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Quincy Jones was born
Quincy Jones, Music Impresario, Born March 14, 1933 in Chicago’s South
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by APEX Museum
Mar
14
1933
Johnnie Cochran
Johnnie Cochran was a lawyer, who handled several high profile celebrity cases. He was born on October 2, 1937 in Shreveport, Louisiana. He received his Bachelors’ degree from the University of California, Los Angeles, in 1959. Initially selling insurance policies for a living, Cochran soon began
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Source: Black History Resources
Sponsored by Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE) Boston Professional Chapter
Mar
29
2005
Race, Gender, Jazz & Local 493: Black Women Musicians in Seattle: 1920-1955
During its brief and rocky tenure from 1918 to 1924, pianist Gertrude Harvey Wright was one of four women in Seattle’s first black musicians’ union, the American Federation of Musicians’ Local 458.  Wright,  Virginia Hughes, a “Mrs. Austin,” and (Edythe) “Turnham,” all
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Source: Black Past
Lincoln Motion Picture Company
African American audiences were generally ignored by the major motion picture studios in the first two decades of the 20th Century. Nonetheless, demand for films aimed at black theaters in both the South and larger Northern cities prompted the formation of several “black” motion picture
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Source: Black Past
Sponsored by National Association of Asian American Professionals (NAAP) Boston Chapter
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
Michael Jackson
Born: 8/29/1958 Gary, IndianaDied: 6/25/2009 Los Angeles, CaliforniaMichael Jackson was an American singer, songwriter, record producer, dancer, and actor. Called the King of Pop, his contributions to music and dance, along with his publicized personal life, made him a global figure in popular
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Source: Blackfacts.com
(1948) Henry A. Wallace, “Radio Address”
Former Vice President Henry A. Wallace, Jr., in 1948 became the Presidential nominee of the Progressive Party.  Wallace ran a spirited campaign which unlike almost any before, took on the question of racial discrimination and segregation against African Americans in the South.  What follows is his
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Source: Black Past
Sep
13
1948
Mos Def
The renowned actor and rapper, Mos Def is widely known for his hip hop songs that depict a social themes and consciousness. Fans also identify his memorable performances in Hollywood flicks such as Guide to the Galaxy, The Italian Job and
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Source: Black History Resources
Dec
11
1973
The Notorious B.I.G.
The Notorious B.I.G. was an iconic East Coast rapper who released only one album during his lifetime, but rose to fame after his untimely death in a shooting incident. He was born Christopher George Latore Wallace on May 21, 1972 to Voletta Wallace and George Latore and raised in Brooklyn, New
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Source: Black History Resources
May
21
1972
The Black Settlers
Los Angeles, California, founded by forty-four settlers of whom at least twenty-six were descendants of Africans. Among the Black settlers, according to H.H. Bancrofts authoritative History of California, were Joseph Moreno, Mulatto, 22 years old, wife a Mulattress, five children; Manuel
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by National Association of Asian American Professionals (NAAP) Boston Chapter
Sep
4
1781
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
Sponsored by Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE) Boston Professional Chapter
Jan
19
1856
Gordone, Charles (1925- )
Charles Gordone was born Charles Edward Fleming on October 12, 1925 in Cleveland, Ohio to parents William and Camille Fleming.  He took his stepfather’s surname of Gordon when his mother remarried when he was five years old.  The family moved to Elkhart, Indiana, his mother’s hometown, when Charles
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Source: Black Past
Sponsored by Illinois Math and Science Academy
Nov
13
1995
Race riot in Houston
Race riot, Houston, between soldiers of Twenty-fourth Infantry Regiment and white citizens. Two Blacks and eleven whites killed. Martial law declared.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Aug
23
1917
First African Methodist Episcopal Church, Los Angeles, California, (1872- )
The First African Methodist Episcopal (FAME) Church is today the oldest and one of the largest African American congregations in Los Angeles, California. It was founded in 1872 by Bridget (Biddy) Mason who arrived as a slave in Los Angeles with her owner in 1856. However, since California was
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Source: Black Past
Sam Cook, Father of Soul Music, born.
Singer Sam Cook, the son of a minister and believed by many to be the first father of soul music, was born in Chicago, Illinois. Cook began his singing career with a gospel group known as the Singing Children. His fame came in 1965 with You and Me, Only 16, and his very famous Stand By Me and
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Jan
22
1931
Curtis Mayfield, singer born
Curtis Mayfield was born on the 3rd of june 1942 in Chicago, Illinois, where he quickly
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Jun
3
1942
Dollarhide, Douglas (1923-2008)
Douglas Dollarhide was the first African American mayor of the city of Compton, California, and a pioneer and role model for future black politicians across the state of
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Source: Black Past
Jun
28
2008
Arthur Ashe
Born: 7/10/1943 Richmond, VirginiaDied: 2/6/1993 New York City, New YorkArthur Ashe was an American World No. 1 professional tennis player. He won three Grand Slam titles, ranking him among the best tennis players from the United States.Ashe was the first black player selected to the United States
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by Concerned Black Men of Massachusetts
Little Walter is born.
The influential rhythm & blues harmonica player and singer Little Walter is born Marion Walter Jacobs in Marksville, LA, USA. His most popular records include My Babe and Juke.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by Pride Academy
May
1
1930
Bo Diddley is born.
Bo Diddley was born Ellas Bates on Sunday December 30th 1928 on a small farm near the town of McComb, Mississippi, USA, in rural Pike County, close to the Louisiana border, the only child of Ethel Wilson and Eugene Bates. He had 3 half-brothers and
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by Diversity In Action
Dec
30
1928
Andrew Young elected to Congress
On this date in 1972, Barbara Jordan of Houston and Andrew Young of Atlanta, become the first African Americans from the south elected to Congress since Reconstruction.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by Illinois Math and Science Academy
Nov
17
1972
Death of artist Charles White (61), in Los Angeles
Death of artist Charles White (61), in Los Angeles.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Oct
3
1979
John Edward Jacob
Born in Trout, Louisiana on this day, John Edward Jacobs was raised in Houston, Texas. Jacobs served the Urban League in many capacities and in 1982 replace Vernon E. Jordan, Jr. as its president.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by Diversity In Action
Dec
16
1934
Andre Ware of the University of Houston becomes the first African American quart
Andre Ware of the University of Houston becomes the first African American quarterback to win the Heisman Trophy.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by APEX Museum
Dec
2
1989
Ailey, Alvin (1931-1989)
Alvin Ailey was born in Rodgers, Texas during the Great Depression. He overcame racism, poverty, and homophobia to become one of the most celebrated choreographers in American history. His single teenage mother Lula Ailey washed clothes, picked cotton, and worked in domestic service in various
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Source: Black Past
Andey Rooney suspended for racist comments
Andy Rooney, a CBS 60 Minutes commentator, received a 90-day suspension from work because of racist remarks about African Americans attributed to him by Chris Bull, a New York-based reporter for The Advocate, a bi-weekly national gay & lesbian newsmagazine published in Los Angeles. Bull quoted
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Feb
8
1990
Grammy Awards
On this day at the Grammy Awards ceremony, African-American musicians won awards in several categories. Lionel Richies Cant Slow Down won best album of 1984. Tina Turners Whats Love Got to Do With It took the best record slot and earned her the title Best Female Pop Vocalist. The Pointer Sisters
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by Christo Rey New York High School
Feb
26
1985
Richardson, Laura (1962- )
Born in Los Angeles on April 14, 1962, to a black father and white mother, Laura Richardson is currently congresswoman for the 37th congressional district, serving her first term. Her mother, Maryann Richardson, who was a member of the Teamsters labor union, raised Richardson by
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Source: Black Past
Apr
14
1962
At a New York City conference, representatives of
At a New York City conference, representatives of the NAACP and the American Fund for Public Service planned a coordinated legal campaign against segregation and discrimination. Charles H. Houston, Vice-dean of the Howard University Law School, was named director of the NAACP legal campaign.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Oct
26
1934
Louis Armstrong
Born: 8/4/1901 New Orleans, LouisianaDied: 7/6/1971 New York City, New YorkLouis Armstrong, nicknamed Satchmo or Pops, was an American jazz trumpeter, composer and singer who was one of the pivotal and most influential figures in jazz music.Awards / Achievements:
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Source: Blackfacts.com
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