In addition to an extensive teaching career at such colleges as DePauw University, which would not offer him a professorship because he was African American, Howard University and West Virginia State College, Percy Lavon Julian made significant discoveries in the private sector. In 1935 Julian developed physostigmine, a drug that is used in the treatment […]
Venus and Serena Williams have been on top of their game for a long time, and have made a name for themselves in more than just the tennis world. Serena with her own fashion line and the two of them becoming part owners of the Miami Dolphins. Take a look back at how the sisters started their career here.
Bessie Coleman, the daughter of a poor, southern, African American family, became one of the most famous women and African Americans in aviation history. "Brave Bessie" or "Queen Bess," as she became known, faced the double difficulties of racial and gender discrimination in early 20th-century America but overcame such challenges to become the first African American woman to earn a pilot's license. Read more on her story here.
Remember Hootie & The Blow Fish? See what lead singer Darius Rucker is up to now.
When she moved to the nation’s most prestigious address, Michelle Obama’s husband told her that rough times were ahead. The country was in recession, people were out of work, the political parties were in open warfare — and the man who was going to be blamed for it all was President Barack Obama. But you won’t hear the first lady utter a peep of complaint. Watch her interview with Matt Lauer here.
Alex Haley, a master story teller brought us our first glimpse into the lives of slaves with his critically acclaimed book Roots. Read about Mr. Haley's story here.
Identical twin brothers Albert and Allen Hughes became celebrities when they completed their first feature-length movie, Menace II Society. Their age when the film was released in May of 1993--they had just turned 21--put them in the company of celebrated young black directors like John Singleton, who was 23 in 1991 when Boyz N the Hood was released. Read their amazing story here.
Here’s a look at 30 African-Americans who you may or may not know of, who have shaped Black culture and paved the path of advancement for all.
