News

Thursday, February 15, 2007

Black History People Visionaries and Pioneers

  • "What did Barbara Jordan do for us?”
  • "I need a report on Diana Ross”
  • “Something on Frederick Douglass”
  • “Do you have information on Malcolm X?”

These are four actual questions from among the many we received in the past week!  Yes, it is hard to find reliable information about African American visionaries and pioneers.

Here are 26 twentieth century personalities responsible for moving the American Dream forward you need to know about (in random order):

  1. Langston Hughes
  2. Marian Anderson
  3. Thomas Bradley
  4. Dr. Ralph J. Bunche
  5. Coretta Scott King
  6. Frederick Douglass
  7. Dr. Charles Drew
  8. Sammy Davis Jr.
  9. Shirley Chisholm
  10. Jesse Owens
  11. James Meredith
  12. Ella Fitzgerald
  13. William H. Hastie
  14. Richard Wright
  15. Malcolm X
  16. Diana Ross
  17. Charles H. Houston
  18. A. Philip Randolph
  19. Andrew Young
  20. Barbara Jordan
  21. Ronald Dellums
  22. Bo Diddley
  23. Rosa Parks
  24. Duke Ellington
  25. Lena Horne
  26. Joe Louis

    If you’d like to learn more about these achievers, (and you’ve signed up for our free black history biographies via email...and have confirmed your subscription), then you’ll be among the first to be able to benefit from an exciting new project profiling these African American legends coming soon.

    Technorati tags:



    Posted by Hugh Smith on 02/15 at 08:45 AM
    Music • Education • Civil Rights • History • Medicine • Entertainment • News • Sports • (1) Comments • Permalink

    Tuesday, January 30, 2007

    Diversity Data Explores USA Melting Pot

    We often think of black history in terms of past achievements by exceptional individuals.

    If you wanted a broad general snapshot of most African American people today, the trends in their neighborhoods, and the factors that will influence the emerging black leaders of tomorrow, where would you turn?

    A new website has created an extremely easy way to discover information about racial and ethnic groups in the USA by using census data gathered by the U.S. government.

    According to the creators, “Diversity Data is an online tool for exploring quality of life data across different metropolitan areas, for people of different racial/ethnic groups in the United States.”

    Diversity Data “provides values and rankings for the largest U.S. metropolitan areas on different indicators in 8 areas of life (domains), including demographics, education, economic opportunity, housing, neighborhoods, and health."

    Just pick a state, select a metropolitan area, then instantly observe what the trends reveal.

    By using an option called “customize profile,” you can dissect and analyze the information in more ways than you could ever imagine.

    Each state can be searched by selecting from the largest counties.

    The brainchild of this fantastic free tool is the Harvard School of Public Health.

    I highly recommend Diversity Data for:

    • Population Demographics and Diversity
    • Health
    • Housing Opportunities
    • Economic Opportunities
    • Education
    • Residential Integration and Neighborhood Characteristics
    • Crime
    • Physical Environment

    Where are the rural or urban centers in the USA where different racial and ethnic groups are striding ahead?  You’ll discover the answer to this question and a lot more by digging into Diversity Data online.

    The trends reflect possible history in the making.  If you spot differences in your state that are surprising, let the information challenge you to think about some ways you might influence your community’s destiny.

    Technorati tags:




    Posted by Hugh Smith on 01/30 at 01:05 AM
    Education • Medicine • News • Web Site • (0) Comments • Permalink

    Wednesday, January 24, 2007

    Oprah's Roots Traces Family Tree

    Genealogy research and DNA analysis have been the rage the last few years.

    More African American families are using these technologies to discover African ancestral connections.

    The PBS television series African American Lives, hosted by Henry “Skip” Louis Gates Jr., (shown above with Oprah Winfrey), debuted in February during Black History Month, 2006.

    African American Lives is fascinating.  Famous black history people in the USA trace their lineage to Africa with Gates guiding the series along.  I was very glad I watched several episodes last year.

    It’s Oprah’s chance this week, with a new, updated episode.  One good thing about PBS, the programs are always repeated, so you’ll eventually get a second chance to watch Oprah’s Roots: An African American Lives Special.

    Technorati tags:



    Posted by Hugh Smith on 01/24 at 07:09 AM
    Education • History • Medicine • News • (0) Comments • Permalink

    Wednesday, January 17, 2007

    Ella Fitzgerald gets a Stamp of Approval

    Ella Fitzgerald, (1917 - 1996), a jazz great, was one of the first African American singers to appeal to both black and white audiences.

    Poverty could not suppress the raw talent that was to lead to her eventual success.

    She was born in Newport News, Virginia.  Her family chose to make New York City their adopted home.

    As a teenager in the 1930’s, Fitzgerald began six decades of performance encompassing 250 recordings and 13 Grammy Awards.

    She popularized the jazz style called scat singing.  Her 1938 hit, “A-Tisket, A-Tasket,” derived from nursery rhymes, became her trademark song.

    She sang the songs of the best songwriters, and performed with most of the greats, including Louis Armstrong and Dizzy Gillespie.  Diabetes eventually claimed her life at the age of 79.

    On January 10, 2007, Ella Fitzgerald, became the 30th honoree in the popular Black History Heritage commemorative stamp series issued by the U.S. Postal Service.

    The stamp image is a portrait based on a photograph taken around 1956.  As you can see, this likeness captures the joy and excitement that Fitzgerald brought to music.

    Fitzgerald won the National Medal of Arts, presented to her in 1987 by President Ronald Reagan. She was one of five artists awarded Kennedy Center Honors in 1979.

    In 1989, the Society of Singers created an award for lifetime achievement, called it the “Ella,” and made her its first recipient.

    In 2005, Jazz at Lincoln Center inducted Fitzgerald into its Nesuhi Ertegun Jazz Hall of Fame.

    Technorati tags:



    Posted by Hugh Smith on 01/17 at 08:30 PM
    Music • History • News • (0) Comments • Permalink

    Thursday, November 02, 2006

    Singer Bob Marley Scores Black History Honor

    Bob Marley’s former north London home was recently honored with a heritage plaque to celebrate the reggae legend’s residence in the United Kingdom.

    The plaque describes Marley as a “singer, lyricist and Rastafarian icon."

    Robert Nesta Marley was born in St. Ann, Jamaica, February 6, 1945.  He spread the message and spiritual passion of reggae music throughout the world for three decades.

    On May 11, 1981, 36 year old Marley passed away from cancer in Miami, Florida.  By 1990, a national holiday was created in Jamaica to commemorate his birth.

    The reggae icon sold 9 million copies of his album Legend.  In 1996, Legend was certified as the best-selling reggae album of all time.

    Marley’s house in Kingston, Jamaica, now known as the Bob Marley Museum, is a big tourist attraction for black history scholars as well as vacationers to the Caribbean island.

    The Marley legacy continues today.  Bob’s youngest son, Damian, became the first reggae artist in 2006 to win a Grammy Award outside of the reggae category for his best Urban/Alternative performance: “Welcome to Jamrock” single.

    Damian Marley also lead the pack with six honors at this year’s 2006 International Reggae and World Music Awards held in New York City.

    Technorati tags:



    Posted by Hugh Smith on 11/02 at 08:30 PM
    Music • History • News • (1) Comments • Permalink

    Thursday, October 12, 2006

    Nigeria Grabs October Black History Month Spotlight in the UK

    an edited version of an article by Chris Ochayi from the Nigerian news site Vanguardngr.com

    Nigeria’s rich cultural heritage will again take center stage in the United Kingdom during the month-long Black History Month Festival this October.

    The UK event, under the auspices of Back To My Roots, will showcase the best of African culture, arts, and business.

    Supported by the British Council and UNESCO, Back To My Roots is expected to attract over 5 million people.

    Black History Month is celebrated every October by the British government saluting black contributions to European development.

    Events will take place in four cities: London, Bristol, Birmingham and Glasgow in Scotland.

    Learn more about Black History Month in the UK by visiting Black-History-Month.co.uk.

    Technorati tags:



    Posted by Hugh Smith on 10/12 at 07:18 PM
    News • (0) Comments • Permalink

    Friday, September 01, 2006

    Guion S. Bluford Spaces Out

    Lockheed Martin has won NASA’s multibillion-dollar go ahead to build the Orion crew exploration vehicle, a spaceship that will take astronauts back to the international space station, the moon, and beyond.

    Orion will carry cargo, or up to six crew members.  The craft will travel to the international space station by 2014, and carry up to four astronauts to the moon and back by 2020.

    When it comes to black history people in space, one person to salute among many is Guion Stewart Bluford Jr.

    The Philadelphia, Pennsylvania native became the first black American astronaut in space aboard the space shuttle Challenger on August 30, 1983.

    He earned a Ph.D. in aerospace engineering with a minor in laser physics from the Air Force Institute of Technology in 1978.

    Technorati tags:



    Posted by Hugh Smith on 09/01 at 11:45 AM
    History • News • (0) Comments • Permalink

    Tuesday, July 18, 2006

    175 Miles of Black History from Gettysburg to Monticello

    John Messeder, writing in the GettysburgTimes.com, reports that “an organization attempting to unite 175 miles of history, from Gettysburg to Monticello, recently received a grant to help research and interpret the African American role in the USA’s formation."

    "The Journey Through Hallowed Ground Partnership has been awarded a $10,000 grant from the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities to research, identify and interpret African American sites along the pathway.

    Partnership President Cate Magennis Wyatt feels that “Understanding African American history helps us understand the fabric of our American culture and expands our understanding of ourselves as a people."

    The 175-mile Old Carolina Highway, now designated U.S. 15, once carried Thomas Jefferson toward Philadelphia during his work on the Declaration of Independence. Eight presidents have made their homes in the region.

    Although possibly best known for its Civil War battles, the region played critical roles in the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812. It also has a high concentration of Underground Railroad stations.

    In announcing the $10,000 Virginia Foundation for the Humanities grant, Wyatt noted much African American history is only beginning to be documented at local levels."



    Posted by Hugh Smith on 07/18 at 09:24 PM
    History • News • (0) Comments • Permalink

    Thursday, July 13, 2006

    Baseball's King of the Long Ball

    With Tuesday’s 2006 baseball All-Star Game behind us, and rampant speculation swirling about Barry Bonds‘ quest to catch Henry Aaron, we take a quick look at the career of the all time home run king, Hammerin’ Hank.

    He passed Babe Ruth’s record on April 8th, 1974 when he hit home run number 715 as an Atlanta Brave.

    Aaron became a professional player in 1952 for the Indianapolis Clowns, a black barnstorming team, and famous sports name in African American history.

    The National League Milwaukee Braves purchased his contract for $2,500 later that year and assigned him to their Eau Claire, Wisconsin farm team.

    Hank Aaron was promoted to Jacksonville in the Sally League in 1953 finally breaking in at the major league level in 1954, never to look back.  On August 1, 1982, the greatest home run hitter of all time with 755 “round trippers” was inducted into the baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York.

    With baseball behind him, Hank has been a success in the business world too as an entrepreneur, and as a corporate Vice President of Community Relations for Turner Broadcasting System, Inc.

    Technorati tags:



    Posted by Hugh Smith on 07/13 at 12:02 PM
    History • News • Sports • (0) Comments • Permalink

    Wednesday, June 28, 2006

    MLK Collection Safe and Sound

    Personal papers and books of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. are safe and sound.

    Valued at about $30 million, the individual components of the collection were to be auctioned off to the highest bidders this week.

    Dr. King’s alma matter, Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia will receive the entire collection.

    Corporate donors and philanthropists put up the money to secure the collection for Morehouse.

    Andrew Young, an advisor of Dr. King, and Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin lead the effort to liberate the civil rights leader’s archive from Sotheby’s auction house.

    I never had a doubt that this happy outcome would materialize.

    Dr. King’s papers are clearly one of the most valuable collections of 20th century history.

    Among black history people, Dr. King’s impact supersedes race.

    His legacy as a Nobel Peace Prize winner proves how possible it is for one person to change the world.

    Technorati tags:




    Posted by Hugh Smith on 06/28 at 02:44 PM
    Civil Rights • News • (0) Comments • Permalink
    Page 2 of 2 pages  <  1 2