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Rosa Parks.
On December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks refused to change seats on a Montgomery, Alabama, bus. On December 5, blacks began a boycott of the bus system, which continued until shortly after December 13, 1956, when the U.S. Supreme Court outlawed bus segregation in the city.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Dec
1
1955
Martins, Helvécio (1930–2005)
Helvécio grew up in the outskirts of Rio where his father’s success as a hide trader enabled a middle class upbringing. This living situation changed with the numerous labor and economic reforms of Brazilian president, Getúlio Vargas, which decimated Honório’s business. Helvécio dropped out of
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Source: Black Past
Rosa Parks
Rosa Parks married Raymond Parks, a barber, in 1932, and they remained married until his death in 1977. They had no children. Raymond Parks was born in 1903… Her hometown of Tuskegee, Alabama was home to the Tuskegee Institute, which was led for many years by Booker T. Washington. He died in
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Source: Fact Monster - Black History
Maj. Robert H. Lawrence Jr.
Maj. Robert H. Lawrence Jr. named first Black astronaut. He was killed during a training flight on December 8, 1967.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Dec
8
1967
Brown, Lee P. (1937- )
Lee Patrick Brown, known as “The Father of Community Policing,” became the first African American Mayor of Houston, Texas in
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Source: Black Past
Dec
6
1997
Maxie, Peggy Joan (1936 - )
Peggy Joan Maxie was the first black woman elected to public office in Washington State.  She served as Washington State Representative, position no. 2 in the 37th Legislative District in Seattle, from 1971 through
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Source: Black Past
Dec
1
2008
Pinchback, Pinckney Benton Stewart (1837-1921)
Pinckney Benton Stewart Pinchback was born on May 10, 1837 to parents William Pinchback, a successful Virginia planter, and Eliza Stewart, his former slave. The younger Pinchback was born in Macon, Georgia during the family’s move from Virginia to their new home in Holmes County, Mississippi.  In
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Source: Black Past
Robert Henry Lawrence, Jr. (1935-1967)
Robert Henry Lawrence, Jr., was the first African American selected to be an astronaut.  He was also a test pilot and senior United States Air Force pilot with over 2,500 flight
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Source: Black Past
Sponsored by National Black MBA Association (NBMBAA) Boston Professional Chapter
Oct
2
1935
Joseph, James A. (1935- )
James A. Joseph is a lifelong educator and public policy activist who served as the first African American U.S. ambassador to post-apartheid South Africa from 1996-1999.  Joseph has worked to promote leadership opportunities in both the corporate world and through the Federal government.  The
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Source: Black Past
Jackson, Lisa Perez (1962-- )
Lisa Perez Jackson, the first African American Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), brings a wealth of experience to that agency.  A scientist by profession, she has spent more than 20 years working as an advocate for the better use and awareness of the
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Source: Black Past
Sponsored by APEX Museum
Latasha Harlins killed
Korean store owner shoots and kills teenager Latasha Harlins in the back of the head. Despite widespread protests, the store owner is only convicted of 10 years of probation. Her store was firebombed weeks later.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by APEX Museum
Oct
9
1991
Jordan, Barbara (1936-1996)
Barbara Charline Jordan was born in Houston Texas’s Fifth Ward on February 21, 1936. She received her education in public schools in Texas and graduated from Texas Southern University in 1956 with a B.A. in political science and history. Jordan then received her LL.B. from Boston University School
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Source: Black Past
Jan
17
1996
Ozzie Smith
Osborne Earl Smith, better known as Ozzie Smith, is a retired professional baseball player who played for the San Diego Padres and St. Louis Cardinals. He was born on December 26, 1954 in Mobile, Alabama and was one of six children born to Clovi and Marvella Smith. Smith quotes his mother as being
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Source: Black History Resources
Dec
26
1954
Hunt, William Henry (1863-1951)
William Henry Hunt, African American U.S. diplomat, was born a slave in Tennessee in 1863. Hunt claimed to have been born on June 29, 1869, so he could get into school at the age of twenty-six posing as a twenty-year-old, a lie he kept to his grave. Although June 29 might have been his actual day
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Source: Black Past
Bertonneau, E. Arnold (1834-1912)
Arnold Bertonneau was a New Orleans wine merchant, black soldier, and is best known as one of the first African American participants in Louisiana’s Reconstruction period. In 1862-63, Bertonneau was a captain in the 1st Regiment of the Louisiana Native Guards. This volunteer black regiment
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Source: Black Past
1777
On December 31, 1777; George Washington reverses previous policy and allows the recruitment of black soldiers. some 5,000 participate in the Revolutionary War.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by Prospanica Boston Professional Chapter
Dec
31
1777
Tiger Woods
Tiger Woods is an American golfer and one of the most successful and highly paid golfers of all time with a record streak of 264 weeks as the highest ranked player. He was born Eldrick Tont Woods on December 30, 1975, in Cypress, California to Earl and Kultida Woods and nicknamed
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Source: Black History Resources
Dec
30
1975
Reginald F. Lewis
Lewis was born on this day in Baltimore, Maryland. He received his law degree from Harvard Law School in 1968. He was a partner in Murphy, Thorpe & Lewis, the first Black law firm on Wall Street. In 1989 he became president and CEO of TLC Beatrice International Holding Inc. With TLCs leverage
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Dec
7
1942
Kenya
As the 2013 presidential election approached, many feared a repeat of the deadly violence that plagued the disputed 2007 race and left about 1,300 dead. Those fears did not play out in the tight race between top contenders Prime Minister Odinga and Uhuru Kenyatta, the richest man in the country and
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Source: Fact Monster - Black History
Sponsored by Christo Rey New York High School
Jones, John Melvin (1944- )
John Melvin Jones was appointed U.S. Ambassador to Guyana in 2008.  Nominated by President George W. Bush on June 30, 2008, he was confirmed by the U.S. Senate and arrived in Georgetown, the capital of Guyana, on October 8 of that year.  Due to health issues, the result of injuries sustained while
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Source: Black Past
South africa
Under pressure from leaders the African National Congress (ANC), Mbeki announced he would step down just days after Zuma was cleared. While party leaders cited Mbekis alleged interference in the corruption case against Zuma, Mbekis resignation culminated several years of bitter infighting between
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Source: Fact Monster - Black History
Kofi Annan
Born: 4/8/1938 Kumasi, GhanaKofi Annan is a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh Secretary-General of the United Nations from January 1997 to December 2006. Annan and the United Nations were the co-recipients of the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize for their work for a better organized and more
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by Greater Boston Veterans Collaborative
Mallory, Mark (1962-- )
On December 1, 2005, Mark Mallory was sworn in as the first black mayor elected by popular vote in Cincinnati, Ohio.  Three other black mayors preceded him but were chosen by the City Council.  Born on April 2, 1962, and raised on the West End of Cincinnati, Mallory attended high school at the
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Source: Black Past
Franklin, Shirley Clarke (1945- )
Shirley Clarke Franklin became Atlanta, Georgia’s first African American female mayor in 2001, as well as the first woman to be a mayor of a major southern city.  Clarke was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on May 10, 1945 to parents Eugene Haywood Clarke and Ruth Lyons Clarke.  She attended
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Source: Black Past
Dec
10
2009
Folorunsho Alakija
Born: 5/4/1905 Ikorodu, NigeriaFolorunsho Alakija is a Nigerian businesswoman who is the second richest African woman after Isabel Dos Santos and also the third richest woman of African descent in the world. She is a business tycoon involved in the fashion, oil and printing industries.She is the
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by Pride Academy
Black History Month on BlackPast.org
Every month is Black History Month here at BlackPast.org.  Nonetheless we recognize that hundreds of thousands of our visitors specifically seek out the website for information on African American history during the month of February.   We have gathered much of that data that may be helpful for
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Source: Black Past
Stewart, William P. (1839–1907)
William P. Stewart, a Civil War veteran, was also an early black settler in Snohomish County, Washington. Stewart was born on December 9, 1839, as a free person of color to Walden and Henrietta Stewart in Sangamon County, Illinois. He had five other siblings, four brothers and one sister, and was
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Source: Black Past
Sponsored by Massachusetts Black Lawyers Association (MBLA)
Feb
1
1865
born 20 December 20, 1957, Detroit, Michigan, USA.Soul singer
born 20 December
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Dec
20
1957
Bill Russell named head coach of the Boston Celtic
Bill Russell named head coach of the Boston Celtics, becoming the first African American to coach an NBA team.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by New York University
Mar
28
1966
Black History Month 2014: 101 African American Firsts
Click Here For Previously Posted Annual Black History Month Projects on BlackPast.org
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Source: ThoughtCo
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