March 28, 1984 Benjamin Elijah Mays, minister, educator, scholar, and social activist, died. Mays was born August 1, 1894 in Ninety Six, South Carolina. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from Bates College in 1920 and his Master of Arts degree in 1925 and Ph. D. in the School of Religion in 1935 from […]
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March 27th in African American History – Sarah Lois Vaughan
March 27, 1924 Sarah Lois Vaughan, jazz singer known as “The Divine One,” was born in Newark, New Jersey. Vaughan began piano lessons at the age of seven and sang in the church choir. By her mid-teens, she was performing in local nightclubs. In 1942, Vaughan sang “Body and Soul” at the Apollo Amateur Night […]
March 27th in African American History – Mariah Carey
March 27, 1970 Mariah Carey, singer, songwriter and actress, was born in Long Island, New York. Carey began singing at the age of three and by high school was working as a demo singer for local recording studios. Carey co-wrote the tracks on her 1990 debut album, “Mariah Carey,” which resulted in her winning Grammy […]
March 26th in African American History – Marcus LeMarr Allen
March 26, 1960 Marcus LeMarr Allen, hall of fame football player, was born in San Diego, California. Allen played college football at the University of Southern California from 1978 to 1981. In 1981, he became the first player in NCAA history to rush for over 2,000 yards in one season. That same year, he won […]
March 26th in African American History – Augusta Fells Savage
March 26, 1962 Augusta Fells Savage, Harlem Renaissance sculptor, died. Savage was born February 29, 1892 in Green Cove Springs, Florida. In 1921, she was admitted to Cooper Union Art School in New York City. In 1923, she applied for an art program sponsored by the French government but was turned down by the international […]
March 25th in African American History – Debra Janine Debi Thomas
March 25, 1967 Debra Janine “Debi” Thomas, figure skater and physician, was born in Poughkeepsie, New York. In 1986, Thomas won the U. S. National Ladies’ Figure Skating title, the Ladies’ World Figure Skating Championship, and earned ABC’s Wide World of Sports Athlete of the Year Award. At the 1988 Calgary Olympics, she won the […]
March 25th in African American History – John Hope Franklin
March 25, 2009 John Hope Franklin, historian and author, died. Franklin was born January 2, 1915 in Rentiesville, Oklahoma. He graduated from Fisk University in 1935 and earned a doctorate in history in 1941 from Harvard University. In the early 1950s, he served on the NAACP Legal Defense Fund team that developed the sociological case […]