1972
George Bynum
Illinois
Mr. Bynum was licensed as an apprentice barber at age 17, and continued to work while attending school. He was instrumental in organizing the Journeyman Barbers' Union Local 939, in 1946. He wrote and assisted in the passage of a Chicago city ordinance to require the use of X-rays to certify that barbers and beauty operators are free of respiratory diseases.
Bynum served seven years as secretary of the Illinois Barber Board. He was the first barber ever elected as vice president of the Illinois State Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO. He was also elected vice president of the Journeymen Barbers International Union. Bynum was inducted into the Barber Hall of Fame in 1972.