Shazanta Brashear rose to fame as one of the children of Carl Brashear, the first black Master Deep-Sea Diver of the US Navy. Shazanta had three younger siblings from his parents Carl Brashear and Junetta Wilcoxson. If you want to find out more about Shazanta Brashear, keep on reading.
Personal life of Shazanta Brashear
Carl Brashear and his first wife, Junetta Wilcoxson welcomed their firstborn Shazanta Brashear on March 17, 1955. His birthplace is Queens, New York. Shazanta’s parents tied the knot in 1952 but split after being together for 26 years. Their relationship ended in 1978. The couple had three more children, Dwayne, Phillip and Patrick.
Shazanta Brashear and his wife Phyllis Marie walked down the aisle in Portsmouth, Virginia and said their vows on December 12, 1980. The couple had only one son, Randy. At the age of 41, Shazanta Brashear passed away, preceding his parents on July 13, 1996.
Career of Shazanta Brashear
Shazanta’s father was in the Navy and his mother was a homemaker. When Shazanta was three, his family moved to San Diego, California. Shazanta followed in his father’s footsteps and joined the Navy. He became a master deep-sea diver like his father. Shazanta has been deployed many times. He has served in the Persian Gulf and in Afghanistan. He has also been to many other countries, including Japan and the Philippines.
All About Carl Brashear
From the early 1900s until the end of the century, the United States Navy used deep-sea divers to salvage ships and other underwater vehicles. These divers were an elite group of Sailors who underwent rigorous training and were required to have nerves of steel. In the early days of deep-sea diving, the Navy only allowed white men to be a part of this prestigious group. But in 1948, that all changed when Carl Brashear enlisted in the Navy and became the first black man to be a Navy deep-sea diver.
Brashear was born in Kentucky, in 1931. His father was a sharecropper, and his mother was a domestic worker. He was one of the twelve children of Gonzella and McDonald Brashear. As a child, Brashear was determined to get an education and make something of himself. He was the first person in his family to graduate from high school.
After high school, Brashear enlisted in the Navy. He was assigned to be a steward, but Brashear was determined to become a deep-sea diver. He took classes to learn how to weld and repair ships and started taking diving lessons.
In 1954, the Navy began allowing black men to become deep-sea divers. Brashear was one of the first to qualify. He was assigned to the all-black salvage diving unit, which was responsible for repairing ships that had been damaged in battle.
Brashear’s career was not without challenges because of racism and discrimination. But he persevered and became one of the most respected divers in the Navy.
Conclusion
Shazanta was a family man. He was married and had only one child. He loved spending time with his small family. Shazanta was proud of his father and the legacy he had left. He was also proud of his own accomplishments. He had been a master deep-sea diver for more than 20 years. Shazanta’s father passed away in 2006 and his mother in 2015.
