Longtime Lexington civil rights leader PG Peeples died on Tuesday at age 80.
He served as president of the Lexington-Fayette Urban League for 50 years.
Peeples grew up in the coal mining town of Lynch in Harlan County. He was one of only about 50 Black students at the University of Kentucky in the mid-1960s.
Tributes came from Lexington Mayor Linda Gorton, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear and former University of Kentucky men’s basketball coach John Calipari.
“He championed civil rights, education, affordable housing and more and made an undeniable difference in the lives of many,” Beshear said. “This is a great loss, but his impact will be felt for generations.”
Calipari, now the head basketball coach at the University of Arkansas, said he and Peeples continued to speak weekly, including earlier this week.
“His accomplishments are too many to mention but the impact he had on people both young and old is amazing,” Calipari said. “He helped me build a program that brought people together and reached out to help people throughout the state.”
Before his long tenure at the Urban League, Peeples worked at Fayette County Public Schools.
He was an advocate for affordable housing and equality in the workplace and education. Gorton said Peeples fought to make Lexington a better place.
“I loved him dearly,” she said. “Our city is a better place because of his strong leadership.”
WEKU’s Sam Dick spoke with Peeples in 2022 as he was about to step down as Urban League president.
