Fifty years ago today, dozens of Black Ohio State University students took over the school’s administration building to demand equality and justice. While the protest didn’t yield the exact results the Black Student Union sought, it helped put into motion changes at the school to meet some of those demands. On April 25, Black Student […]
The voting rights movement in Fayette County, Memphis took a major turn on this day in 1960 after it was decided in a court case that Black voters could not be barred from registering to vote. The predominately Black county became a hotbed of political activity from this point forward, leading to the creation of […]
The Medico-Chirugical Society of the District of Columbia considers itself the oldest African-American medical society in the world. It was established on April 21, 1884, and was created as an organization that could empower and galvanize Black doctors in the nation’s capital. In essence, the Med-Chi Society was born out of necessity. Between 1869 and […]
The city of Milwaukee and the state of Wisconsin is in mourning after news that the trailblazing Vel Phillips passed this past Tuesday (April 17). Among the several firsts she accomplished, Phillips was the first Black judge in Milwaukee, and the first Black Secretary of State for Wisconsin. Born Velvalea Hortense Rodgers on February 18, […]
Richard Potter is considered by most historians to be the first Black magician and the first to find fame in America. Renewed interest in the enigmatic and mysterious figure has been aroused as a result of a new book by a former dean of Princeton University that examines Potter’s life. Potter was born in 1783 […]
Donald McKayle was a pioneering dancer and choreographer who became one of the first Black men in modern dance to break the race barrier. McKayle passed away last weekend after a long career in his later life as a dance instructor and professor. McKayle was born July 6, 1930 in New York, and raised in […]
Johnnie Tillmon-Blackston helped organize one of the earliest grassroots efforts in the nation, later becoming the first woman chairperson of the now-defunct National Welfare Rights Organization. Under her leadership, the NWRO represented thousands of poor and Black residents across the country. The welfare reformer was born Johnnie Lee Percy on this day in 1926 in […]
Juanita Hall was a stage actress and singer who made history on this day in 1950. For her role in Rogers and Hammerstein’s South Pacific, Hall became the first Black person to win a Tony Award across all categories. Born Juanita Long in Keyport, New Jersey on November 6, 1901, Hall was classically trained […]
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. would be 89 years old now if his life wasn’t tragically taken in Memphis, Tennessee 50 years ago. Over the years, the dream Dr. King had for America and its children remains largely unrealized, and racial tensions along with division are higher than ever. On the eve of his […]
Gloria Davy was a soprano singer who found fame in both the states and internationally at a time when Blacks in opera was still a rarity. She is the first African-American singer to perform “Aida” in the lead role at the Metropolitan Opera. Davy was born on this day in 1931 in Brooklyn, New York. […]
Like any other American family, Black families enjoy the tradition of the summer vacation. But that was an increasingly difficult thing to do during the Jim Crow era. Thanks to the savvy of a pair of Black businessmen, Lincoln Hills County Club served as a refuge for Black families in Colorado, around the country and […]
Harriet Tubman‘s legacy remains an inspiration and her bravery in the face of oppression continues to resonate. Over the weekend, the city of Baltimore renamed a park site after the famed abolitionist, this after the removal of statues honoring figures who fought for the Confederacy. In August 2017, city officials removed four statues connected to […]
