The case of Hocutt v. Wilson occurred this month in 1933 in North Carolina and is reportedly the first attempt to integrate a higher learning institution. While the matter was unsuccessful, it laid the  groundwork for the landmark Brown v. Board of Education decision some two decades later. Thomas Hocutt, then a 24-year-old student at […]
Eli Whitney, who is credited for patenting the cotton gin machine on this day in 1794, became a topic of discussion at the top of this year’s Black History Month. Although the farmer and inventor was depicted as a Black man to some students, in fact, Whitney was a white man. Born December 8, 1765 […]
Selma Hortense Burke was a sculptor who crafted images in the likenesses of famed figures such as Booker T. Washington, Mary McLeod Bethune, and Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. among others. Ms. Burke’s most notable accomplishment by most accounts is a sculpture of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, which some say is the inspiration for the […]
In its 130-year history, the prestigious Harvard Law Review has never elected a Black woman to serve as president – until now. ImeIme Umana, a Pennsylvania native and daughter of Nigerian immigrants was elected to the post on Jan. 29 of this year. Umana, 24, was raised in the town of State College. Her late […]
The shooting death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin took place five years in Sanford, Fla., igniting a flurry of activism and discussion on race matters in America. The tragic shooting at the hands of volunteer night watchman George Zimmerman and his 2013 acquittal gave birth to the Black Lives Matter movement, along with a renewed focus […]
Sidney Poitier celebrated his 90th birthday last Monday, February 20th, making him the oldest-living winner of the Best Actor Oscar Award. Now retired from acting, Poitier has earned a number of honors and accolades over the course of his praise-worthy career. Born in 1927, Poitier’s farmer parents lived in the Bahamas but traveled to Miami […]
The Upper Peninsula of Michigan is a largely rural area of the state not immediately known for its connection to African-Americans. However, the region boasts of a link to the Black community that stretches back to slavery. The U.P., as it is commonly referred to, is the northern end of the two peninsulas that make […]
Kim Royster had dreams of becoming a professional singer after leaving her small North Carolina town and heading to New York. While her artistic aims fell through, Royster has earned several achievements as a member of the New York Police Department and is the highest-ranked Black female officer on the force. This week, Assistant Chief […]
Otis Boykin was an inventor responsible for many important electrical devices that are used in modern times, most notably the electrical resistor. On this day in 1961, an improved version of Boykin’s electrical resistor was published and caught the attention of the military and one of America’s top computer companies. Boykin was born August 29, […]
The 59th Annual Grammy Awards aired last Sunday and the ceremony had its shares of ups and downs. Some fans are miffed that despite being up for a leading nine awards, Beyoncè only walked away with one trophy which moved her up in Grammy history nonetheless. Already the most-nominated woman in the award ceremony’s history, […]
The image of a young Ruby Bridges entering the all-white William Frantz Elementary School in New Orleans made her an icon of the burgeoning civil rights movement. What many don’t know is that later in life, Bridges became an activist after an unfortunate twist of fate led her back to the school that transformed her […]
The overwhelming success of the film Hidden Figures, starring Taraji P. Henson, highlighted three African-American women who were instrumental in propelling the U.S. space program. The state of Arkansas has a hidden figure of its own in Raye Montague, who is the first person to design a U.S. Navy ship using a computer. Montague was […]
