OCALA, Fl (352today.com) – A podcast (and a two-part series in a local Ocala publication) led to a man whose influence can still be felt in the community today being featured in a segment in a documentary that aired in the United Kingdom.
Rev. Leroy Johnson’s impact continues to resonate throughout North Central Florida.
“[The film’s producers] wanted to find out more about it, the history of the Black culture in America and during this time period, you go from Medgar Evers, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcom X, etc…. being in the same time frame as my father during the 1960s, ’70s, ’80s and ’90s,” said Larry Johnson, Rev. Leroy Johnson’s son. “They said, ‘Your father’s life, what he did is important as well, and it should be shared on a broader scale.’ and that’s what they took from it.”
Videos from news broadcasts about Larry’s father that he distributed online, and a two-part series on 352today, first brought Johnson’s story to the broadcast company’s attention. When they took an even deeper look into what Johnson had done for the community, it became apparent that Larry Johnson was following in his father’s footsteps.
“They said, ‘Well, we can put a piece about you at the end.’ I said, ‘That’s fine, but the main focus should be on him,'” said the younger Johnson.
Larry Johnson found himself overwhelmed and surprised as his father’s story went from being one that was known locally, to a regional Central Florida narrative, and eventually reaching a national audience, to something that’s now being viewed by a broader audience on the international stage.
He has also appeared on Judge Joe Brown’s podcast talking in detail about the work his father did within the community, continuing the conversation about his legacy. The Rev. Johnson was known not only for being a business leader and community activist, but also for his generosity, though some think it was his standing up to the Ku Klux Klan that spoke most loudly about his character and integrity.
“With all of these broadcasts being on YouTube, and being replayed, my father’s story has received greater exposure,” said Larry Johnson, who added that the BBC network had sent him a copy of the broadcast. “They looked it up and the only thing that they found that was more recent were the articles on 352today. The broadcast was produced in a very proper and profound way.”
Johnson sent photos of his father and images that his father had of Ocala and the way the city used to look, that were used in the documentary.
The Rev. Johnson had also previously been featured in a documentary that aired in the United States in 2021.
“I’m going to try to do everything I can to continue his legacy and continue to let people know what he had done for this community,” said Johnson about his father. “It’s about preserving and letting people know that somebody who grew up in Ocala, came from somebody whose father was a sharecropper and made something of himself. His mindset wasn’t to work for anyone, but to work for himself. In that time period, the 1960s, trying to work for yourself, being a Black man in America, there were a lot of obstacles.”
The younger Johnson intends to write a book about his father’s life story and then make a movie about the impact his father had on Ocala. He also intends to approach the City of Ocala, to see if he can get a street named after his father.