Civil rights journalist and Youngstown native Simeon Booker passed away Sunday evening from pneumonia-related complications at the age of 99.

Booker died in Maryland where he lived with his wife, Carol, His son Teddy was also present. 

He was the first black reporter for the Washington Post.

Booker's coverage of the 1955 murder of 14-year-old Emmett Till in Mississippi is considered one of the most noted pieces of journalism in the era. 

In 2013, he was inducted into the National Association of Black Journalists' Hall of Fame, and in 2015 he was given the George Polk Career Award. 

Congressman Tim Ryan introduced a bipartisan bill in February nominating Booker for a Congressional Gold Medal.