KRLemmons African American History

January 6 African American Historical Events

* Today in Black History – January 6 *

1773 – “Felix,” a Boston slave, and others petition Massachusetts
Governor Hutchinson for their freedom. It is the first of
a record eight similar petitions filed during the
Revolutionary War.

1831 – The World Anti-Slavery Convention opens in London, England.

1832 – William Lloyd Garrison founds the New England Anti-Slavery
Society at the African Meeting House in Boston,
Massachusetts, where he issues the society’s “Declaration
of Sentiments” from the Meeting House pulpit.

1882 – Thomas Boyne receives the Congressional Medal of Honor for
bravery in two New Mexico battles while a sergeant in Troop
C, 9th U.S. Calvary.

1906 – Benedict Wallet Vilakazi is born in South Africa. He will
become a pre-apartheid Zulu poet, novelist, and educator.
In 1946, he will become the first Black South African to
receive a Ph.D. He will become the first Black South African
to teach white South Africans at the university level. He
will join the ancestors on October 26, 1947 after succumbing
to meningitis.

1937 – Doris Payne is born in Bronx, New York. She will become a
rhythm and blues singer better known as Doris Troy and best
known for her song “Just One Look.” She will also be known
as “Mama Soul.” “Mama, I Want To Sing” will be a stage
musical based on her life, and co-written with her sister,
Vy. It will run for 1,500 performances at the Heckscher
Theatre in Harlem. She will play the part of her own mother,
Geraldine. She will join the ancestors on February 16, 2004,
succumbing to emphysema.

1966 – Harold R. Perry becomes the second African American Roman
Catholic bishop since the U.S. was founded and the first in
the 20th century.

1968 – John Daniel Singleton is born in Los Angeles, California.
He will become an Academy Award-nominated film director,
screenwriter, and producer. His movies will depict his
native South Los Angeles with both its sweet and violent
sides given equal consideration. He will attend Pasadena
City College and the University of Southern California.
He will receive many distinctions, beginning during his
time as an undergraduate screenwriter at the University
of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts,
including nominations for Best Screenplay and Director for
“Boyz N the Hood.” He will be the youngest person ever
nominated for Best Director at the 1991 Academy Awards for
“Boyz N the Hood” and the first (and, to date, the only)
African American to be nominated for the award.

1971 – Cecil A. Partee is elected president pro tem of the Illinois
State Senate. He is the first African American to hold this
position.

1984 – Pennsylvania Supreme Court Justice Robert N.C. Nix, Jr., is
inaugurated as Chief Justice. The Philadelphia native,
former deputy attorney general of the state, and thirteen-
year veteran of the Court, is the first African American to
head a state Supreme Court.

1989 – Elizabeth Koontz joins the ancestors at the age of 69. She
was a noted educator and the first African American
president of the National Education Association. She also
had been director of the Women’s Bureau in the U.S.
Department of Labor.

1993 – Jazz great, John Birks “Dizzy” Gillespie, joins the ancestors
in Englewood, New Jersey at the age of 76. He had played
actively until early 1992.

Information retrieved from the Munirah Chronicle and is edited by Mr. Rene’ A. Perry.

KRLemmons African American History

January 5 African American Historical Events

* Today in Black History – January 5 *

1804 – Ohio begins the restriction of the rights and movements of
free African Americans by passing the first of several
“Black laws.” It is a trend that will be followed by most
Northern states.

1869 – Matilda Sissieretta Jones is born in Portsmouth, Virginia.
She will become a gifted singer (soprano), who will rise
to fame as a soloist and troupe leader during the later
part of the nineteenth century. She will be nicknamed
“Black Patti”, after a newspaper review mentioned her as
an African American equal to the acclaimed Italian soprano
Adelina Patti. American racism will prevent her from
performing with established white operatic groups. She will
tour Europe, South and North America and the West Indies as
a soloist. In 1896, she will form her own troupe, “Black
Patti’s Troubadours,” which will combine the elements of
opera and vaudeville, creating musical comedy. She will
join the ancestors on June 24, 1933.

1911 – Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity is founded on the campus of
Indiana University by Elder Watson Diggs, Byron Kenneth
Armstrong, and eight others. It will be the first African
American fraternity to be chartered as a national
organization.

1929 – Wilbert Harrison is born in Charlotte, North Carolina. He
will become a singer and will be best known for his
recordings “Kansas City,” and “Let’s Work Together.” In
2001, his recording of “Kansas City” will be given a Grammy
Hall of Fame Award. He will join the ancestors in Spencer,
North Carolina on October 26, 1994.

1931 – Alvin Ailey is born in Rogers, Texas and will move to Los
Angeles, California at the age of twelve. There, on a
junior high school class trip to the Ballet Russe de Monte
Carlo, he will fall in love with concert dance. In 1958, Mr.
Ailey will found his own company, the Alvin Ailey American
Dance Theater, which makes its debut in New York. Mr. Ailey
will have a vision of creating a company dedicated to the
preservation and enrichment of the American modern dance
heritage and the uniqueness of Black cultural expression.
In 1969, Alvin Ailey will found the Alvin Ailey American
Dance Center, the official school of the Ailey Company, and
he will go on to form the Repertory Ensemble, the second
company, in 1974. His commitment to education is the
foundation of the organization’s long-standing involvement
in arts-in-education programs, including AileyCamp. He will
join the ancestors on December 1, 1989 in New York City.

1938 – James Ngugi is born in Kamiriithu, Kenya. He will become a
writer whose works will depict events in colonial and post
colonial Kenya. He will integrate Marxist-Leninist beliefs
into his novels, which will include “Weep Not Child,” “The
River Between,” “A Grain of Wheat,” “Petals of Blood,” and
“Matigari ma Mjiruumgi.” He will later change his name to
Ngugi wa Thiong’o. His writings will cause him to be
imprisoned by the Kenyan government and he will later leave
the country for England and the United States.

1943 – George Washington Carver joins the ancestors after succumbing
to anemia at the age of 81. He was a pioneering plant
chemist and agricultural researcher noted for his work with
the peanut and soil restoration while at Tuskegee Institute.

1943 – William H. Hastie, civilian aide to the secretary of war,
resigns to protest segregation in the U.S. Armed Forces.

1947 – Ted Lange is born in Oakland, California. He will become an
actor and be best known for his role as ‘Isaac’ on the TV
series, “The Love Boat.”

1948 – A commemorative stamp of George Washington Carver is issued
by the U.S. Postal Service. The posthumous honor bestowed
upon the famed agricultural expert and researcher is only
one of the many awards he received, including the 1923
Spingarn Medal and membership in the NYU Hall of Fame.

1957 – Jackie Robinson announces his retirement from professional
baseball.

1971 – The Harlem Globetrotters lose 100-99 to the New Jersey Reds,
ending their 2,495-game win streak.

1975 – The Broadway premiere of “The Wiz” opens, receiving
enthusiastic reviews. The show, a Black version of “The
Wizard of Oz” will run for 1,672 shows at the Majestic
Theatre. Moviegoers, however, gave a thumbs down to the
cinema version of the play that starred Diana Ross and
Michael Jackson years later. One memorable song from the
show is “Ease on Down the Road.”

1987 – David Robinson becomes the first player in Naval Academy
history to score more than 2,000 points. This was
accomplished when the Midshipmen defeat East Carolina
91-66. He will go on to become a major star of the NBA.

1993 – Reggie Jackson is inducted into Baseball’s Hall of Fame with
94% of the votes.

Information retrieved from the Munirah Chronicle and is edited by Mr. Rene’ A. Perry.

KRLemmons 28 Days Later Campaign, African American Fantasy Literature, Caribbean Authors, Children's literature

Day 1 The Brown Bookshelf 2015 28 Days Later Campaign: Christopher John Farley

It’s that time again!  The Brown Bookshelf’s 28 Days Later Campaign has begun!  This campaign spotlights African American authors and illustrators each day in the month of February.

Day 1 features Christopher John Farley, Senior Editor for the Wall Street Journal and author of the fantasy novel, Game World. Read about this interesting author here: http://thebrownbookshelf.com/2015/02/01/day-1-christopher-john-farley/