Sidney Poitier, first Black actor to win best actor Academy Award, dies at 94 -Bahamian official

Sidney Poitier, who broke through racial barriers as the first black winner of the best actor Oscar for his role in "Lilies of the Field," and inspired a generation during the civil rights movement, has died at age 94, an official from the Bahamian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Friday.

Eugene Torchon-Newry, acting director general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, confirmed Poitier's death.