A master of storytelling, Toni Morrison was the first Black woman to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature. The Pulitzer Prize winning novelist and legendary professor is known for the vivid black characters brought to life in her novels that recreate the Black experience. Morrison’s novels often illuminate themes of slavery, racism, and identity, but […]
Professing to be “unbossed and unbought,” Shirley Chisholm was the first black female major-party candidate for President of the United States, and the first black woman to be elected to Congress. Chisholm wasn’t intent on winning the presidency, but was steadfast on challenging conventions and showing Black America that they could aim high. She set […]
When Booker T. Washington stepped to the podium at the Atlanta Exposition in 1895 to give a speech on race relations, two things happened. First, many fellow Black Americans, including W.E.B. Du Bois, derided his speech as “The Atlanta Compromise,” because Washington called the agitation for social equality “the extremest folly,” advocating instead slow, steady, […]
Check out our gallery of some great first time achievements accomplished by black women.
Washington D.C.– Ahead of celebrations of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, some local officials got an up close and personal tour of the memorial being built in his honor.
In his seminal work, Race Matters, Dr. Cornel West questions matters of economics and politics, as well as addressing the crisis in Black leadership. The book was written in 1993, but many of its themes are salient today. His scholarship has come to be recognized globally and West, himself, is known for his combination of […]
U.S. Constitution is approved with three clauses protecting slavery (1787) Hampton Institute was founded (1861) The Flip Wilson Show premieres on NBC prime time (1970) Illinois becomes the first state to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday as a holiday (1973) Vanessa Williams is crowned the 1st African-American Miss America to be crowned (1983) […]
There are many men that have made contributions to aeronautics through NASA, but the work of the female scientists is little known – scientists like Katherine G. Johnson. Johnson has made a significant mark in NASA’s history, playing a key role in their use of digital electronic computers. http://www.blackamericaweb.com/?q=articles/news/the_black_diaspora_news/21458
Fundraising and restoration efforts are underway for the historic Howard Theater in Washington D.C., which celebrates its centennial anniversary this year. Located on T Street NW in Shaw, the theater was known as the “largest colored theater in the world,” established before the legendary Apollo or the Regal. It was the first full-size theater in […]
James Reese Europe of Mobile, Alabama is known to be the first African-American musician to record music in the United States. Since he was 10 years old, he studied music with the local Marine Corps band before moving to New York with his family in 1904. Europe would find a leadership role with the well-known […]
A 16-year-old girl named Achieng Ajulu-Bushell will be the first black female swimmer to represent Great Britain in the 2012 Olympics. She defected from her home country of Kenya to go for her once-in-a-lifetime opportunity in Britain, though her native country of birth is Manchester, England http://www.blackamericaweb.com/?q=articles/news/the_black_diaspora_news/20835
Matilda Sissieretta Joyner, also known as the Black Patti, was a late 19th century African-American soprano opera singer who was the first black to sing at the Music Hall in New York – before it was Carnegie Hall. Her voice was so melodic, she was compared to the famous Italian opera singer Adelina Patti – […]
