NEW YORK (AP) — Misty Copeland, the Missouri-born ballerina who’s become a forceful voice for diversity in ballet and achieved a celebrity that far transcends that rarified world, was named principal dancer at American Ballet Theatre on Tuesday — the first African-American woman to reach that status in the company’s 75-year history. Copeland, 32, fought […]
NEW YORK (AP) — Bravos, bouquets and most of all a clear sense of history reigned at the Metropolitan Opera House on Wednesday as Misty Copeland made her New York debut in “Swan Lake,” a key moment for the popular ballerina whom many hope will soon become the American Ballet Theater’s first black principal dancer. […]
Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray was a feminist and civil rights icon, blazing a trail for racial and gender equality in a time where women, especially Black women, were seen as woefully inferior. The late Rev. Murray might be best known to some as the first African-American woman to be ordained a Episcopal priest, but […]
Marian Wright Edelman has made her mark on history in a variety of ways as an advocate for the rights of children and families. Edelman founded the Children’s Defense Fund in the early ’70’s, and still remains passionate about her mission to this day. Edelman was born in Bennettsville, S.C. on June 6, 1939. […]
Misty Copeland has become a household name as a standout dancer for the prestigious American Ballet Theatre company. Although she is often billed as the ABT’s first African-American soloist, Copeland acknowledges that she is actually the second and that the overlooked Nora Koito Kimball-Mentzos was the first to achieve the feat. Ballet historians often […]
Poet, author, and educator Rita Dove is the nation’s first Black United States Poet Laureate, although some historians would give that distinction to Robert Hayden. However, Dove is the first to hold what was previously known as the Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress position before it was changed to its current […]
Dr. Claudia L. Thomas made history when she became the first Black woman orthopaedic surgeon in the United States in 1980. Today, Dr. Thomas is a partner in an all-Black orthopaedic practice and inspires others as a speaker, author and public figure. Thomas was born in Brooklyn, New York, attending the famous High School […]
While Tiger Woods is certainly the most famous Black figure in the sport of golf today, credit should given to several pioneers before him. Calvin Peete, who was the most successful Black PGA Tour player before Woods, died last Wednesday. Peete was born July 18, 1943 in Detroit, Mich. As a young boy, he […]
Lloyd McClendon stands alone in Major League Baseball as the sport’s only Black manager. While Black players only make up around 10 percent of the MLB, McClendon’s position is still noteworthy as he continues to follow a path constructed by other Black baseball greats. McClendon, a 56-year-old native of Gary, Ind., was a star […]
Harvard Law and History Professor Annette Gordon-Reed made history on April 20, 2009 by becoming the first Black person to win the coveted Pulitzer Prize for History. Gordon-Reed’s research on the relationship between President Thomas Jefferson and his slave Sally Hemings changed the historical context of the pair’s long-rumored union. A native of Livingston, […]
Opera is an arena dominated by Europeans, but Blacks have made their mark on it as well. Robert McFerrin Sr. was the first to sing in an opera at New York’s Metropolitan Opera in 1955. The late baritone, who is the father of vocalist extraordinaire Robert “Bobby” McFerrin Jr., paved the way for the […]
Despite the various contributions made by Black people to the city of Chicago, the Windy City has only had one Black mayor. The late Harold Washington served as Chicago’s mayor for one full term, and was set to embark on his second when he died unexpectedly while still in office. Born April 15, 1922, […]
