February 21 African American Historical Events

* Today in Black History – February 21 *

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1864 – Saint Francis Xavier Church in Baltimore, Maryland is dedicated.
It is the first exclusively African American parish in the
United States.

1895 – The North Carolina Legislature adjourns for the day to mark the
death of Frederick Douglass.

1933 – Eunice Waymon (Nina Simone) is born in Tryon, North Carolina.
She will begin her entertaining career in 1954 and bolstered
by critical praise for her 1959 recording of “I Loves You,
Porgy,” she will tour in the U.S. and Europe during the 1960’s
and early 1970’s. Returning to the concert stage and
recording studio in 1977, she will be called the “High
Priestess of Soul.” She will record rarely in the 1970’s and
1980’s, but will experience a career comeback in the United
States with her 1993 album release, “A Single Woman.” She
will join the ancestors in Carry-le-Rouet (South of France) on
April 21, 2003. As she wished, her ashes will be spread in
different African countries.

1936 – Barbara Jordan is born in Houston, Texas. The first African
American state senator in the Texas legislature since 1883
and a three-term congresswoman, she will play a key role in
the 1974 Watergate hearings. In 1976, she will be the first
woman and first African American to make a keynote speech
before the Democratic National Convention. She will join the
ancestors on January 17, 1996 in Austin, Texas.

1940 – John Lewis is born in Troy, Alabama. He will become founder
and chairman of SNCC, organizer of the Selma-to-Montgomery
March in 1965, executive director of the Voter Education
Project, and congressman from Georgia’s 5th District. Lewis’
power will continue to be felt when he is named Democratic
deputy whip by Speaker of the House Thomas S. Foley in 1991.

1965 – El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz (Malcolm X) joins the ancestors after
being assassinated at the Audubon Ballroom in Harlem at the
age of 39. He was best known for his doctrine of
self-determination for African American people, including
their right to fight for their rights and protect themselves
in a hostile America by “whatever means necessary.”

1976 – Florence Ballard, one of the original Supremes, joins the
ancestors in Detroit, Michigan, at the age of 32. Ballard
had said that she never received a royalty check prior to
1967 for any of her work with the Supremes, who featured
Diana Ross and included Mary Wilson.

1998 – Julian Bond, civil rights leader from the 1960’s, former
Georgia state legislator, and college professor, becomes the
new chairperson of the NAACP.

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

January 10 African American Historical Events

* Today in Black History – January 10 *

1768 – James Varick is born in Orange County, New York. Racism in
New York City will lead Varick, a licensed clergyman, and
30 other African Americans to leave the famous and
predominantly white John Street Methodist Episcopal Church
and establish the first African American church in New York
City. He will later become the founder and first bishop of
the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church. He will join
the ancestors on July 22, 1827. His remains now rest in the
crypt of the Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church
in the village of Harlem in New York City.

1811 – African Americans in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania hold meetings
at Bethel Church to protest The American Colonization
Society’s campaign “to exile us from the land of our
nativity.”

1811 – Slaves in Louisiana rebel in two parishes about thirty-five
miles from New Orleans. The revolt is suppressed by U.S.
troops.

1870 – The legislature in the state of Georgia reconvenes and admits
African American representatives and senators.

1889 – The Ivory Coast is declared a protectorate of France.

1925 – Drummer Maxwell Lemuel “Max” Roach is born in Newland, North
Carolina. He will become an influential figure in the development
of modern jazz, playing with Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie,
and Clifford Brown before forming his own groups in the
1950’s. He will achieve wide acclaim for his superb musical
innovation. He also will be an educator, teaching at the
Lenox, Massachusetts School of Jazz, Yale University, and
Professor of Music at the University of Massachusetts
(Amherst). He will join the ancestors on August 16, 2007.

1938 – Willie McCovey is born in Mobile, Alabama. He will become a
professional baseball player in 1959 for the Giants organization.
After more than two decades, he will end his career, and garner
an impressive array of baseball’s most coveted awards: Rookie
of the Year in 1959; MVP in 1969; six times an All-Star and
once the All-Star Game MVP; Comeback Player of the Year in
1977 and the National League’s all-time left-handed home run
hitter. He will be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in
1986. It will be his first year of eligibility and he will appear
on 346 of 425 ballots cast (81.4 percent). In 1999, he will rank
56th on The Sporting News’ list of the “100 Greatest Baseball
Players,” and be nominated as a finalist for the Major League
Baseball All-Century Team. Since 1980, the Giants have awarded
the Willie Mac Award to honor his spirit and leadership. The
inlet of San Francisco Bay beyond the right field fence of AT&T
Park, historically known as China Basin, has been re-dubbed
McCovey Cove in his honor. Across McCovey Cove from the park a
statue of him will be erected and the land on which it stands
named McCovey Point. The Giants will retire his uniform number 44
on September 21, 1980, which he wore in honor of Hank Aaron, a
fellow Mobile, Alabama native. He will be inducted to the Afro
Sports Hall of Fame on February 7, 2009 in Oakland, California.

1949 – George Foreman is born in Marshall, Texas. He will become a
professional boxer and win the world heavyweight
championship in 1973. He will retire from boxing in 1977
after a defeat by Jimmy Young. He will enter the ministry
and stay away from boxing for ten years. He will return to
boxing in 1987 at the age of 37 and become the oldest
heavyweight champion at age 45 on November 5, 1994.

1966 – The Georgia House of Representatives refuses to seat African
American legislator Julian Bond, SNCC communications
director, because of his opposition to U.S. involvement in
the Vietnam War. He will be seated almost one year later,
after a legal battle that will eventually be resolved by the
U.S. Supreme Court.

1967 – Edward Brooke, takes his seat as the first popularly elected
African American United States Senator.

1976 – Chester Arthur Burnett, better known as “Howlin’ Wolf,” joins
the ancestors in Hines, Illinois. He was a blues legend that
helped to bring the Delta Blues music from Mississippi to
Chicago during the 1950’s. This music was the basis for the
Chicago blues sound.

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

January 9 African American Historical Events

* Today in Black History – January 9 *

1866 – Fisk College is established in Nashville, Tennessee. Rust
College is established in Holly Springs, Mississippi.
Lincoln University is established in Jefferson City,
Missouri.

1901 – Edward Mitchell Bannister joins the ancestors in Providence,
Rhode Island. Challenged to become an artist after reading a
newspaper article deriding African Americans’ ability to
produce art, he disproved that statement throughout a
distinguished art career.

1906 – Poet and author, Paul Laurence Dunbar, joins the ancestors
after succumbing to tuberculosis. Dunbar was so talented and
versatile that he succeeded in two worlds. He was so adept
at writing verse in Black English that he became known as the
“poet of his people,” while also cultivating a white audience
that appreciated the brilliance and value of his work.
“Majors and Minors” (1895), Dunbar’s second collection of
verse, was a remarkable work containing some of his best poems
in both Black and standard English. When the country’s
reigning literary critic, William Dean Howells reviewed
“Majors and Minors” favorably, Dunbar became famous. And
Howells’ introduction in “Lyric of Lowly Life” (1896) helped
make Dunbar the most popular African American writer in
America at the time.

1914 – Phi Beta Sigma fraternity is founded at Howard University.

1935 – Earl G. Graves is born in Brooklyn, New York. He will become
president and chief executive officer of Earl G. Graves, Ltd.,
the publisher of “Black Enterprise” magazine, a successful
entrepreneur, and one of the strongest advocates for
African American business.

1942 – Joe Louis knocks out Buddy Baer in the first round in the 20th
title defense of his world heavyweight title in New York City.

1946 – Lyric poet, Countee Cullen joins the ancestors in New York City
at the age of 42. His several volumes of poetry include
“Color” (1925); “Copper Sun” (1927); “The Black Christ” (1929);
and “On These I Stand” (published posthumously, 1947), his
selection of poems by which he wished to be remembered. Cullen
also wrote a novel dealing with life in Harlem, “One Way to
Heaven” (1931), and a children’s book, “The Lost Zoo” (1940).

1958 – The University of Cincinnati’s Oscar Robertson scores 56 points
against Seton Hall University, whose team total is 54 points.

1965 – Tyrone “Muggsy” Bogues is born in Baltimore, Maryland. He will
become a high school standout at Paul Lawrence Dunbar High, on
same team that produced first round draft picks Reggie Williams
and the late Reggie Lewis along with former Hornets teammate
David Wingate. He will play college basketball at Wake Forest
(where his jersey #14 will be retired) and become a NBA guard
with the Charlotte Hornets and Golden State Warriors. All
these accomplishments and only five feet three inches tall.

1967 – The Georgia legislature, bowing to legal decisions and national
pressure, seats state Representative Julian Bond, a critic of
the Vietnam War.

1970 – After 140 years of unofficial racial discrimination, the Mormon
Church issues an official statement declaring that Blacks were
not yet to receive the priesthood “for reasons which we
believe are known to God, but which He has not made fully
known to man.”

1989 – Time, Inc. agrees to sell NYT Cable for $420 million to Comcast
Corporation, Lenfest Communications, and an investment group
led by African American entrepreneur J. Bruce Llewellyn. It is
the largest cable TV acquisition by an African American.
Information retrieved from the Munirah Chronicle and is edited by Mr. Rene’ A. Perry.

February 21 African American Historical Events

Today in Black History – February 21 *

1864 – Saint Francis Xavier Church in Baltimore, Maryland is dedicated.
It is the first exclusively African American parish in the
United States.

1895 – The North Carolina Legislature adjourns for the day to mark the
death of Frederick Douglass.

1933 – Eunice Waymon (Nina Simone) is born in Tryon, North Carolina.
She will begin her entertaining career in 1954 and bolstered
by critical praise for her 1959 recording of “I Loves You,
Porgy,” she will tour in the U.S. and Europe during the 1960’s
and early 1970’s. Returning to the concert stage and
recording studio in 1977, she will be called the “High
Priestess of Soul.” She will record rarely in the 1970’s and
1980’s, but will experience a career comeback in the United
States with her 1993 album release, “A Single Woman.” She
will join the ancestors in Carry-le-Rouet (South of France) on
April 21, 2003. As she wished, her ashes will be spread in
different African countries.

1936 – Barbara Jordan is born in Houston, Texas. The first African
American state senator in the Texas legislature since 1883
and a three-term congresswoman, she will play a key role in
the 1974 Watergate hearings. In 1976, she will be the first
woman and first African American to make a keynote speech
before the Democratic National Convention. She will join the
ancestors on January 17, 1996 in Austin, Texas.

1940 – John Lewis is born in Troy, Alabama. He will become founder
and chairman of SNCC, organizer of the Selma-to-Montgomery
March in 1965, executive director of the Voter Education
Project, and congressman from Georgia’s 5th District. Lewis’
power will continue to be felt when he is named Democratic
deputy whip by Speaker of the House Thomas S. Foley in 1991.

1965 – El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz (Malcolm X) joins the ancestors after
being assassinated at the Audubon Ballroom in Harlem at the
age of 39. He was best known for his doctrine of
self-determination for African American people, including
their right to fight for their rights and protect themselves
in a hostile America by “whatever means necessary.”

1976 – Florence Ballard, one of the original Supremes, joins the
ancestors in Detroit, Michigan, at the age of 32. Ballard
had said that she never received a royalty check prior to
1967 for any of her work with the Supremes, who featured
Diana Ross and included Mary Wilson.

1998 – Julian Bond, civil rights leader from the 1960’s, former
Georgia state legislator, and college professor, becomes the
new chairperson of the NAACP.

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

February 21 African American Historical Events

Today in Black History – February 21 *

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* “Once a year we go through the charade of February being ‘Black *
* History Month.’ Black History Month needs to be a 12-MONTH THING. *
* When we all learn about our history, about how much we’ve *
* accomplished while being handicapped with RACISM, it can only *
* inspire us to greater heights, knowing we’re on the giant shoulders *
* of our ANCESTORS.” Subscribe to the Munirah Chronicle and receive *
* Black Facts every day of the year. *
* To SUBSCRIBE send E-mail to: <[log in to unmask]> *
* In the E-mail body place: Subscribe Munirah Your FULL Name *
***********************************************************************

1864 – Saint Francis Xavier Church in Baltimore, Maryland is dedicated.
It is the first exclusively African American parish in the
United States.

1895 – The North Carolina Legislature adjourns for the day to mark the
death of Frederick Douglass.

1933 – Eunice Waymon (Nina Simone) is born in Tryon, North Carolina.
She will begin her entertaining career in 1954 and bolstered
by critical praise for her 1959 recording of “I Loves You,
Porgy,” she will tour in the U.S. and Europe during the 1960’s
and early 1970’s. Returning to the concert stage and
recording studio in 1977, she will be called the “High
Priestess of Soul.” She will record rarely in the 1970’s and
1980’s, but will experience a career comeback in the United
States with her 1993 album release, “A Single Woman.” She
will join the ancestors in Carry-le-Rouet (South of France) on
April 21, 2003. As she wished, her ashes will be spread in
different African countries.

1936 – Barbara Jordan is born in Houston, Texas. The first African
American state senator in the Texas legislature since 1883
and a three-term congresswoman, she will play a key role in
the 1974 Watergate hearings. In 1976, she will be the first
woman and first African American to make a keynote speech
before the Democratic National Convention. She will join the
ancestors on January 17, 1996 in Austin, Texas.

1940 – John Lewis is born in Troy, Alabama. He will become founder
and chairman of SNCC, organizer of the Selma-to-Montgomery
March in 1965, executive director of the Voter Education
Project, and congressman from Georgia’s 5th District. Lewis’
power will continue to be felt when he is named Democratic
deputy whip by Speaker of the House Thomas S. Foley in 1991.

1965 – El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz (Malcolm X) joins the ancestors after
being assassinated at the Audubon Ballroom in Harlem at the
age of 39. He was best known for his doctrine of
self-determination for African American people, including
their right to fight for their rights and protect themselves
in a hostile America by “whatever means necessary.”

1976 – Florence Ballard, one of the original Supremes, joins the
ancestors in Detroit, Michigan, at the age of 32. Ballard
had said that she never received a royalty check prior to
1967 for any of her work with the Supremes, who featured
Diana Ross and included Mary Wilson.

1998 – Julian Bond, civil rights leader from the 1960’s, former
Georgia state legislator, and college professor, becomes the
new chairperson of the NAACP.

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

January 9 African American Historical Events

Today in Black History – January 9 *

1866 – Fisk College is established in Nashville, Tennessee. Rust
College is established in Holly Springs, Mississippi.
Lincoln University is established in Jefferson City,
Missouri.

1901 – Edward Mitchell Bannister joins the ancestors in Providence,
Rhode Island. Challenged to become an artist after reading a
newspaper article deriding African Americans’ ability to
produce art, he disproved that statement throughout a
distinguished art career.

1906 – Poet and author, Paul Laurence Dunbar, joins the ancestors
after succumbing to tuberculosis. Dunbar was so talented and
versatile that he succeeded in two worlds. He was so adept
at writing verse in Black English that he became known as the
“poet of his people,” while also cultivating a white audience
that appreciated the brilliance and value of his work.
“Majors and Minors” (1895), Dunbar’s second collection of
verse, was a remarkable work containing some of his best poems
in both Black and standard English. When the country’s
reigning literary critic, William Dean Howells reviewed
“Majors and Minors” favorably, Dunbar became famous. And
Howells’ introduction in “Lyric of Lowly Life” (1896) helped
make Dunbar the most popular African American writer in
America at the time.

1914 – Phi Beta Sigma fraternity is founded at Howard University.

1935 – Earl G. Graves is born in Brooklyn, New York. He will become
president and chief executive officer of Earl G. Graves, Ltd.,
the publisher of “Black Enterprise” magazine, a successful
entrepreneur, and one of the strongest advocates for
African American business.

1942 – Joe Louis knocks out Buddy Baer in the first round in the 20th
title defense of his world heavyweight title in New York City.

1946 – Lyric poet, Countee Cullen joins the ancestors in New York City
at the age of 42. His several volumes of poetry include
“Color” (1925); “Copper Sun” (1927); “The Black Christ” (1929);
and “On These I Stand” (published posthumously, 1947), his
selection of poems by which he wished to be remembered. Cullen
also wrote a novel dealing with life in Harlem, “One Way to
Heaven” (1931), and a children’s book, “The Lost Zoo” (1940).

1958 – The University of Cincinnati’s Oscar Robertson scores 56 points
against Seton Hall University, whose team total is 54 points.

1965 – Tyrone “Muggsy” Bogues is born in Baltimore, Maryland. He will
become a high school standout at Paul Lawrence Dunbar High, on
same team that produced first round draft picks Reggie Williams
and the late Reggie Lewis along with former Hornets teammate
David Wingate. He will play college basketball at Wake Forest
(where his jersey #14 will be retired) and become a NBA guard
with the Charlotte Hornets and Golden State Warriors. All
these accomplishments and only five feet three inches tall.

1967 – The Georgia legislature, bowing to legal decisions and national
pressure, seats state Representative Julian Bond, a critic of
the Vietnam War.

1970 – After 140 years of unofficial racial discrimination, the Mormon
Church issues an official statement declaring that Blacks were
not yet to receive the priesthood “for reasons which we
believe are known to God, but which He has not made fully
known to man.”

1989 – Time, Inc. agrees to sell NYT Cable for $420 million to Comcast
Corporation, Lenfest Communications, and an investment group
led by African American entrepreneur J. Bruce Llewellyn. It is
the largest cable TV acquisition by an African American.

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