(BLACKAMERICAWEB) “They may have the Mall, but we have the message. They may have the platform but we have the dream.” – REV. AL SHARPTON, Dunbar Senior High School, Washington D.C. Brenda Galloway traveled with her family from North Carolina in 1963 to attend the first March on Washington, and she’s proudly paid tribute […]
(Erica Taylor, The Tom Joyner Morning Show) American Creole inventor Norbert Rillieux was known for his invention of the multiple-effect evaporator that became an instrumental tool in the sugar industry. He was born to a prominent mixed family, a white plantation owner and engineer and a freed black mother whose sister was the richest black […]
Black farmers were again denied a $1.25 billion settlement in a racial bias case against the federal government, when Senate Republicans on August 5 failed to support a unanimous consent on the measure. With Congress now in recess, those farmers have been put on hold again after waiting for more than a decade. “The Black […]
Juneteenth, celebrated on June 19, is the name given to emancipation day by African-Americans in Texas. On that day in 1865 Union Major-General Gordon Granger read General Orders, No.3 to the people of Galveston. It stated,
A rare unanimous vote in the Senate signaled the passing of a resolution honoring Lena Horne, the esteemed jazz vocalist and civil rights pioneer who died last week at the age of 92.
On January 18, 1958 the first African American played for the NHL. Read the story of Willie O'Ree here.
French pairs skaters Yannick Bonheur and Vanessa James are set to create history on Sunday when they become the first black couple to compete in figure skating at the Olympic Games.
The legendary Jackie Robinson made history on April 15, 1947 when he took his place on the field with the Dodgers. Let's go back in time and follow the career of Jackie Robinson.
Most Americans best remember Marian Anderson for her conscience-grabbing concert at the Lincoln Memorial on Easter Sunday, 1939 after she was denied the use of Constitution Hall, an arena that, from 1935 to 1952, opened its doors to white artists only. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, appalled at the Hall's racist action, opened the Lincoln Memorial for Anderson's concert. As Abraham Lincoln's statue watched over her from behind, Anderson gave an extraordinary performance that will go down in history as one of the most dramatic civil-rights spectacles ever. See footage of this historic event here.
Mamie Smith was the first to record a blues record back in 1920. She paved the way for all future musicians of those times. Take a walk back with us as we celebrate Mamie Smith.
In the summer of 1908, the country was shocked by the account of the race riots at Springfield, Illinois. Here, in the home of Abraham Lincoln, a mob containing many of the town's "best citizens," raged for two days, killed and wounded scores of Negroes, and drove thousands from the city. And because of this the NAACP was born.
In 1928 Oscar DePriest became the first African American congressman elected to the House of Representatives from a northern state and a national symbol for racial pride. Read more on Oscar DePriest here.
