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Mocha
Member
08-12-2001
| Thursday, February 01, 2007 - 9:59 am
Feb. 1, 2007, 4:39AM Va. lawmakers endorse expression of regret for slavery By LARRY O'DELL Associated Press TOOLS Email Get section feed Print Subscribe NOW RICHMOND, Va. — The Virginia General Assembly took the first step Wednesday toward expressing its "profound regret" for the state's role in slavery. The House Rules Committee unanimously endorsed a revised version of Del. A. Donald McEachin's slavery apology resolution. A vote by the full House of Delegates is expected early next week. Also, a resolution identical to McEachin's original is pending in a Senate committee. Among those voting for the measure was Del. Frank D. Hargrove, who angered black leaders two weeks ago by saying "black citizens should get over" slavery. Hargrove, R-Hanover, said he could support the revised resolution because it expresses regret "without apologizing for anything." The resolution was introduced as Virginia begins its celebration of the 400th anniversary of Jamestown, where the first Africans arrived in 1619. Richmond, the former capital of the Confederacy, later became another point of arrival for Africans and a slave-trade hub. McEachin's resolution originally called for the legislature to "atone for the involuntary servitude of Africans." After some lawmakers suggested atonement could mean reparations, the resolution's sponsors agreed to change the wording to an expression of contrition. <snip> link
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Escapee
Member
06-15-2004
| Thursday, February 01, 2007 - 11:28 am
HAPPY BLACK HISTORY MONTH!
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Ladytex
Member
09-27-2001
| Friday, February 02, 2007 - 8:00 am
This Day in African American History February 2 1839: Edmond Berger invented a spark plug. 1914: Artist William Ellisworth Artis is born in Washington, North Carolina. He became one of the finest African American artists of the twentieth century. He was educated at Syracuse University and become a student of Augusta Savage. Artis's sculptures exhibited a strong originality and a romantic, almost spiritual appeal. His works were exhibited at Atlanta University, the Whitney Museum, the "Two Centuries of Black American Art" exhibit and collected by Fisk University, Hampton University, the North Carolina Museum of Art, and private collectors. 1915 Biologist Ernest E. Just received the Spingarn Medal for his pioneering research on fertilization and cell division. 1924: Jazz musician Sonny Stitt was born. 1938: Operatic baritone, Simon Estes was born in Centerville, Iowa. He sang at the opening of the 1972 Summer Olympic Games in Munich, Germany. 1948: President Harry S. Truman sends a message to Congress pressing for civil rights legislation, including anti-lynching, fair employment practices, and anti-poll tax provisions. 1995: Payload Commander Bernard Harris Jr. was the first African American to walk in space on STS-63 (February 2-11). source 1 source 2
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Ladytex
Member
09-27-2001
| Friday, February 02, 2007 - 9:02 pm
New Message From Coca-Cola for Super Bowl Broadcast Celebrates Landmark African American Achievements Posted on : Fri, 02 Feb 2007 23:36:01 GMT | Author : The Coca-Cola Company News Category : PressRelease ATLANTA, Feb. 2 /PRNewswire/ -- On Sunday, millions of viewers will see a new message of celebration and commemoration from Coca-Cola during television's most watched program, the broadcast of Super Bowl XLI on CBS. "In this new piece, entitled 'Timeline: Especially Today,' we pay tribute to several significant milestones in black history," said Sandy Douglas, president, Coca-Cola North America. "We are also celebrating the many important contributions that African Americans make to society today and every day." "Timeline: Especially Today" is just one element in a comprehensive 2007 African American marketing program. "We saw it only fitting to include this tribute in our broader black history programming. 'Timeline' is just the beginning of what we have planned with the African American market this year," said Anne Sempowski Ward, assistant vice president, African American marketing, Coca-Cola North America. In addition to "Timeline: Especially Today," Coca-Cola is airing unique animated commercials in extended lengths during the Super Bowl broadcast on CBS. "Video Game" and "Happiness Factory" will both air in 60-second versions. "Happiness Factory," which was originally slated as a 30-second spot, has been extended to a 60-second version. Immediately after the game concludes, "Timeline: Especially Today," "Video Game," and "Happiness Factory" will be available for viewing on cbssportsline.com. All work was created by the Portland and Amsterdam offices of the agency Wieden + Kennedy "We couldn't be more happy to once again be part of the biggest sports event on television," said Katie Bayne, senior vice president, Coca-Cola Brands, Coca-Cola North America. http://tinyurl.com/3bjwye
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Ladytex
Member
09-27-2001
| Friday, February 02, 2007 - 9:05 pm
History Channel To Air Blacks' D-Day Story By Staff Feb 2, 2007 The story of black U.S. soldiers who stormed Normandy's beaches is the focus of the History Channel's "A Distant Shore: African Americans of D-Day." The Feb. 24 presentation includes recollections from living veterans on the invasion of Normandy and the troop buildup in England prior to the invasion, the network said. Before World War II, the Marines and the Air Force barred blacks. In the Navy, blacks served as cooks, stewards or longshoremen. The Army had a few black combat units that were mostly led by whites. Most black battalions were segregated from the rest of the military and experienced discrimination. In 1997, after an Army study determined there was systematic racial discrimination in criteria used to award medals during World War II, President Bill Clinton awarded seven Medals of Honor to black veterans; only one was alive at the time. (c) UPI link
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Ladytex
Member
09-27-2001
| Saturday, February 03, 2007 - 8:58 am
This Day in African American History February 3 1874: Blanche Kelso Bruce elected to a full six-year term in the U.S. Senate by the Mississippi legislature. 1903: Jack Johnson became the first "Colored Heavyweight Champion". His efforts to win the full title, at that point in time, were thwarted as World Heavyweight Champion James J. Jeffries refused to face him. He eventually won the World Heavyweight Title on December 26, 1908, when he fought the Canadian world champion Tommy Burns in Sydney, Australia, after following him all over the world, taunting him in the press for a match. 1920: The Negro Baseball League founded by Rube Foster, the father of black baseball. 1956: Autherine J. Lucy becomes the first black student to attend the University of Alabama. She was expelled three days later "for her own safety" in response to threats from a mob. In 1992 Autherine Lucy Foster graduated from the University with a master’s degree in education. The same day, her daughter, Grazia Foster, graduated with a bachelor’s degree in corporate finance. 1965: Geraldine McCullough, sculptor, wins the Widener Gold Medal award. 1981: The Air Force Academy drops its ban on applicants with sickle cell trait. 1988: In Montgomery, Alabama, Thomas Reed, president of the Alabama chapter of the NAACP, was arrested after he and 11 others attempted to strike a Confederate flag flying atop the state capitol building. 1989: Six time All-Star Bill White was named president of National League. He is the first African American to head a major sports league. 1989: Tennis professional Lori McNeil defeated Chris Evert in the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo. Source 1 Source for Negro Baseball League info Source for Jack Johnson info
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Urgrace
Member
08-19-2000
| Saturday, February 03, 2007 - 12:24 pm
Yay for Coca-Cola doing that. And did you hear that last night the classic 'Mean Joe Green Coca-Cola Commercial' won the hearts of Americans yet another year in a row for top Superbowl commercial ever?
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Ladytex
Member
09-27-2001
| Sunday, February 04, 2007 - 11:37 am
This Day in African American History February 4 1822: The American Colonization Society founded the African colony for free African Americans that became the country of Liberia, West Africa. 1913: Rosa Louise McCauley was born in Tuskegee, Alabama. In 1932,she married Raymond Parks. At her husband's urging, she finished high school studies in 1933, at a time when less than 7% of African Americans had a high school diploma. Despite the Jim Crow laws that made political participation by Black people difficult, she succeeded in registering to vote on her third try. In December 1943, she became active in the Civil Rights Movement, joining the Montgomery chapter of the NAACP. When the seamstress and NAACP member refused to yield her seat to a white man on a Montgomery, Alabama bus on December 1, 1955, her actions sparked a 382-day boycott of the buses in Montgomery, halting business and services in the city and became the initial act of non-violent disobedience of the American Civil Rights movement. She was honored with the NAACP's Spingarn Medal for her heroism and later work with Detroit youth(1979) and was called the "Mother of the Civil Rights Movement." She died October 24, 2005. The United States Senate passed a resolution on October 27, 2005 honoring Rosa Parks by allowing her body to lie in honor in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda. The House of Representatives approved the resolution on October 28. Since the founding of the practice of lying in state in the Rotunda in 1852, she was the 31st person, the first woman, the first American who had not been a U.S. government official, and the second non-government official (after Frenchman Pierre L'Enfant). On October 30, 2005 President George W. Bush issued a Proclamation ordering that all flags on U.S. public areas both within the country and abroad be flown at half-staff on the day of her funeral. On February 5, 2006, at Super Bowl XL, played at Detroit's Ford Field, the late Coretta Scott King and Rosa Parks, who had been a long-time resident of "The Motor City", were remembered and honored by a moment of silence. 1952: Jackie Robinson was named Director of Communication for WNBC in New York City, becoming the first African American executive of a major radio-TV network. 1971: Major League Baseball announced a special Hall of Fame wing for special displays about the Negro Leagues. These exhibits will provide information on these most deserving but rarely recognized contributors to Baseball. 1986: A stamp of Sojourner Truth was issued by the United States Postal Service as part of its Black Heritage USA commemorative series. Truth was an abolitionist, woman's rights activist and a famous "conductor" on the Underground Railroad. 1996: Congressman J.C. Watts (R-Oklahoma) became the first African American selected to respond to a State of the Union address. 2005: Ossie Davis, renown actor and civil rights advocate, died in Miami, FL, while on location for yet another acting project at the age of 87. 2007: For the first time in Super Bowl history, two African American coaches will lead their teams in the NFL Championship game. The Chicago Bears will be coached by Lovie Lee Smith and the Indianapolis Colts will be coached by Tony Dungy. The winner will be the first African American coach to win the Super Bowl. Source
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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Sunday, February 04, 2007 - 3:16 pm
Sunday, February 4, 2007 Children's books: Black history makes compelling reading These fun and informational books celebrate jazz, dance, civil rights and more. By NIKKI BATALIS The Orange County Register February is Black History Month, and in keeping with that theme, we're featuring books on important black figures in the Civil War, the civil-rights movement, jazz and dance. Also featured are the works of some outstanding black writers, poets and artists such as Bebe Moore Campbell, Gwendolyn Brooks, Richard Yarde and Faith Ringgold. They bring fresh approaches to key events and people in American history, making the reading both informational and fun. 'This Jazz Man' •By: Karen Ehrhardt; illustrated by R.G. Roth •Info: Harcourt Children's Books, $16, 32 pages, ages 4-8 •Grade: A •You might like it if: You are interested in different forms of music. For an introduction to the world of jazz, and to the great black musicians who were the architects of the art form, look no further than this lively, jiving book. Written in a takeoff on the classic "This Old Man" children's song, the rhyming text counts down the great jazz musicians one by one, from Louis Armstrong to Duke Ellington to Fats Waller to Dizzy Gillespie. The clever writing – "This jazz man, he plays one, he plays rhythm with his thumb. ..." gives the impression of scat singing and is perfect for reading aloud. The illustrations were done in mixed-media collage and printmaking on watercolor paper, lending a vintage pastel look that perfectly captures each musician's signature appearance. At the end is a brief autobiographical sketch of each musician and his contribution to the world of jazz. 'Stompin' at the Savoy' •By: Bebe Moore Campbell, illustrated by Richard Yarde •Info: Philomel Books, $16.99, 40 pages, ages 4-8 •Grade: B+ •You might like it if: You like music and dancing. Young Mindy is scared. She has a jazz-dance recital coming up but she is so nervous about it she can hardly move. Her three dancing aunties chide her, but Mindy won't budge. But then, in a dreamy image, a jazzy drum appears, leading her back in time to the famed Savoy Ballroom in Harlem. Some of the greatest musicians and singers of the time played there, including Chick Webb, Ella Fitzgerald and Cab Calloway. Mindy watches the great dancers pull out all the stops while doing the Lindy hop and the Peabody. Mindy's confidence grows, and she dreams she is about to perform her dance at the Savoy, "or is someone trying to mess with my mind?" she wonders. The story is by award-winning Los Angeles-based author Bebe Moore Campbell, who died of cancer in November. She creates a great portrait of one of the few integrated clubs of its time, while teaching her insecure young protagonist about her music and dance heritage. Richard Yarde's striking illustrations, rendered in gouache and pastels, capture the movement and energy of dance as well as giving a dreamlike quality. 'Bronzeville Boys and Girls' •By: Gwendolyn Brooks, illustrated by Faith Ringgold •Info: Amistad, $16.99, 42 pages, ages 7-10 •Grade: A •You might like it if: You enjoy poetry. Award-winning poet Gwendolyn Brooks published a collection of poems in 1956 about the children growing up in her neighborhood, the Bronzeville section of Chicago. That timeless collection has been rejuvenated with the vibrant, colorful illustrations of Faith Ringgold. Brooks uses deceptively simple language to illuminate the everyday truths about childhood and growing up – the fear, the joy, the sadness, the discovery of self. In "Paulette," a little girl's mother tells her "You're eight and ready to be a lady." But, the girl wonders, "what good is sun if I can't run?" And in "Jim," a young boy selflessly tends to his sick mother, bringing her food and medicine, and not letting her see "he missed his game of baseball terribly." The universal truth of Brooks' poems will strike a chord with today's children, cutting across lines of race and ethnicity. 'Drumbeat in Our Feet' •By: Patricia A. Keeler and Julio T. Leitao; illustrated by Patricia A. Keeler •Info: Lee & Low Books, 32 pages, $16.95, ages 4-8 •Grade: B+ •You might like it if: You are interested in Africa and the roots of African dance. This bright and appealing picture book gives a fascinating history of African dance. Sepia-toned illustrations on one side of the page show the African traditions, while the other side of the page shows full-color pictures of children in New York preparing a dance performance in a Harlem theater. The historical text covers the types of dances from throughout Africa, costumes and body paint, and musical instruments and the like, while the text accompanying the modern-day children is written in a nice rhyming cadence. The illustrations, done in watercolor and colored pencil, convey a sense of movement and vibrancy. Also included is a glossary of terms, an informative map of Africa and the history of a Harlem-based African dance troupe, Batoto Yetu. 'John Lewis in the Lead: A Story of the Civil Rights Movement' •By: Jim Haskins and Kathleen Benson; illustrated by Benny Andrews •Info: Lee & Low Books, $17.95, 32 pages, ages 8-11 •Grade: A •You might like it if: You are interested in history. The civil-rights movement of the last half of the 20th century may seem like ancient history to today's children, but the very human story of one participant, John Lewis, may help make that history more relevant. Lewis was a sharecropper's son who grew up in the segregated South. One childhood incident remained vivid in Lewis' mind: He and his siblings, cousins and aunt were caught in the midst of a terrible storm, so fierce that the winds threatened to uproot their small house. But with everyone holding hands and standing firm, they saved the house from destruction. Lewis took to heart this lesson of standing together to face the winds of change and applied it to his civil-rights work. He was with Martin Luther King Jr. and the Freedom Riders in challenging segregation at interstate bus terminals, and he helped lead the famed Selma-to-Montgomery march in Alabama, getting seriously injured by state troopers in the process. In 1986, he was elected to Congress, where he still serves today as a representative of Georgia. The colorful illustrations by noted black artist Benny Andrews are rendered in oils and fabric collage, conveying the force and violence of the times without being too graphic. 'Harriet Tubman, Secret Agent' •By: Thomas B. Allen •Info: National Geographic Children's Books, $16.95, 192 pages, ages 9-12 •Grade: A •You might like it if: You are interested in history and the Civil War. Even the most casual students of American history remember something about Harriet Tubman and her role in guiding slaves to freedom via the Underground Railroad. In this small but densely packed little gem, Tubman's fascinating life as an escaped slave, abolitionist and spy for the Union Army is interwoven with other key Civil War figures and events. (Who knew that in 1863 Tubman directed a raid on the Combahee River and became the first woman to lead a U.S. military operation?) The tightly written text is interspersed with nice black-and-white illustrations. Also included is a timeline, key dates and events, and text notes. Contact the writer: 714-796-6720 or nbatalis@ocregister.com http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/life/books/article_1562903.php
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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Sunday, February 04, 2007 - 3:16 pm
Ooops, that was in my paper today..
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Ladytex
Member
09-27-2001
| Sunday, February 04, 2007 - 7:22 pm
This day in African American History February 4, 2007: Tony Dungy becomes the first African American coach to lead his team to the NFL Championship.
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Ladytex
Member
09-27-2001
| Monday, February 05, 2007 - 4:57 pm
This Day in African American History February 5 1934: Henry (Hank) Aaron was born in Mobile, Alabama. After starting his major league baseball career with the Milwaukee Braves in 1954, he distinguished himself as a home-run specialist. Aaron is considered by some, the best baseball player in history. Over his 23-year Major League Baseball career, he compiled more batting records than any other player in baseball history. He holds the record for runs batted in with 2297, and was a Gold Glove Winner in 1958, 1959, and 1960. His most famous accomplishment came on April 8, 1974, when at the age of 40, he hit a 385-foot home run against the Los Angeles Dodgers, surpassing Babe Ruth's record of 714 career home runs. He ended his career with 755 home runs. In 1982, he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. After his retirement, he returned to the Atlanta Braves as a vice-president for player development, and was promoted to senior vice-president in 1989. 1941: Barrett Strong was born in West Point, Mississippi. He became a Rhythm and Blues singer best known for his recording of "Money (That's What I Want)." He also became a prolific songwriter, responsible for hits such as "Just My Imagination," "Papa Was A Rolling Stone," and "Ball of Confusion." He received a Grammy Award for Best Rhythm & Blues Song for co-writing "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone". 1956: L.R. Lautier became the first African American to be admitted to the National Press Club. 1958: Clifton W. Wharton, Sr. became the first African American to head an American diplomatic mission in Europe when he was confirmed as minister to Romania. 1968: Students in Orangeburg, South Carolina try to end the discriminatory practices of a local bowling alley. Their confrontation with police and the National Guard, and the subsequent death of three students, created widespread outrage among students on campuses across the South. 1969: Cinque Gallery was incorporated by African American artists Romare Bearden, Ernest Crichlow, and Norman Lewis. Located in the SoHo district of New York City, the nonprofit gallery's mission was to assist in the growth and development of minority artists and to end the cycle of exclusion of their work from the mainstream artistic community. 1972: Robert Lewis Douglas, founder, owner and coach of the New York Renaissance was the first African American inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts. The New York Renaissance was an African American team that won 88 consecutive games in 1933. 1977: Sugar Ray Leonard defeated Luis Vega in 6 rounds in his first professional fight. 1989: Kareem Abdul-Jabar became the first NBA player to score 38,000 points. 1994: Avowed white supremacist Byron de la Beckwith is convicted of Medger Evers' murder, more than thirty years after Evers was shot in the back from ambush. After deliberating for seven hours, a jury of eight African Americans and four whites convicted 73-year-old De La Beckwith of Medgar Evers's murder, sentencing him to life in prison. He died there seven years later. As a Mississippi State Supreme Court justice wrote about the retrial: "Miscreants brought before the bar of justice in this state must, sooner or later, face the cold realization that justice, slow and plodding though she may be, is certain in the state of Mississippi." http://www.informationman.com/today.htm
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Ladytex
Member
09-27-2001
| Monday, February 05, 2007 - 5:39 pm
Chisholm, Jackson blazed trail for Obama By Ron Harris, St. Louis Post-Dispatch WASHINGTON - Long before rising political star Illinois Sen. Barack Obama launched a presidential bid, there was a petite, fiery congresswoman named Shirley Chisholm paving his way. Chisholm, a native of Brooklyn, N.Y., was born to a Barbadian mother and a Guyanese father. She challenged the nation and the political establishment in 1972 - when Obama was just 10 - by becoming the first African-American of a major party to run for president. Although she clearly had no chance of winning, her bid forced white presidential candidates to stand up and take notice of black voters in a way they never had before. It also inspired blacks to become involved in politics with the aim of creating a better world. One she motivated was Jesse Jackson, whose bids in 1984 and 1988 produced a black electoral wave registering millions of black voters and sweeping scores of African-Americans into national and local offices. Chisholm had served four years as the first black woman elected to Congress when she announced her presidential bid on Jan. 25, 1972, at Concord Baptist Church in Brooklyn. "I am not the candidate for black America, although I am black and proud," Chisholm told an applauding crowd. "I am not the candidate of the women's movement of this country, although I am a woman and I am equally proud of that. "I am the candidate of the people of America. And my presence before you now symbolizes a new era in American political history." Chisholm, who had carved out a reputation as a tough political competitor in New York, hoped her campaign would highlight issues affecting African-Americans, women and the poor - subjects that were taking a back seat in a presidential race dominated by white men. Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., then president of the Black Student Union at Mills College, joined Chisholm's "Unbought and Unbossed" campaign for president, directing the effort in northern California. The beauty of Chisholm's campaign, Lee said, "is that we brought in new people who were disenchanted with the system, people like me." "I wasn't even registered to vote until I got into her campaign. She convinced me we could change the system from within, but only if we rose within it." Lee was elected in November to her seventh term in Congress. The political establishment dismissed Chisholm's candidacy. She was going to be shut out of a televised debate featuring two other candidates, South Dakota Sen. George McGovern and former Vice President Hubert Humphrey, until she filed a complaint with the Federal Communications Commission. She never won any primaries. Still, on the strength of support from blacks and women, her campaign outlasted those of better-known, better-financed contenders such as Maine Sen. Edmund Muskie and Washington Sen. Henry "Scoop" Jackson. And she arrived at that year's Democratic National Convention with 151 delegates and a new degree of respect. Her campaign "established the black vote as important," said Paul Brock, long active in black electoral politics and now president of a public relations firm in Washington. "That's how we got the first black vice chair of the Democratic Party. Charles Evers told McGovern, `We want the vice chair.' And they put in Basil Patterson." Four years later, African-American leaders sent out word that no Democratic candidate would be taken seriously by blacks unless the candidates presented themselves to a gathering of black political activists in Charlotte, N.C., in 1976. "And every one of them, including Jimmy Carter and (then California Gov.) Jerry Brown, came," said Brock, who as communications director for the meeting was assisted by an intern named Oprah Winfrey. Chisholm died in 2005 at age 80 after fading from the political scene. Chisholm's presidential bid motivated a run for the White House 22 years later by a Chicago preacher and civil rights activist named Jesse Jackson. Like Chisholm, Jackson had no illusions that he would win. He and other black leaders decided they needed a platform to advance issues affecting blacks, minorities and the poor in an era of conservatism fostered by President Ronald Reagan. The 1984 presidential campaign provided that platform, and Jackson became the chosen candidate. His campaign immediately caught on. "Everywhere we went, people said, `Run, Jesse, Run,'" said Ron Walters, author and professor of government and politics at the University of Maryland and Jackson's deputy campaign manager in 1984. The campaign was used to advance several civil rights agendas, Walters said. "As the television cameras turned on Jesse, he turned those cameras on social problems," Walters said. "We found ourselves in the housing projects of Los Angeles, marching in South Texas with Hispanic migrant workers or in Harlem." The campaign had its scary moments, said Brock, who handled Jackson's communications in California. "We got lots of death threats, so we were worried about an assassination attempt," he said. "There were photographers with the press corps who would jump off the bus at every stop and start taking pictures of Jesse before he got out of the car so they could have the picture if he got shot." The campaign was so poorly financed that it could afford only a rickety airplane to fly Jackson across the country. The press corps refused to fly on it for fear it would crash and chartered their own plane. Jackson didn't win a primary, but his impact was huge. More than 2.5 million African-Americans registered to vote in 1984, more than double the number of registrants in 1980. Nearly seven of every 10 reported that they had done so because of Jackson's campaign. And his showings in certain states eventually changed the clout of blacks in local politics. Consequently, a number of new black candidates eventually won elections, such as Mike Espy, the first black Mississippi congressman in 100 years. Four years later, Jackson was at it again. Within months of the first primary in Iowa, Jackson had more delegates than all the other candidates except Massachusetts Gov. Michael Dukakis, the eventual nominee. Jackson performed well and won in states where few thought he could. Although Chisholm and Jackson didn't win nomination, some political scientists say they cleared the way for future campaigns: the 2004 bids of former Illinois Sen. Carol Moseley Braun and Al Sharpton, and Obama's current campaign. "With each candidate has come more acceptance of a minority candidate," said Susan MacManus, political science professor at the University of South Florida in Tampa. "I think each one of these candidates has contributed a small piece that says a candidate like Obama can run a plausible and creditable campaign." link
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Juju2bigdog
Member
10-27-2000
| Monday, February 05, 2007 - 8:06 pm
Makes you wonder what the world would be like now if we (and especially women and people of color) had voted for Shirley Chisholm in 1972. And I just went to look up if Hank Aaron is still alive. He is. He is 73 today. We baby boomers grew up with Hank Aaron being maybe the best baseball guy ever.
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Ladytex
Member
09-27-2001
| Tuesday, February 06, 2007 - 6:41 am
It really does make you wonder. And I remember being in front of the TV when 'Hammerin Hank' hit his historic homer. And to think of the pressure he was under. He had to have protection because of death threats, etc. Wow ...
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Retired
Member
07-11-2001
| Tuesday, February 06, 2007 - 8:50 am
Black History Month on TV this week (copying from my TV Guide) Tu 2/6 - NOVA (PBS, 8/7c; time may vary in your area) has a docudrama on the life of Percy Julian, with Ruben Santiago-Hudson as the scientist. That's followed by BILLY STRAYHORN: LUSH LIFE (PBS, 10/9c; time may vary in your area), the story of Duke Ellington's longtime collaborator. Wed 2/7 - BUD GREENSPAN PRESENTS PRIDE AGAINST PREJUDICE: The Larry Doby Story (Showtime, 2:55/1:55c) profiles the first African-American baseball player in the American League.
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Mameblanche
Member
08-24-2002
| Tuesday, February 06, 2007 - 10:19 am
To Celebrate Black History Month - crank up the volume, click here... and enjoy!!!
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Mocha
Member
08-12-2001
| Tuesday, February 06, 2007 - 1:23 pm
Yep it does.
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Slothkitten
Member
09-16-2003
| Tuesday, February 06, 2007 - 3:15 pm
This man's story sounds facinating. It's on tonight on PBS. ( reminds me of another film called " What the Lord Made " which was excellent. ) "Forgotten Genius" is a fascinating and largely unknown story of scientific triumph and racial inequality. It covers the extraordinary life journey of Percy Julian, one of the great chemists of the 20th century. The grandson of Alabama slaves, Julian met with every possible barrier in a deeply segregated America. He was a man of genius, devotion, and determination. As a black man he was also an outsider, fighting to make a place for himself in a profession and country divided by bigotry—a man who would eventually find freedom in the laboratory. By the time of his death, Julian had risen to the highest levels of scientific and personal achievement, overcoming countless obstacles to become a world-class scientist, a self-made millionaire, and a civil-rights pioneer. NOVA reveals Julian's remarkable story in this special two-hour presentation. Tony Award-winner Ruben Santiago-Hudson stars as Julian; actor Courtney B. Vance narrates. Through dramatic period re-enactments, archival footage, and interviews with those who knew him best, Julian's science and gripping biography come to life onscreen. Percy Julian won worldwide acclaim for his work in organic chemistry, and as the first black director of an industrial chemistry research lab. He broke the color barrier in American science more than a decade before Jackie Robinson did so in Major League Baseball. A brilliant chemist, his career was marked by many scientific breakthroughs that improved lives (see Career Milestones). He converted soybeans into synthetic steroids on an industrial scale, and his innovative approach helped make drugs like cortisone affordable and available to millions. For all his tremendous achievements, Percy Julian's legacy is largely unknown. Scholars have neither studied him nor written his biography. To tell his story, NOVA filmmakers launched one of the most ambitious research projects in the series' 34-year history, poring over thousands of pages of documents from dozens of sources, and traveling around the nation to interview more than 60 of Julian's friends, coworkers, family members, and former students. The resulting documentary chronicles Julian's life from childhood to his death in 1975, at age 76. His professional and personal journey was a tumultuous ride of highs and lows. Julian was born into a world ruled by Jim Crow segregation. His parents, both trained as teachers, believed education offered the path to a better life. But academia did not welcome Julian with open arms. As a sophomore at DePauw University, he already dreamed of a graduate education, though only one African-American at the time had ever earned a doctorate in chemistry. He went on to earn his Masters at Harvard, even while black students were banned from the dorms in Harvard Yard and white researchers argued that blacks did not have the intellectual capacity to master the sciences. Julian received his Ph.D. from the University of Vienna, where he studied under one of Vienna's leading chemists, Ernst Späth. As a scholar, Julian taught at Howard University, Fisk University, and back at DePauw. Early in his career he put himself on the map with a high-stakes research project that pitted him against the premier organic chemist of the time. It was one of many races he would win on his way to publishing scores of papers and pursuing groundbreaking science. But even national acclaim in his field could not sweep aside prejudice. Finding too many doors closed to black men in academia, Julian leapt into the private sector as Director of Research, Soya Products Division, for the Glidden Company. In 1936 it was a rare opportunity for a black man in America, and one that Julian made the most of, filing more than 100 patents during his tenure. Julian and his team of chemists turned the soybean inside out, isolating parts of the bean that would serve as key ingredients in a vast and varied range of new household and industrial products, including food oils, latex paint, plastics, linoleum, plywood glue, high-protein livestock feed, and fire-fighting foam. This was chemistry that changed the way we live. It was also chemistry that healed. Just a few years before Julian arrived at Glidden, scientists in Europe and America had discovered that chemicals called steroids played a number of roles in the human body. But steroids drawn from animal sources were scarce and expensive; if these compounds were ever to have a significant role in the treatment of human disease, someone would have to find a way to make them from plants. Julian realized that in the soybean he had a perfect starting material for making steroids on a commercial scale. He seized on that opportunity, making Glidden the first American company to make progesterone, a female sex hormone, available in large quantities at reasonable prices. His inventiveness helped lay the groundwork for the entire field of steroid medicine, whose products would include not only artificial sex hormones like progesterone and testosterone but also cortisone, so critical to alleviating the crippling pain of rheumatoid arthritis, and later the birth control pill. His own business, Julian Laboratories, would eventually make Julian one of the wealthiest black businessmen in America and allow him to open doors for other African-American scientists. He hired scores of talented black chemists who could not find employment elsewhere, and by showing that African-Americans could do chemistry at the highest level, he inspired many more students to enter a career field that had previously seemed closed to them (see Julian the Trailblazer). Still, neither wealth nor fame could insulate Julian from bigotry. His son, Percy Julian Jr., tells NOVA how in the upscale suburb of Oak Park, Illinois, his family faced racist arson and bomb threats. But with success came the chance to do something about it, and in his later years, Julian embraced the fight for racial equality that was commanding the attention of the nation. Julian's crowning honor came when he was elected to the National Academy of Sciences. The year was 1973, and Julian was only the second African-American member. Even in the shadow of society's prejudice, his drive, intelligence, and mastery of chemistry often prevailed. In a more enlightened era, his colleagues argue, he could have been a Nobel laureate .
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Ladytex
Member
09-27-2001
| Tuesday, February 06, 2007 - 3:22 pm
Yes, Percy Julian's story IS fascinating. Growing up in Chicago, I'd learned about him early. There is a very good high school there named for him.
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Ladytex
Member
09-27-2001
| Tuesday, February 06, 2007 - 4:45 pm
This Day in African American History February 6 1820: The first organized emigration back to Africa begins when 86 free African Americans leave New York Harbor aboard the Mayflower of Liberia. They are bound for the British colony of Sierra Leone, which welcomes free African Americans as well as fugitive slaves. 1867: The Anglo-American merchant George Peabody, founds the $ 2 million Peabody Education Fund. It is the first philanthropy established in the wake of the Civil War to promote free public education in 12 Civil War devastated southern states for whites and African Americans. The Peabody Fund will provide funding for construction, endowments, scholarships, teacher and industrial education for newly freed slaves. 1898: Melvin B. Tolson, author and educator, was born in Moberly, Missouri. Educated at Fisk, Lincoln, and Columbia Universities, his first volume of poetry, "Rendezvous with America," was published in 1944. He was best known for "Libretto for the Republic of Liberia," published in 1953. 1931: The Harlem Experimental Theatre Group performed its first play at St. Philips Parish House. The group's advisory board included famed actress Rose McClendon, author Jesse Fauset, and Grace Nail. 1933: Walter E. Fauntroy was born in Washington, DC. He became a civil rights leader and minister. He later became the United States congressman for the District of Columbia from 1971 to 1991. 1945: Robert Nesta Marley was born in St. Ann, Jamaica to Captain Norval and Cedella Marley. He became a successful singer along with his group, The Wailers. Bob Marley and The Wailers were among the earliest to sing Reggae, a blend of Jamaican dance music and American Rhythm & Blues with a heavy dose of Rastafarianism, the Jamaican religion that blends Christian and African teachings. He died in 1981 at the age of 36, succumbing to cancer. As a result of his accomplishments, he was awarded Jamaica's Order Of Merit, the nation's third highest honor, (April, 1981) in recognition of his outstanding contribution to the country's culture. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991. 1950: Natalie Cole was born to Nat "King" and Maria Cole. She followed in her famous father's footsteps and became a recording star. She became a Grammy Award-winning singer, and Best New Artist in 1975. 1961: Jail-in movement started in Rock Hill, S.C., when students refused to pay fines and requested jail sentences. Students Nonviolent Coordinating Committee urged south-wide "Jail, No Bail" campaign. 1972: Robert Lewis Douglas founder and coach of the Rens, is inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame. 1993: Arthur Ashe, tennis champion, died at the age of 49. He succumbed to complications of AIDS, contracted from a transfusion during a earlier heart surgery. Ashe was the first African American to win at Wimbledon. http://www.informationman.com/today.htm http://www.blackfacts.com/results.asp
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Ladytex
Member
09-27-2001
| Wednesday, February 07, 2007 - 2:56 pm
This Day in African American History February 7 1871: Alcorn A&M College, now Alcorn State University, near Lorman, MS was founded as the nation's first state-supported higher education institution for blacks. 1883: Eubie Blake, musician and composer, born. In 1995 Eubie Blake was honored with a United States postage stamp. James Hubert Blake High School was built in Silver Spring, Maryland, in 1998. He was inducted into the American Theatre Hall of Fame. (There is some controversy whether he was born in 1883 or 1887) 1926: Carter G. Woodson creates Negro History Week. In 1976 it became Black History Month. 1945: Irwin Molison appointed judge of the US Customs Court. 1966: Comedian, author, recording artist, actor, and talk show host Chris Rock was born in South Carolina. He will become a critically comedian, hosting his self titled show on HBO. He will also bring to the forefront a boycott of the flag of his birthplace. http://www.blackfacts.com/results.asp http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcorn_State_University http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eubie_Blake
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Tishala
Member
08-01-2000
| Wednesday, February 07, 2007 - 4:09 pm
Lemuel Haynes was probably the first African American ordained by a mainstream Protestant Church in the United States. Haynes, the abandoned child of an African father and "a white woman of respectable ancestry," was born in 1753 at West Hartford, Connecticut. Five months later, he was bound to service until the age of 21 to David Rose of Middle Granville, Massachusetts. With only a rudimentary formal education, Haynes developed a passion for books, especially the Bible and books on theology. As an adolescent, he frequently conducted services at the town parish, sometimes reading sermons of his own.
When his indenture ended in 1774, Haynes enlisted as a "Minuteman" in the local militia. While serving in the militia, he wrote a lengthy ballad-sermon about the April, 1775 Battle of Lexington. In the title of the poem, he refers to himself as "Lemuel a young Mollato who obtained what little knowledge he possesses, by his own Application to Letters." Although the poem emphasized the conflict between slavery and freedom, it did not directly address black slavery. After the war, Haynes turned down the opportunity to study at Dartmouth College, instead choosing to study Latin and Greek with clergymen in Connecticut. In 1780 he was licensed to preach. He accepted a position with a white congregation in Middle Granville and later married a young white schoolteacher, Elizabeth Babbitt. In 1785, Haynes was officially ordained as a Congregational minister. Haynes held three pastorships after his ordination. The first was with an all-white congregation in Torrington, Connecticut, where he left after two years due to the active prejudice of several members. His second call to the pulpit, from a mostly white church in Rutland, Vermont that had a few "poor Africans," lasted for 30 years. During that time, Haynes developed an international reputation as a preacher and writer. In 1804, he received an honorary Master of Arts degree from Middlebury College, the first ever bestowed upon an African American. In 1801, he published a tract called "The Nature and Importance of True Republicanism..." which contained his only public statement on the subject of race or slavery. Haynes was a lifelong admirer of George Washington and an ardent Federalist. In 1818, conflicts with his congregation, ostensibly over politics and style, led to a parting; there was some speculation, however, that the church's displeasure with Haynes stemmed from racism. Haynes himself was known to say that "he lived with the people of Rutland thirty years, and they were so sagacious that at the end of that time they found out that he was a , and so turned him away." His last appointment was in Manchester, Vermont, where he counseled two men convicted of murder; they narrowly escaped hanging when the alleged "victim" reappeared. Haynes's writings on the seven-year ordeal became a bestseller for a decade. For the last eleven years of his life, Haynes ministered to a congregation in upstate New York. He died in 1833, at the age of 80. Nearly 150 years after his death, a manuscript written by Haynes around 1776 was discovered, in which he boldly stated "That an African... has an undeniable right to his Liberty." The treatise went on to condemn slavery as sin, and pointed out the irony of slaveowners fighting for their own liberty while denying it to others. i never heard of haynes until a couple weeks ago when i was doing some research. his writings, unvfortunately, are not easy to come by
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Ladytex
Member
09-27-2001
| Wednesday, February 07, 2007 - 7:23 pm
thanks, Tish, I'd never heard of him either.
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Ladytex
Member
09-27-2001
| Wednesday, February 07, 2007 - 8:22 pm
Oral recordings from black families to be archived by Smithsonian The Associated Press By BRETT ZONGKER February 07, 2007 The Corporation for Public Broadcasting announced a new project Wednesday that hopes to record about 2,000 oral histories from black families over the next year to be placed in the archives of the Smithsonian's future National Museum of African American History and Culture. 'One of the greatest treasures of African America is the stories, the words, the family memories,' said Lonnie Bunch, director of the museum, which is planned for the National Mall. 'In essence, this is really one of the ways we will help America to remember by preserving those words,' he said. The audio CD recordings will be produced by the New York-based nonprofit group Sound Portraits Productions, which runs a project called StoryCorps to create an oral history of the nation. The group has been recording 40-minute interviews of everyday people, including victims of Hurricane Katrina and a family recording for each victim of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks at the World Trade Center, since 2003. The series also airs weekly on National Public Radio. The first recordings for the black history project are planned for Feb. 15 in Atlanta through a mobile recording studio that will stop in nine cities over the next year. 'This booth will travel the country recording the stories of everyday African Americans _ the preachers and teachers, the judges and janitors,' said Dave Isay, who created the StoryCorps project in 2003. 'History is usually told from the top down ... but in this case, it's going to be told from the bottom up.' The CPB is funding the $1.4 million StoryCorps Griot project. The name 'griot' is derived from the West African tradition of storytelling where a respected tribe member, a 'griot,' is a living repository of the community's history. Taylor and Bessie Rogers, of Memphis, Tenn., made a StoryCorps recording in 2005 about their memories of the 1968 Memphis Sanitation Workers' Strike and the final speech by Martin Luther King Jr. 'We were wall to wall with people,' Taylor Rogers, 81, said in the recording. The retired sanitation worker echoed King's speech and the line 'I've looked over and I've seen the promised land.' 'And he was crying,' said Bessie Rogers, 79, as she remembered King's speech. 'Tears were rolling down his cheeks.' The Rogerses made their first trip to Washington to help announce the StoryCorps Griot project Wednesday. They said it will help children remember the struggle for civil rights. 'Our young people need to know there's more to life than 'American Idol,'' said Patricia Harrison, CPB president and chief executive officer. 'This is about our kids having an opportunity to connect to their heritage to gain strength from it.' The mobile recording units also will travel to Chicago; Clarksdale, Miss.; Detroit; Memphis, Tenn.; Montgomery, Ala.; Newark, N.J.; Oakland, Calif.; and Selma, Ala. Separate from the black history project, StoryCorps will visit eight other cities this year, including Houston and Richmond, Va., where black families can also get involved. Participants will be given a CD of their interview, and copies will be placed in the Smithsonian archives and the Library of Congress for researchers. The Smithsonian may also use the recordings for permanent exhibitions once the black history museum is constructed, Bunch said. Museum officials hope to complete the construction in less than a decade. Some of the oral histories will be aired on NPR's 'News and Notes' show. The project will work with local radio stations, historically black colleges and universities and other groups to organize the recordings in each city. Families who want to participate in the project can also make reservations by phone or online. Bunch said it was helpful to start the project during Black History Month. 'For me, the most important thing about Black History Month is that it's a clarion call for all Americans to remember,' he said. 'But because we'll be collecting and exploring African American culture year-round, we hope to also send a message that this is a story that we need to wrestle with and embrace and understand year-round.' ___ link
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