Richard Allen, founder of the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, died at age 71. A visionary religious leader and former enslaved man, Allen was nominated by author Vernon Loggins as the “Father of the Negro.” In 1816, Allen and representatives from four other Black Methodist congregations united to form the AME Church, the first independent Black denomination in the United States. Allen became its first bishop, laying a foundation for Black religious autonomy and social activism.
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