Aubrey Radcliffe (died March 27, 2009) was a Black American educator and political activist who served on the Board of Trustees at Michigan State University from 1973 until 1981.
He was involved with the Republican Party and active in local human rights organising as a member of the NAACP and the American Legion.
[3] He served in the U.S. Army from 1963 to 1965 as part of the Vietnam War, later becoming a member of the American Legion through East Lansing Post 205.
[2] He had previously served as a member of William Milliken's civil rights taskforce during his period as governor and special assistant to Michigan party chair Elly M.
[3] He was endorsed by the Detroit Free Press independent newspaper, who praised his "long record of service to his community and to education",[11] and the Lansing State Journal, who suggested his appointment would bring balance to the board.
[17] He also supported affirmative action in the university's hiring processes: he blocked the 1979 appointment of Robert F. Banks as an assistant provost due to the lack of black or minority staff members on his team when serving as dean of MSU's James Madison College, as well as recent revelations that there were very few women or minorities in MSU's upper executive ranks.
[21] He accused the state's Republican leadership of racism and suggested that they should have nominated a Black candidate in his place if they had opposed him for reasons external to his race.