Danny Davis: “Born the son of a railroad clerk and a school teacher, the grandson of a slave, young Percy Julian, early in his life…”

“Born the son of a railroad clerk and a school teacher, the grandson of a slave, young Percy Julian, early in his life, got ahold of Donald Adams' poem, "Seven Fold," and its charge to "Go Farther On" reigned in his spirit. In academia, racial prejudice followed him like a shadow. He was class valedictorian in 1920 from DePauw University, but still discouraged from seeking admission into graduate school because of potential racial sentiment on the part of future coworkers. He got straight A's at Harvard University, graduated in 1923. But even with his success, Julian was unable to get a teaching job at any major university because of the perception that white students would refuse to learn under a black instructor. After he received a Ph.D. degree in organic chemistry at the University of Vienna in 1931, he took a position at DePauw, his alma mater, where he collaborated with Dr. Josef Pikl and successfully created a drug which was used as a treatment for glaucoma. Although internationally recognized for his achievement, however, the color of his skin prevented him from being appointed chair of DePauw's chemistry department.”