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(1832) Maria W. Stewart Advocates Education for African American Women
In September 1832, Maria W. Stewart delivered at Boston’s Franklin Hall one of the first public lectures ever given by an American woman. Her speech, directed to the women of the African American Female Intelligence Society, called on black women to acquire equality through education. The speech
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Source: Black Past
Sponsored by NSBE Boston
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
Busta Rhymes
Busta Rhymes is an American rapper and actor. His birth name is Trevor Tahiem Smith, Jr. He was born on May 20, 1972 to Geraldine Green and Trevor Smith, who were Jamaican immigrants. He moved to Long Island at the age of 12, where he attended Uniondale High School. After graduating from high
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Source: Black History Resources
Sponsored by Diversity In Action
May
20
1972
Britton, Theodore R., Jr. (1925- )
Ambassador Theodore Roosevelt Britton, Jr. was born on October 17, 1925 in North Augusta, South Carolina. In 1936, he and his family migrated to New York City, New York. Britton was drafted into the U.S. Marine Corps out of high school soon after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Although he was unaware
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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
National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders (The Kerner Report), 1967
REPORT OF THE NATIONAL ADVISORY COMMISSION ON CIVIL DISORDERS
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Source: Black Past
Jul
28
1967
Medgar Evers
Medgar Evers was a popular figure in the American history for his reputation as an African-American civil rights activist. He actively participated in overturning segregation at the University of Mississippi. He was the field secretary of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored
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Source: Black History Resources
Sponsored by Illinois Math and Science Academy
Jun
7
1963
Smalls, Robert (1839-1915)
Robert Smalls was born in Beaufort, South Carolina, on April 5, 1839 and worked as a house slave until the age of 12. At that point his owner, John K. McKee, sent him to Charleston to work as a waiter, ship rigger, and sailor, with all earnings going to McKee. This arrangement continued until
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Source: Black Past
May
13
1862
Bill Russell
Bill Russell is a celebrated African-American retired basketball player. He played center for the National Basketball Association’s the Boston Celtics team. His relentless effort earned him a twelve-time All-Star title and the NBA Most Valuable Player title. Russell’s remarkable victories made him
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Source: Black History Resources
Sponsored by Intellitech
Feb
12
1934
Ernie Davis dies
Ernie Davis, star running back at Syracuse University; first black player to win the Heisman Trophy in 1961. Died on May 18, 1962 of leukemia before playing a pro game.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by New York University
May
18
1962
The Zong Massacre (1781)
The slave ship Zong departed the coast of Africa on 6 September 1781 with 470 slaves. Since this human chattel was such a valuable commodity at that time, many captains took on more slaves than their ships could accommodate in order to maximize profits.  The Zong’s captain, Luke
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Source: Black Past
Howell, Abner Leonard (1877-1966)
Abner Leonard Howell was a star athlete in Utah whose accomplishments went largely ignored during the peak of his football career because of his
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Source: Black Past
Aug
9
1877
(1875) Congressman James T. Rapier, “Half Free, Half Slave”
On February 4, 1875, Congressman James T. Rapier of Alabama, rose on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives to support the Civil Right bill then before Congress which when enacted later that year became the Civil Rights Act of 1875.   His speech appears
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Source: Black Past
Feb
4
1875
Dorothy Dandridge, actress born
Dorothy Dandrige
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Nov
9
1922
Marvin Gaye
Marvin Pentz Gaye Jr. was a legendary singer and recording artist who came to be known as the “Prince of Soul”. Gaye was born on April 2, 1939 in Washington, D.C. He was raised by his father “Reverend Marvin Gay Sr.” who was a very strict guardian. Gaye was musically
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Source: Black History Resources
Apr
2
1939
Dillard University [New Orleans] (1869- )
Dillard University is a private, Historically Black liberal arts college located in New Orleans, Louisiana.  It is affiliated with the United Church of Christ and the United Methodist Church.  Dillard University is a result of the merger between Straight College and New Orleans University in
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Source: Black Past
The Arsenio Hall Show premieres.
The Arsenio Hall Show premieres. It is the first regularly scheduled nightly talk show to star an African American.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Jan
3
1989
Rhodes, J. Steven (1951- )
J. Steven Rhodes, U.S. Ambassador to Zimbabwe, was born in New Orleans, Louisiana on September 29, 1951.  After graduating from high school he attended Loyola Marymount University (LMU) in Los Angeles, California where he was a member of the LMU 1969 Hall of Fame football
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Source: Black Past
Sponsored by Concerned Black Men of Massachusetts
Track star Carl Lewis born
Olympic track and field star Carl Lewis was born in Willingboro, New Jersey.
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Jul
1
1961
Townsend, Willard S. (1895-1957)
African American labor leader Willard S. Townsend was born on December 4, 1895, in Cincinnati, Ohio, to Willard and Cora Elizabeth Townsend. In 1938 he organized railway workers of several Chicago, Illinois stations to form the International Brotherhood of Redcaps and remained the union’s president
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Source: Black Past
Feb
3
1957
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
Whitney Houston, singer born
Whitney Houston
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Aug
9
1963
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
The leading scorer in the history of NBA, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar won 6 of the most prestigious NBA titles, five of which were with the Los Angeles Lakers over a period of 20 years. His list of achievements is one of the most extraordinary in league’s history. Not only was Kareem a member of six NBA
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Source: Black History Resources
Sponsored by Massachusetts Black Lawyers Association (MBLA)
Apr
16
1947
Allen, Damon (1963- )
Damon Allen is a professional football player in the Canadian Football League (CFL). In 2007-08 he completed his 24th season with the CFL. A graduate of California State University, Fullerton, Allen is the younger brother of former National Football League (NFL) star Marcus
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Source: Black Past
Paul Robeson and Japanese Americans, 1942-1949
One hero and friend of Japanese Americans, both individuals and the community generally, was Paul Robeson. Robeson was (after Joe Louis) the most popular and visible African American of the 1930s and 1940s. He was a celebrated stage actor and movie star, an internationally famous folk
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Source: Black Past
Child, Julia
Child, Julia, 1912–2004, American cooking teacher, author, and television personality, b. Pasadena, Calif., as Julia Carolyn McWilliams. In the early 1940s both she and her husband-to-be, Paul Child, served in the Office of Strategic Services in Washington, D.C., Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), and
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Source: Fact Monster - Black History
Sullivan, Louis Wade (1933- )
After witnessing poverty and discrimination in Depression-era Georgia, Louis Wade Sullivan committed his career to education and public service, rising to become Secretary of Health and Human Services under President George H.W. Bush.  He also was the founder and long-time president of Morehouse
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Source: Black Past
Sponsored by Pride Academy
Fort Valley State University (1939- )
Fort Valley State University, in Fort Valley, Georgia, is a four year liberal arts land grant school that is part of the University System of Georgia. It was formed in 1939 when Fort Valley Normal and Industrial School merged with the State Teachers and Agricultural College of
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Source: Black Past
Jun
12
1996
Waters, Ethel
Waters, Ethel, 1896?–1977, African-American singer and actress, b. Chester, Pa. As a singer, she is noted for her sultry, sophisticated, and dramatic version of the blues, evinced in her interpretations of Am I Blue, Dinah, Heat Wave, Stormy Weather, and other songs. After beginning in
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Source: Fact Monster - Black History
Sponsored by Concerned Black Men of Massachusetts
Ota Benga, African native kept in zoo, kills self
An African native once kept in a Bronx zoo, Ota Benga, commits suicide. In 1906 the crowds thronged the monkey house exhibit at the Bronx Zoo (New York Zoological Park). Here were mans evolutionary ancestors - monkeys, chimpanzees, a gorilla named Dinah, an orangutan named Dohung and a African of
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Source: Blackfacts.com
Sponsored by Intellitech
Mar
20
1916
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