Bootsie Neal Explained

Idotha "Bootsie" Neal (September 9, 1952[1] – January 24, 2021)[2] was a politician and developer in Dayton, Ohio and a member of the Democratic Party.

Born in Newbern, Alabama, she grew up in Buffalo, New York.[1] In 1991, she became the first African-American woman elected to Dayton's city commission, on which she served until 2004. Since then, she worked on redevelopment of Dayton's historic urban neighborhoods.[3]

She served until 2014 as president of an organization dedicated to Wright-Dunbar, the historical Dayton neighborhood that was the site of the Wright Brothers' bicycle shop and the birthplace of the African-American poet Paul Laurence Dunbar.[4]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Idotha NEAL Obituary - Death Notice and Service Information. January 27, 2021. Legacy.com.
  2. Web site: First Black woman Dayton city commissioner Bootsie Neal dies . Bonnie . Meibers . 2021-01-24 . MSN.com.
  3. Web site: Dayton Business Journal . Bootsie Neal to lead Wright-Dunbar Inc. . Dayton Business Journal . March 9, 2005 . June 11, 2012.
  4. Web site: Wright Dunbar Inc. management information page. https://web.archive.org/web/20110722105203/http://www.wright-dunbar.org/about/management-team/. dead. July 22, 2011.