Sacramento, California this weekend will have beer-flowing, music giving the needed vibes, and hugs from beer friends all over the country. The reason why is to celebrate our past, present, and exciting future. The opportunity to recognize a trailblazer like Theodore “TED” Mack has been in the planning for some time. Theodore Mack’s story is resilient and shows our upcoming brewers and breweries in planning to never give up.
Born in rural Alabama in 1930, Theodore A. (Ted) Mack, Sr. overcame numerous obstacles to become the first African American to own a brewery in the United States. After serving in the Korean War and earning a college degree while playing football at Ohio State, Mack set his sights on brewing and selling beer, believing it to be another peak to attain. Despite successfully organizing buses to the March on Washington and picketing segregated schools in Milwaukee, Mack underestimated the subtle bigotry of Middle America, the corruption of the beer industry, and the failures of the federal government that plagued his ownership of Peoples Brewing Company in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Mack's ownership of Peoples Brewing Company is an inspirational story of Black entrepreneurship, innovation, and pride at a critical time in American history.
Oak Park Brewing Co. is the host brewery for the Peoples Beer Fest October 12th-15th. The week has programming that includes, Black Label Art Show, Black Film Fest, National Black Brewer Association’s Bottle Share, Beats and Beer, and more. This also gives notice of another accomplishment to the National Black Brewers Association (_nb2a) very soon after being established this year. The organization has successfully received a Resolution for October 10th named Black Brewers Day. Ted Mack was definitely one of the inspirations for making the Resolution a reality. It’s officially passed as a resolution in Los Angeles County, the City of Sacramento, the City of Toledo, the City of Cleveland, and the state of Louisiana. I know there are many more jurisdictions to come.
Oak Park Brewing Co. has partnered with the Mack family to continue this story with the Peoples Beer collaboration, honoring Mack's legacy as a leader of CORE, the Congress of Racial Equality, and his tireless work in the civil rights movement.
photo credit: Oak Park Brewing and National Black Brewers Association via Instagram
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