NBNA is a non-profit organization first organized in 1971, but officially incorporated on September 2, 1972 in Ohio.  After more than 40 years, the association continues to grow and expand the opportunities to “provide a forum for collective action by African American nurses to investigate, define and determine what the health care needs of African Americans are and to implement change to make available to African Americans and other minorities health care commensurate with that of the larger society.”

Representing more than 150,000 African American registered nurses, licensed vocational/practical nurses, nursing students and retired nurses from the USA, Eastern Caribbean and Africa, with 83 chartered chapters, in 34 states, NBNA offers scholarships, training, mentoring, and leadership to nurses around the world.

Dr. Lauranne Sams, former Dean and Professor of Nursing in the School of Nursing at Tuskegee University was a founding member along with Phyllis Jenkins, Betty Smith Williams, Ethelrine Shaw, Gloria Rookard, Betty Jo Davidson, Mary Harper, Doris Wilson, Mattiedna K. Johnson, Phyllis Davis, Mattie Watkins, and Florrie Jefferson

In 2003, the National Black Nurses Association became one of the five founding organizations of the National Coalition of Ethnic Minority Nurse Associations (NCEMNA), along with Asian American/Pacific Islander Nurses Association, Inc., National Alaska Native American Indian Nurses Association, Inc.; National Association of Hispanic Nurses, Inc.; and, the Philippine Nurses Association of America, Inc. This collaboration gives voice to 350,000 minority nurses. Dr. Betty Smith Williams is the NCEMNA president and a past NBNA president.

Its goals include support for the development of a cadre of ethnic nurses reflecting the nation’s diversity; advocacy for culturally competent, accessible and affordable health care; promotion of the professional and educational advancement of ethnic nurses; education of consumers, health care professionals and policy makers on health issues of ethnic minority populations; development of ethnic minority nurse leaders in areas of health policy, practice, education and research; endorsement of best practice models of nursing practice, education, and research for minority populations.

NBNA also publishes a quarterly newsletter written by members and experts on nursing and health subjects such as nursing policies, research studies, and newsworthy events changing the world of nursing.

NBNA hosts National Black Nurse Day on Capitol Hill for more than 20 years now.  The event is designed to bring awareness to the nursing shortage, provide opportunities for CEU training for nurses, and provide the public with a voice to develop the nursing profession.

NBNA offers members a wide variety of assistance and support both as a current nurse and a nursing student.  Although initially organized for African American nurses, this organization has made an impact on all nursing.  The association is involved with the National Obesity Initiative, research programs for women’s health, and recognizes nurses for Lifetime Achievements and major contributions to their professions at their annual conference.

Through the many partnerships with other nursing organizations and the prominent community respect, the organization continues to grow and improve the nursing profession.

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John Royce “Johnny” Mathis

September 30, 1935 John Royce “Johnny” Mathis was born in Gilmer, Texas.

As a teenager, Mathis was known for his singing and athletic abilities. At San Francisco State College he broke classmate Bill Russell’s high jump record and in 1955 had to decide whether to pursue a recording career or tryout for the 1956 Olympics. Mathis decided on the recording career and in 1956 recorded two of his most popular songs, “Wonderful! Wonderful!” and “It’s Not For Me to Say.”

In 1958, “Johnny’s Greatest Hits” was released as the first ever greatest hits album in the music industry. That album was on the Billboard album chart for an unprecedented 490 consecutive weeks. Mathis also has the distinction of having the longest stay of any recording artist on the Columbia Record label, having been with the label from 1956 to 1963 and from 1968 to the present. To date, Mathis has recorded more than 130 albums with sales in excess of 350 million and more than 60 of his albums have been certified gold or platinum. He has received three Grammy Awards and in 2003 received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

Three of his recordings, “It’s Not for Me to Say” (1957), “Chances Are” (1957), and “Misty” (1959), have been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame as having “qualitative or historical significance.” Mathis continues to perform but has limited his concert engagements to 50 to 60 appearances a year. In 1982, Mathis authored the cookbook “Cooking for You Alone.”

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Franklin Joseph “Frankie” Lymon

September 30, 1942 Franklin Joseph “Frankie” Lymon, R&B singer and songwriter, was born in Harlem, New York.

At the age of 12, Lymon began singing in a group that called itself both The Ermines and The Premiers. In 1955, they wrote the song “Why Do Fools Fall in Love.” On the day of recording, the original lead singer was late so Lymon stepped in and sang the lead. The song became their first hit, topping the Billboard R&B singles chart for five weeks.

Over the next year or so five other top ten singles followed, including “I Want You to Be My Girl” and “The ABC’s of Love.” The group’s last single, recorded in 1957, was “Goody Goody.” After that Lymon went solo, but was not nearly as successful as he was with the group. On February 27, 1968, he was found dead from a heroin overdose.

Frankie Lymon and the Teenagers were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993 and in 1998 a fictionalized version of Lymon’s life was told in the film “Why Do Fools Fall in Love.”

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Sir William Arthur Lewis

September 29, 1979 Sir William Arthur Lewis became the first black person to win a Nobel Prize in a category other than peace.

Lewis was born January 23, 1915 in Saint Lucia. After earning his Bachelor of Science degree in 1937 and Ph.D. in 1940 from the London School of Economics, he lectured at the University of Manchester until 1959 when he was appointed vice chancellor of the University of the West Indies. Key works by Lewis include “Economic Development with Unlimited Supplies of Labour” (1954) and “The Theory of Economic Growth” (1955).

Lewis was knighted in 1963 and served as a full professor in the Department of Economics at Princeton University from 1964 until his retirement in 1983. After his retirement, he became president of the American Economic Association. Lewis died on June 15, 1991 and was buried on the grounds of the Saint Lucian community college named in his honor. In 2007, the Arthur Lewis Building was opened at the University of Manchester in his honor.

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Gloria Foster

September 29, 2001 Gloria Foster, stage and film actress, died.

Foster was born November 15, 1933 in Chicago, Illinois. She made her Broadway debut in 1961 in “A Raisin in the Sun.” In 1963, she won her first Obie Award (Off-Broadway Theater Award) for her performance in “In White America.” In 1965, she won her second Obie Award for her performance in “Medea” and in 1989 she won her third for “Forbidden City.”

In 1995, Foster returned to the stage as 103-year old Sadie Delany in “Having Our Say,” for which she received rave reviews. Foster made her film debut in “The Cool World” (1964), but is probably best known as The Oracle in “The Matrix” (1999) and “The Matrix Reloaded” (2003).

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Miles Dewey Davis III

September 28, 1991 Miles Dewey Davis III, jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer, died.

Davis was born May 26, 1926 in Alton, Illinois. By the age of 16, Davis was a member of the musical society and playing professionally. In 1944, he moved to New York City to study at the Juilliard School of Music. In 1945, he entered a recording studio for the first of many times during this period as a sideman.

From 1945 to 1948, Davis was a member of the Charlie Parker Quintet. In the late 1940s, Davis began to lead his own ensembles and over the years was at the forefront of several major developments in jazz music with recordings that include “Birth of the Cool” (1949 & 1950), “Kind of Blue” (1959), “Sketches of Spain” (1960), “Bitches Brew” (1969), “Tutu” (1986), and “Amandla” (1989). His album “Kind of Blue” has sold more than 4 million copies. Davis won nine Grammy Awards, including the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1990.

Davis was inducted into the Down Beat Jazz Hall of Fame in 1962 and was designated a NEA Jazz Master by the National Endowment for the Arts in 1984. He was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006. Biographies of Davis include “Milestones: The Music and Times of Miles Davis” (1989) and “Miles: The Autobiography” (1989).

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Constance Baker Motley

September 28, 2005 Constance Baker Motley, civil rights activist, lawyer and judge, died.

Motley was born September 14, 1921 in New Haven, Connecticut. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from New York University in 1943 and her law degree from Columbia Law School in 1946. She began her career as a law clerk at the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, eventually becoming associate counsel and the LDF’s first female attorney. In 1950, she wrote the original complaint in the case of Brown v. Board of Education.

In 1962, Motley became the first African American woman to argue a case before the United States Supreme Court in Meredith v. Fair. She was successful in winning James Meredith’s case to be the first African American student admitted to the University of Mississippi. Motley was successful in nine out of ten cases that she argued before the U. S. Supreme Court. She had a succession of firsts for an African American woman, including in 1964 being the first elected to the New York State Senate, in 1965 the first chosen Manhattan Borough President, and in 1966 the first appointed a federal court judge.

In 1993, Motley was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame. In 2001, President William Clinton awarded her the Presidential Citizens Medal, the second highest civilian award in the United States, and in 2003 the NAACP awarded her the Spingarn Medal.

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Hiram Rhodes Revels

September 27, 1827 Hiram Rhodes Revels, the first African American to serve in the United States Senate, was born in Fayetteville, North Carolina.

Revels was ordained an African Methodist Episcopal minister in 1845 and in 1846 he was given a pastorship in Natchez, Mississippi. Revels was elected an Alderman in Natchez in 1868 and elected to the Mississippi State Senate in 1869.

At that time the state legislature elected U. S. Senators and Revels was elected to finish the term of one of the state’s seats left vacant since the Civil War. On February 25, 1870, he took the seat in the U. S. Senate where he served until he resigned on March 3, 1871, two months before the end of his term, to become the first president of Alcorn Agricultural and Mechanical College (Alcorn State University) where he served until his retirement in 1882. Revels died on January 16, 1901.

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Earl Rudolph “Bud” Powell

September 27, 1924 Earl Rudolph “Bud” Powell, jazz pianist, was born in New York City.

At an early age, Powell learned classical piano, but by eight became interested in jazz and by 15 was playing in his brother’s band. His debut recording was with Cootie Williams’ band in 1944. In 1947, he made his debut recording as a leader with the album “Bud Powell Trio.”

Other albums by Powell include “The Amazing Bud Powell” (1951), “Blues in the Closet” (1956), and “Bud Powell in Paris” (1963). Many people referred to Powell as “the Charlie Parker of the piano.” Powell suffered from mental illness throughout his later life and died July 31, 1966.

That same year, he was posthumously inducted into the Down Beat Jazz Hall of Fame. “Dance of the Infidels: A Portrait of Bud Powell” was published in 1986 and was the basis for the movie “Round Midnight (1986).

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Martha Minerva Franklin

September 26, 1968 Martha Minerva Franklin, founder of the National Association of Colored Graduate Nurses, died.

Franklin was born October 29, 1870 in New Milford, Connecticut. She graduated from the Women’s Hospital Training School in 1897, the only black graduate in her class, and in the early 1900s moved to New Haven, Connecticut. After two years of investigating the nursing field, she determined that although black nurses could join the American Nurses Association they were restricted from addressing the issues of segregation and discrimination.

As a result on August 25, 1908, Franklin hosted a meeting of 52 black nurses that resulted in the founding of the National Association of Colored Graduate Nurses with Franklin as president. The NACGN grew to an organization of 12,000 members from almost every state in the nation. By 1951, most of the groups aspirations had been met and they merged with the American Nurses Association. Franklin continued with her education and became a registered nurse with the New York Public School System.

In 1976, Franklin was posthumously inducted into the American Nurses Association Hall of Fame as one of the pioneers of the nursing field.

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Bessie Smith

September 26, 1937 Bessie Smith, blues singer, died.

Smith was born on April 15, 1894 in Chattanooga, Tennessee. In 1912, she was hired as a dancer with the Moses Stokes troupe which included Ma Rainey. By the early 1920s, Smith had starred with Sidney Bechet in “How Come?,” a musical that made its way to Broadway, and she had become the biggest headliner and highest paid entertainer on the Black Theater Owners Association circuit.

In 1923, Smith was signed by Columbia Records as part of their “race records” series and she scored a hit with her first release “Downhearted Blues” which sold 780,000 records in the first six months after release. The recording was included by the National Recording Preservation Board in the Library of Congress’ National Recording Registry in 2002 as “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.” It is also in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as one of the 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll.

In total, Smith made 160 recordings for Columbia. In November, 1933, Smith made her last recordings which included “Take Me for a Buggy Ride” and “Gimme a Pigfoot,” both of which remain among her most popular recordings. Smith was posthumously inducted into the Down Beat Jazz Hall of Fame in 1967. In 1989, she was awarded a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award and inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

In 1994, the United States Postal Service issued a commemorative postage stamp in her honor. Smith’s life is the subject of the play “The Devil’s Music: The Life and Blues of Bessie Smith.”

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Dennis Bell

September 25, 1953 Dennis Bell, Medal of Honor recipient, died. Bell was born December 28, 1866 in Washington, D. C.

By June 30, 1898, Bell was serving as a private in Troop H of the 10th Cavalry Regiment, an all-black unit of the United States Army during the Spanish-American War. On that day, American forces aboard the USS Florida near Tayacoba, Cuba dispatched a small landing party to provide reconnaissance on Spanish outposts in the area.

The party was discovered and came under heavy fire, sinking their boats and leaving them stranded on shore. The men aboard the Florida launched four rescue attempts but were forced to retreat under heavy fire each time. The fifth attempt, manned by Bell and three other privates, found and rescued the surviving members of the landing party.

On June 23, 1899, Bell and the other three rescuers were awarded the medal, America’s highest military decoration. Bell reached the rank of corporal before leaving the army.

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Scottie Maurice Pippen

September 25, 1965 Scottie Maurice Pippen, hall of fame basketball player, was born in Hamburg, Arkansas.

Pippen played college basketball at the University of Central Arkansas. He was selected by the Seattle Supersonics in the 1987 NBA Draft but is best known for his time with the Chicago Bulls. Over his 17 season professional career, Pippen was a seven-time All-Star, ten-time All-Defensive Team selection, and six-time NBA champion.

He was also a member of the Gold medal winning men’s basketball teams at the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games and the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. He is the only person ever to twice win an NBA championship and an Olympic Gold medal in the same year. After retiring in 2004, Pippen worked as a basketball analyst for several television stations before returning to the Chicago Bulls as an ambassador for the team.

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Charles Edward “Mean Joe” Greene

September 24, 1946 Charles Edward “Mean Joe” Greene, hall of fame football player, was born in Temple, Texas.

Greene played college football at North Texas State University and was a 1968 All-American. He was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 1969 NFL Draft and over his 13 season professional career was the 1969 Defensive Rookie of the Year, NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 1972 and 1974, a ten-time Pro Bowl selection, and four-time Super Bowl champion.

Many consider him one of the greatest defensive lineman in NFL history. After retiring in 1981, he spent 16 years as an assistant coach with several NFL teams. Greene was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1984 and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1987.

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Executive Order 11246

September 24, 1965 Executive Order 11246 was signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson requiring Equal Employment Opportunity.

The order prohibited federal contractors and federally assisted contractors from discriminating in employment decisions on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. Contractors were also required to take affirmative action to ensure that applicants were employed, and that employees were treated during employment, without regard to their race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.

The order further required contractors to implement affirmative action plans to increase the participation of minorities and women in the workplace if a workforce analysis demonstrated their underrepresentation.

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Henry Ransom Cecil McBay

September 23, 1995 Henry Ransom Cecil McBay, chemist and educator, died.

McBay was born May 29, 1914 in Mexia, Texas. He earned his B. S. degree from Wiley College in 1934 and his master’s degree from Atlanta University in 1936. McBay then taught at several educational institutions before accepting a position at the University of Chicago. While doing research at the university, McBay made discoveries that allowed chemists around the world to create inexpensive peroxide compounds which were useful as building blocks in many chemical reactions.

As a result of that research, McBay received the Elizabeth Norton Prize for Excellence at Research in Chemistry in 1944 and 1945. In 1945, McBay earned his doctoral degree from the University of Chicago and returned as an assistant professor to Morehouse College. McBay taught in the Atlanta University system for the next 41 years. In 1951, McBay developed a chemistry education program in Liberia on behalf of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

Other honors and awards earned by McBay include The Herty Award for Outstanding Contribution to Chemistry from the American Chemical Society of Georgia (1976) and The Norris Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Teaching of Chemistry from the American Chemical Society of the Northeast (1978).

The Henry McBay Endowed Chemistry Scholarship was established at Morehouse in 1986 and the Henry C. McBay Research Fellowship was established by the Negro College Fund in 1995.

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George Costello Wolfe

September 23, 1954 George Costello Wolfe, playwright and director of theater and films, was born in Frankfort, Kentucky.

Wolfe earned a Bachelor of Arts in Theater from Pomona College and then taught for several years in Los Angeles and New York where he earned a Masters of Fine Arts from New York University in 1983. In 1989, Wolfe won an Obie Award for Best Off-Broadway Director for his play “Spunk” and in 1991 he gained national attention for “Jelly’s Last Jam”, which received 11 Tony nominations and won him the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Book of a Musical.

In 1993, Wolfe directed “Angels in America: Millennium Approaches” which won a Tony Award. From 1993 to 2004, Wolfe served as Artistic Director and Producer of the New York Shakespeare Festival where in 1996 he created “Bring in Da Noise, Bring in Da Funk” which won him a second Tony Award. In 2004, Wolfe began directing films, beginning with the HBO film “Lackawanna Blues.” His latest movie was the 2008 “Nights in Rodanthe.”

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The Interstate Commerce Commission

September 22, 1961 The Interstate Commerce Commission issued regulations to enforce the prohibition of segregation on interstate buses and in terminal facilities.

Impelled by the protest of civil rights leaders and international outrage over the violence perpetrated on the Freedom Riders, Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy petitioned the ICC to issue regulations banning Jim Crow in interstate travel and to take immediate steps to enforce those regulations. Prior to the regulations, the ICC had prohibited segregation but failed to enforce the prohibition.

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James Raleigh “Biz” Macke

September 22, 1965 James Raleigh “Biz” Mackey, Negro League baseball player and manager, died.

Mackey was born July 27, 1897 in Eagle Pass, Texas. He began playing professional baseball in 1918 and played until 1947. He was regarded as the premier catcher in the Negro League in the late 1920s and early 1930s.

By 1937, Mackey was managing the Baltimore Elite Giants where he mentored a teenaged Roy Campanella. Later he would work with young players such as Monte Irvin, Larry Doby, and Don Newcombe. Mackey retired from baseball in the 1950s and was posthumously inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2006.

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Artis Gilmore

September 21, 1949 Artis Gilmore, hall of fame basketball player, was born in Chipley, Florida but raised in Dothan, Alabama.

Gilmore played two years at Jacksonville University and led the team to the 1970 NCAA Division I championship game. He led the NCAA in rebounding both years and his career average of 22.7 rebounds per game is the highest in NCAA Division I history.

Gilmore was selected by the Kentucky Colonels in the 1971 American Basketball Association Draft. In his first year, he won both the Rookie of the Year Award and the Most Valuable Player Award. After the ABA dissolved in 1976, Gilmore was selected by the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association.

Over his 19 season professional career, he was an 11-time All-Star and still holds the NBA record for career field goal percentage. Gilmore was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2011. Since 2007, he has served as special assistant to the president of Jacksonville University.

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