Know Your History!
While slavery in America hosts the background of Black history, the African American impact on history reaches beyond the country’s early history, as African Americans have made significant contributions to every field of endeavor, including politics, science, culture, social causes, arts, literature, athletics and the economy.
African-American History for Week of: November 2, 2014
November 2, 1983
President Ronald Reagan signs Law
President Ronald Reagan signs law designating the third Monday in January – Martin Luther King Jr. Day, 1983.
November 3, 1992
Carol Mosely Braun
Carol Mosely Braun, a Democrat from Illinois, becomes the 1st African American woman elected to the United States Senate.
November 4, 1981
Zena Garrison becomes the 1st African American player to win the junior singles
Zena Garrison becomes the 1st African American player to win the junior singles tennis championship at Wimbledon, England.
November 5, 1968
Shirley Chisholm becomes first Black woman to be elected to Congress
Shirley Chisholm becomes first Black woman to be elected to Congress, representing Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, NYC, 1968.
November 6, 1990
First Black Woman Mayor of Washington, D.C.
Sharon Pratt Dixon (now Kelly) was elected mayor of Washington, D.C., making this a first for a woman of any race. Pratt was the first black woman to serve as mayor of a major American city. She is also to date the only woman to have served as mayor of Washington D.C.
November 7, 1972
Barbara Jordan: Elected to Congress
When Barbara Jordan was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1972 she became the first African-American woman to represent a previously Confederate state in Congress.
November 7, 1989
L Douglas Wilder was elected governor of Virgina, becoming the first Black Governer
L Douglas Wilder was elected governor of Virgina, becoming the first Black Governor in the US since Reconstruction, 1989.
Lawrence Douglas Wilder (born January 17, 1931) is an American politician, who served as the first African American to be elected as Governor of Virginia and first African-American governor of any state since Reconstruction. Wilder served as the 66th Governor of Virginia from 1990 to 1994. When earlier elected as Lieutenant Governor, he was the first African American elected to statewide office in Virginia. His most recent political office was Mayor of Richmond, Virginia, which he held from 2005 to 2009.
November 8, 1932
Spingarn Medal: Robert R. Moton
Spingarn Medal awarded to Robert R. Moton, President of Tuskegee Institute, for his “thoughtful leadership in conservative opinion and action.”
Robert Russa Moton (August 26, 1867 – May 31, 1940) was an African-American educator and author. He served as an administrator at Hampton Institute and was named principal of Tuskegee Institute in 1915 after the death of Dr. Booker T. Washington, a position he held for 20 years until retirement in 1935.
About Annette
I think that many black people don’t celebrate their heritage or history in this country enough and conform and assimilate to the eurocentric standard. How many black people know what tribe they descended from? How many black people celebrate Kwanzaa? How many black people know of Huey P. Newton, Alex Haley and others?
To me, the omission of any group from history teachings results in a limited understanding of history’s relationship with the present and future. Know your history.
Comments, I can be reached at:
Twitter: @Annette92J
