March 23, 1985 Patricia Roberts Harris, the first African American woman to serve as a United States Ambassador, died. Harris was born May 31, 1924 in Mattoon, Illinois. She graduated summa cum laude from Howard University in 1945 and in 1960 graduated from the George Washington University National Law Center. In 1965, President Lyndon Johnson […]
March 22nd in African American History – George Benson
March 22, 1943 George Benson, Grammy Award winning jazz guitarist and singer, was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. At the age of eight, Benson was playing guitar in nightclubs and at the age of 10 he recorded his first single, “She Makes Me Mad.” From 1961 to 1965, he played with jazz organist Jack McDuff. In […]
March 22nd in African American History – Stephanie Dorthea Mills
March 22, 1957 Stephanie Dorthea Mills, Grammy Award winning singer and Broadway star, was born in Brooklyn, New York. Mills appeared in her first play at the age of nine and two years later won Amateur Night at the Apollo Theater a record six times. Mills made her Broadway debut in 1968 in the musical […]
March 21st in African American History – The Sharpville Massacre
March 21, 1960 The Sharpville Massacre occurred when South African police opened fire on 5,000 to 7,000 black protesters, killing 69 and injuring more than 180. The black South Africans were organized by the Pan Africanist Congress to protest the pass laws which restricted the movement of blacks. When they converged on a local police […]
March 21st in African American History – John William “Johnny” Bristol
March 21, 2004 John William “Johnny” Bristol, musician, songwriter and record producer, died. Bristol was born February 3, 1939 in Morganton, North Carolina. After serving in the United States Air Force, Bristol recorded several singles before his label was absorbed by Motown Records in the mid-1960s. At Motown, he teamed with Harvey Fuqua to write […]
March 20th in African American History – Ossian H. Sweet
March 20, 1960 Ossian H. Sweet, physician, committed suicide. Sweet was born October 30, 1895 in Orlando, Florida. At the age of six, Sweet witnessed the lynching and burning of a neighbor who had been accused of raping a white girl. That memory would haunt him throughout his life. In 1920, Sweet earned his Bachelor […]
March 20th in African American History – Gerald Sekoto
March 20, 1993 Gerald Sekoto, the father of South African art, died. Sekoto was born December 9, 1913 near Middelburg, Eastern Transvaal. After graduating from the Diocesan Teachers Training College, Sekoto taught school from 1934 to 1938. In 1938, he moved to Johannesburg to pursue a career as an artist. He held his first solo […]