First Black Elected to the General Assembly

Jeter, Howard Franklin (1947- )

Howard Jeter, U.S. Ambassador to Botswana and later to Nigeria, was born in Maple Ridge, Union County, South Carolina on March 6, 1947 to James Walter Jeter, Jr. and Emma Mattocks Jeter. Howard Jeter first attended school in a one-room schoolhouse in Maple Ridge. The school had no

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Source: Black Past

Mar

6

1947

Lerone Bennett, Jr. was born on this day.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Oct

17

1928

Patrick Ewing

Patrick Ewing is a retired professional NBA basketball player. He was born on August 5, 1962 to Carl and Dorothy Ewing in Kingston, Jamaica and moved to the U.S. when he was 12 years old. During his childhood he preferred to play cricket and soccer, but learned to play basketball at high school. He

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Source: Black History Resources

The Southern Negro Youth Congress: A Participant Recalls Its Past

In the article below historian Gwendolyn Midlo Hall recounts her role as a founder of the New Orleans Youth Congress and the early years of the Southern Negro Youth Congress. This account is part of her soon to be published

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Source: Black Past

Nov

15

1974

Actor Louis Gossett Jr. born

Actor Louis Gossett, Jr. was born in Brooklyn, NY. Gossett won an Academy Award for his role in the movie An Officer and a Gentleman.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

May

27

1936

Johnson, Magic

Johnson, Magic (Earvin Johnson, Jr.), 1959–, African-American basketball player, b. Lansing, Mich. After winning the national championship with Michigan State Univ. (1979), he joined the Los Angeles Lakers and with them won five National Basketball Association championships

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Source: Fact Monster - Black History

Award-Winning Literary and Scholarly Works by African Americans (to 2013)

The following is a list of major awards won by African Americans for literary, journalistic, and scholarly writing compiled by San Diego State University Librarian Robert Fikes, Jr. The list includes all awards earned by these writers for fiction and non fiction. Links to specific prizes appear

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Source: Black Past

Wilson, August

Wilson, August, 1945–2005, American playwright and poet, b. Pittsburgh as Frederick August Kittel. Largely self-educated, Wilson first attracted wide critical attention with his Broadway debut, Ma Raineys Black Bottom (1984), a play set in 1927 that dramatizes the clash between the blues diva

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Source: Fact Monster - Black History

Milton Olive, Jr. Receives Award

Milton Olive, Jr. awarded Congressional Medal of Honor for bravery in Vietnam.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Apr

21

1966

Jackson, Jesse Louis

Jackson, Jesse Louis, 1941–, African-American political leader, clergyman, and civil-rights activist, b. Greenville, S.C. Raised in poverty, he attended the Chicago Theological Seminary (1963–65) and was ordained a Baptist minister in 1968. Active in the civil-rights movement, he became a close

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Source: Fact Monster - Black History

Baldwin, James (1924-1987)

James Arthur Baldwin, fiction writer, essayist, dramatist, and poet, was born on August 2, 1924 in Harlem, New York during the Harlem Renaissance. After graduating from DeWitt Clinton High School in the Bronx in 1942, he began his formal career as a writer. Baldwin was inspired by Richard

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Source: Black Past

Aug

2

1924

Coleman Young

Young was married twice: to Marion McClellan (1947-54) and then to Nadine Drake (1955-1960)… In 1989, when he was 71 years old, Young was sued by a former girlfriend named Annivory Calvert, who said Young was the father of her six-year-old son. Paternity tests confirmed the charge and Young agreed

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Source: Fact Monster - Black History

(1870) Henry O. Wagoner, Jr., Celebrates The Ratification Of The 15th Amendment To The United States Constitution

In May, 1870, Henry O. Wagoner, Jr., the twenty year old son of one of black Denvers leading civil rights advocates, was given the rare privilege of addressing a local audience gathered to celebrate the ratification of the 15th Amendment to the United States Constitution. Wagoner congratulated the

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Source: Black Past

May

4

1870

Burroughs, Jr., John Andrew (1936–2014)

John Andrew Burroughs, Jr. was an equal opportunity advocate and diplomat who was born in Washington, D.C. on July 31, 1936. He spent his youth in Washington, D.C. before moving to the Midwest to attend the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa. While there he played on the varsity football

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Source: Black Past

Adam Clayton Powell, Jr., politician and civil rights activist was born in New Haven CT

Congressman Clayton Powell, Jr., politician and civil rights activist was born in New Haven, Conn.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Nov

29

1908

Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church [Harlem] (1796- )

Mother African MethodistEpiscopal Zion (AME) Church, founded in 1796, is currently located in Harlem, New York. It is the oldest African American church inthe state of New York and was established when black parishioners left JohnStreet Methodist Church in that city. Thegroup, under the leadership

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Source: Black Past

Harry Belafonte

Harry Belafonte is an eminent African-American figure in the American entertainment industry. He is a notable singer, lyricist, actor and social activist. Belafonte came to international stardom as “King of Calypso” for his popular Caribbean musical style. He is famous for his

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Source: Black History Resources

Mar

1

1927

The Tuskegee Airmen on BlackPast.org

The film Red Tails which depicts the Tuskegee Airmen in World War II, opened on the weekend of January 20-21 in theaters across the nation. BlackPast.org in support of the Seattle, Washington youth violence prevention program of THE SILENT WAR and other organizations which have vowed to use this

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Source: Black Past

Muhammad Ali's Birthday

Muhammad Ali (Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr), 57 former heavyweight champion boxer. Born Lousivlle, Ky. Jan,17, 1942.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Jan

17

1942

Blayton, Jesse B., Sr. (1879-1977)

Jesse B. Blayton, Sr., was a pioneer African American radio station entrepreneur. Blayton founded WERD-AM in Atlanta, Georgia on October 3, 1949 making him the first African American to own and operate a radio station in the United

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Source: Black Past

Oct

3

1949

(1830) Rev. Peter Williams, Jr. “This is Our Country”

Fourteen years after its founding the American Colonization Society remained controversial among African Americans. By 1830 many of them opposed it and more generally the idea of forced or voluntary repatriation of blacks to Africa. One of these opponents, Rev. Peter Williams, Jr., the minister

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Source: Black Past

Jul

4

1830

Morris Brown College [Atlanta] (1885-- )

Established in 1881 and chartered by the State of Georgia in 1885, Morris Brown College is a private, liberal arts college located in Atlanta, Georgia. The school opened its doors on October 15, 1885 with 107 students and 9 teachers. Morris Brown College was founded by members of the African

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Source: Black Past

Poor People's Campaign

Martin Luther King, Jr. announced plans for Poor Peoples Campaign in Washington. He said he would lead a massive civil disobedience campaign in the capital to pressure the government to provide jobs and income for all Americans. He told a press conference that an army of poor white, poor Blacks and

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Mar

4

1968

Rev. Ralph David Abernathy born

The Rev. Ralph David Abernathy, aide to the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Southern Christian Leadership Conference figure, was born in Linden, Alabama.

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Source: Blackfacts.com

Mar

11

1926

Abel, Elijah (1810-1884)

Elijah Abel, early convert to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), was born on July 25, 1810 in Washington County, Maryland to Andrew and Delilah Abel, likely in bondage. There is some evidence that he used the Underground Railroad to escape slavery. He eventually found his way to

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Source: Black Past

Black History Month Special Feature, 2012 - Scientists and Technicians of the Manhattan Project

Scientists and Technicians of the Manhattan Project

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Source: Black Past

James Brown

Name at birth: James Joe

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Source: Fact Monster - Black History

Jackson, Jesse Louis. Jr. (1965- )

Jesse Jackson, Jr., an African American Congressman, represented Illinois’ Second Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives from December 12, 1995 to November 21, 2012. On March 11, 1965, in Greenville, South Carolina, in the middle of the voting rights campaign, Jesse

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Source: Black Past

Jesse Jackson, Sr.

Once an aide to Martin Luther King, Jr., Jesse Jackson has been a political activist and public figure since the civil rights days of the 1960s. Jackson, a Baptist minister, is the founder of the non-profit organization PUSH (People United to Save Humanity). In the 1980s he was a regular presence

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Source: Fact Monster - Black History

Sammy Davis Jr.

Samuel George “Sammy” Davis, Jr. simply known as Sammy Davis Jr., was an acclaimed American entertainer of the 20th century. Born in Harlem, New York on December 8, 1925, Davis spent the better half of his life enjoying the rare skill of making other people happy. While he was primarily

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Source: Black History Resources

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