The Golden 13 were the 13 African-American enlisted men who became the first black commissioned officers in the United States Navy. http://www.blackamericaweb.com/?q=articles/news/the_black_diaspora_news/31394
Oliver Hill was a civil rights lawyer who was key to ending “separate but equal” in America and a prestigious member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. http://www.blackamericaweb.com/?q=articles/news/the_black_diaspora_news/30646
Known for sporting pink sunglasses and a cowboy hat while protesting in the front row anywhere, Florynce Rae Kennedy was a feminist and civil rights lawyer of the 1970s. http://www.blackamericaweb.com/?q=articles/news/the_black_diaspora_news/30594
Pro Football Hall of Famer and NFL tight end John Mackey made historical runs for the Baltimore Colts and the San Diego Chargers during the mid 1960s and ’70s. He served as the first president of the NFL Players Association, where he gained a noted $11 million in pension and benefits for NFL players. http://www.blackamericaweb.com/?q=articles/news/the_black_diaspora_news/30254
African-American actor Frank Silvera starred in many top tier Hollywood shows and films – as a white man. http://www.blackamericaweb.com/?q=articles/news/the_black_diaspora_news/29260
Black pianist Erroll Garner was considered a founding father of jazz. It is a well-known fact that Garner was never able to read sheet music and learned to play music by ear. http://www.blackamericaweb.com/?q=articles/news/the_black_diaspora_news/29219
This week marks the 30th anniversary of the death of reggae music icon Bob Marley. To honor his lifetime of work, Oscar-award winning film director, Kevin McDonald, (“Last King of Scotland”) presented a rare documentary called “Marley” at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. http://www.blackamericaweb.com/?q=articles/news/the_black_diaspora_news/28410
Mary Eliza Mahoney was the first African-American nurse to be licensed in the United States. http://www.blackamericaweb.com/?q=articles/news/the_black_diaspora_news/28379
Late, great multiple Grammy Award winner James Joseph Brown Jr., inductee in the Rock and Roll and Songwriters’ halls of fame, was and still is known as the Godfather of Soul, the Hardest Working Man in Show Business, Soul Brother Number One and, as appointed by Gen. Colin Powell in 2003, the first U.S. secretary […]
The Tuskegee syphilis study was one of the most notorious biomedical experiments in U.S. history. In 1972, Jean Heller of the Washington Evening Star wrote a front-page story titled “Syphilis Patients Died Untreated,” making the experiment public knowledge and bringing shame to the U.S. Public Health Service for their 40-year conspiracy. http://www.blackamericaweb.com/?q=articles/news/the_black_diaspora_news/26324
http://www.blackamericaweb.com/?q=articles/news/the_black_diaspora_news/26109 Sen. John McCain and New York Rep. Peter King, who pushed for a posthumous pardon for late, great heavyweight champion Jack Johnson in 2005, have recently re-opened their request.
Horace King was an Alabama slave and architect who reached a high level of prominence in the mid-1800s. King became one of the most respected bridge architects in the Chattahoochee River Valley. His legacy is still alive in the amazing spiraling staircase of the Alabama State Capital. http://www.blackamericaweb.com/?q=articles/news/the_black_diaspora_news/25306
