A pain that never goes away

Jordan, June (1936-2002)

June Meyer Jordan, writer, editor, poet, educator, environmental and social activist, was the only child of Granville Ivanhoe and Mildred Maude Fischer Jordan who were Jamaican immigrants. June was born in Harlem on July 9, 1936. June’s father worked as a night shift postal clerk and her mother

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Source: Black Past

Jul

9

1936

African American History: Bibliography

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US Champion

Debi Thomas wins the gold medal at the United States Figure Skating Championships in Hicksville, Long Island, New York

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Jan

0

1986

Mason, Bridget "Biddy" (1818 - 1891)

Bridget “Biddy” Mason, born a slave in Mississippi in 1818, achieved financial success that enabled her to support her extended family for generations despite the fact that she was illiterate. In a landmark case she sued her master for their freedom, saved her earnings, invested in real

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Source: Black Past

Jan

19

1856

Actress Melba Moore born

Birthday of actress Melba Moore in New York city.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Oct

29

1945

Death of Bishop R. C. Lawson

Bishop R. C. Lawson died July 2, 1961 in New York

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Jul

2

1961

First Black Petition

First black legal protest in America pressed by

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Feb

0

1644

(1792) Prince Hall, “A Charge Delivered to the Brethren of the African Lodge”

Barbadian-born Prince Hall spent the first thirty five years of his life enslaved. Twenty one of those years he was owned by William Hall who brought him to Boston in 1765. Prince Hall was finally manumitted in 1770. He quickly became a leader of the small African American community in the Boston

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Source: Black Past

Sommersett, James (c1741-c1772)

James Sommersett was the subject of a landmark legal case in Great Britain, which was the first major step in imposing limits on Trans-Atlantic African slavery. Sommersett entered the pages of history when in 1771, he fled his North American owner, Charles Stewart, while both were living in

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Source: Black Past

Jun

22

1772

Owens, Major Robert (1936- )

Former New York Congressman Major Robert Owens was born on June 28, 1936 in Collierville, Tennessee. He graduated from Hamilton High School in Memphis in 1952 at the age of 16. Owens received a bachelor’s degree from Morehouse College in 1956, and an M.S. in Library Science from Atlanta

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Source: Black Past

Jun

28

1936

Elijah Muhammad, leader of the Nation of Islam

Elijah Muhammad, leader of the Nation of Islam, called for creation of a Black state in America at a New York meeting.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Jul

31

1960

(1836) James Forten, Jr. “Put on the Armour of Righteousness”

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Apr

14

1836

Bob Marley, reggae legend dies

Thursday, May 23,1981, the Honorable Robert Nesta

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Source: Blackfacts.com

May

23

1981

Ving Rhames

Ving Rhames is one of the celebrated African American film artists. He is best known for his work in Pulp Fiction, Con Air, Dawn of the Dead, Mission: Impossible film series and Bringing Out the Dead. In 1998, he was awarded Golden Globe for his remarkable performance in a TV miniseries, Don

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Source: Black History Resources

May

12

1959

Nation, Carry Moore

Nation, Carry Moore, 1846–1911, American temperance advocate, b. Garrard co., Ky. During her childhood her family moved a great deal, finally settling at Belton, Mo., where she married (1867) Charles Gloyd, a physician. She abandoned Gloyd when he became a hopeless alcoholic, and in 1877 she

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Source: Fact Monster - Black History

Grace Jones, born

Eccentric model and singer Grace Jones born in Spanishtown, Jamaica

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Source: Blackfacts.com

May

19

1948

City University of New York had open admissions

City University of New York inaugurated open admissions policy designed to increase the number of poor and minority students.

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Aug

14

1970

Boutelle, Frazier Augustus (1840-1924)

FrazierAugustus Boutelle, army officer and conservationist, was born onSeptember 12, 1840 in Troy, New York. No significant informationexists regarding his childhood, though it is known that his fatherJames Augustus Boutelle of Fitchburg, Massachusetts was a descendent ofRevolutionary War soldier

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Source: Black Past

Baseball team

The first black professional baseball team, the Cuban Giants, was organized in 1895 by a group of New York waiters.

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Jan

0

1895

Battle, Kathleen (1948- )

American soprano Kathleen Battle was born on August 13, 1948 in Portsmouth, Ohio. Battle’s father was a steelworker and her mother was an active participant in the gospel choir at the family’s local African Methodist Episcopal Church. Battle attended Portsmouth High School and upon graduation was

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Source: Black Past

Aug

13

1948

(1797) Abraham Johnstone, “Address To The People Of Color”

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Dorothy Height - Visionary

Dorothy Height was born on this

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Mar

12

1912

Shirley Chisholm

Name at birth: Shirley Anita St. Hill

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Source: Fact Monster - Black History

Bert Williams--a Leading Comedian

At the turn of the century Bert Williams was one of Americas top comedians. Comedian Eddie Cantor called him a comic genius, W.C. Fields, a comic genius himself, once described Williams as the funniest man I ever

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Mar

4

1922

Twilight, Alexander (1795-1857)

Reputed to be the first African American in the United States to graduate from college, Alexander Twilight was born on a farm in Corinth, Vermont to a white or fair-skinned mother, Mary Twilight, and a mixed-race father, Ichabod Twilight, who had served as a private in the American Revolution. The

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Source: Black Past

Jun

19

1857

Cuba

A Soviet attempt to install medium-range missiles in Cuba—capable of striking targets in the United States with nuclear warheads—provoked a crisis in 1962. Denouncing the Soviets for “deliberate deception,” President Kennedy promised a U.S. blockade of Cuba to stop the missile

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Source: Fact Monster - Black History

Williams, Camilla (1919-2012)

Professional opera singer Camilla Williams was born October 18, 1919 in Danville, Virginia to Fannie Carey Williams and Cornelius Booker Williams. The youngest of four siblings, Williams began singing at a young age and was performing at her local church by age eight. At age 12, she began taking

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Source: Black Past

Jan

29

2012

Terrence Howard

Terrence Howard is a celebrated American actor known for his strong performances in movies such as “Hustle & Flow” and “Ray & Crash”. He was born on March 11, 1969 in Chicago, Illinois to Tyrone Howard and Anita Williams. He came from a family of actors; his maternal

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Source: Black History Resources

Mar

11

1969

City of Richmond v. J.A. Croson Co. (1989)

? APPEAL FROM THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 87-998. Argued October 5, 1988 Decided January 23, 1989 Appellant city adopted a Minority Business Utilization Plan (Plan) requiring prime contractors awarded city construction contracts to subcontract at least 30%

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Source: Black Past

Gale Sayers

Gale Sayers was born on May 30, 1943, in Kansas to a family whose only bread winner was an auto mechanic. In 1951, Sayers and his family moved to Omaha where he grew up to an athletic child and showed natural ability in a number of sports, especially American

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Source: Black History Resources

May

30

1943

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