to Norman, a former longtime faculty member at Wayne State University and so much more.
During a purposeful life well lived, Norman's work as a civil rights activist in the 1960s led to the desegregation of city buses in his hometown of Augusta, Georgia. This followed a student protest led by Norman during his sophomore year at Paine College, also located in Augusta.
Later, as a graduate student attending the University of Wisconsin, Norman returned to the South during the summer of 1964 to work for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee's (SNCC) Selma Literacy Project, in Alabama, which helped citizens pass voter registration tests that had been used to disenfranchise Black voters. But Norman was not done there, as he would become the director of SNCC's Alabama project and co-founder of the Poor People's Corporation, an initiative that helped sharecroppers start businesses when banks refused to lend them money.
Then there were the many good works that Norman performed in metro Detroit after graduating from Wayne State University's School of Medicine in 1976. As a faculty member at Wayne State, Norman became an assistant professor of internal medicine and was later appointed assistant dean for admissions in 2003, and associate dean for admissions, diversity and inclusion in 2010. However, Norman, a past recipient of the 'Trailblazer Award' presented by Wayne State's School of Medicine, often extended his service to reach people in need off campus, too. A few examples include his service as a physician to the State of Michigan Prison System, where Norman delivered the highest standard of care to inmates and staff; serving as a consultant to the Detroit Health Care for the Homeless project, and chairing the Detroit-based Community Health Awareness Group, Inc.
And the impact of Norman's life can still be felt today in metro Detroit, particularly through the Black United Fund (BUF) of Michigan's Future Docs for Tomorrow: Silas Norman Medical Scholars (SINORMS) Academy, which also demonstrates how Norman often converted words into meaningful actions.
'The program began with conversations that took place between Dr. Norman and Ruth Smith at Hartford Memorial Baptist Church for an extended period of time,' explained Dr. Linda Cobb-McClain, program director for BUF of Michigan. 'They identified the need to introduce and expose Black youths to the medical field at a younger age — before high school.'
On Thursday afternoon, BUF of Michigan President and CEO Kenneth Donaldson took pride in explaining how the program supports the overall mission of his nonprofit, which is celebrating its 55th anniversary.
"SINORMS is indeed a shining example of why the Black United Fund of Michigan made the crucial decision to refocus its mission in 2016,' Donaldson said about the program that also has received volunteer assistance from Norman's sons — Dr. Silas Norman III and Michael Norman, an attorney. 'Empowering underrepresented and underserved youth is not simply a noble goal, it is an investment in our future. And through SINORMS, we are equipping and nurturing the next generation of doctors, scientists and medical technicians.'
Donaldson's words are already beginning to come to life through students like Adanna Nwamba, one of the earliest SINORMS participants when the program was launched in 2019. Today, Nwamba is a freshman at Wayne State University and a recipient of the Wayne Med-Direct scholarship, which covers full tuition and fees in both undergraduate and medical school years and on-campus room and board during the undergraduate years.
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'My mom made sure I was involved in a lot of programs, but the BUF program was one of the only programs that focused on younger students,' said Nwamba, an aspiring pediatrician and a 2024 graduate of Cass Technical High School, who spoke Thursday in between classes on the campus of Wayne State, where she had a 4.0 grade point average during the fall semester. 'The main thing about the program was the support and networking, which gave you a chance to shadow a physician as an eighth or ninth grader.
'Youths are often neglected or limited, but to have the opportunity to exceed those boundaries because people believe in you just makes me feel really happy.'
And 'happy' would describe the mood of Alice McAlister Tillman on Thursday when asked to reflect on the enduring legacy of Norman, someone Tillman had the chance to admire through his passionate involvement in several arenas, including the arts, as a member of the nationally renowned Brazeal Dennard Chorale.
'Dr. Norman was an extraordinary person on so many levels. And his rich, resonate, profoundly deep bass voice was memorizing and simply the gold standard as he performed in the bass section of the Chorale alongside his bass brothers,' recalled Tillman, a versatile and celebrated soprano in her own right, who today is the artistic director of the Brazeal Dennard Chorale. 'Silas also utilized his voice as an orator and was the narrator in Adolphus Hailstork's 'Done Made My Vow' performed by the Brazeal Dennard Chorale and the Detroit Symphony Orchestra during a Classical Roots concert presentation.'
Tillman says Norman's desire to help and inspire young people equaled the power of his musical performances, just in a different way.
'Silas was a very humble man, but he had an incredible love for young people and dedicated himself to them,' Tillman said about Norman, who also was an older brother of the late world-famous opera singer Jessye Norman. 'People used to ask Silas when he was going to retire (from Wayne State) and he would always say, 'I have to get this next class through.' He was totally committed to helping young people and his voice and his actions live on.'
Scott Talley is a native Detroiter, a proud product of Detroit Public Schools and a lifelong lover of Detroit culture in its diverse forms. In his second tour with the Free Press, which he grew up reading as a child, he is excited and humbled to cover the city's neighborhoods and the many interesting people who define its various communities. Contact him at stalley@freepress.com or follow him on Twitter @STalleyfreep. Read more of Scott's stories at www.freep.com/mosaic/detroit-is/. Please help us grow great community-focused journalism by becoming a subscriber.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: The legacy of Dr. Silas Norman continues to touch Detroit youths today
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