July 26, 1916 Spottswood William Robinson III, educator, civil rights attorney, and judge, was born in Richmond, Virginia. Robinson earned his undergraduate degree from Virginia Union University in 1936 and in 1939 he received his law degree from Howard University, graduating first in his class and achieving the highest scholastic average in the history of [...]
Tag Archives | civil rights
July 24th in African American History – Mary Church Terrell
July 24, 1954 Mary Church Terrell, civil and suffrage rights activist, died. Terrell was born September 23, 1863 in Memphis, Tennessee. Terrell earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in 1884 and her Master of Arts degree in 1888 from Oberlin College, making her one of the first African American women to earn a college degree. [...]
March 28th in African American History – Ed Wilson
March 28, 1925 Ed Wilson, sculptor, was born in Baltimore, Maryland. After serving in the United States Army from 1943 to 1946, Wilson earned his Master of Arts degree from the University of Iowa in 1953. Wilson’s involvement in the Civil Rights Movement is apparent in such works as “Minority Man” (1957). In 1964, Wilson [...]
March 18th in African American History – Willie King
March 18, 1943 Willie King, blues guitarist, composer, and singer, was born in Prairie Point, Mississippi. Prior to recording, he worked at many occupations. King later became active with the Civil Rights Movement which inspired him to write socially conscious blues songs. He described his music as struggling blues because of its focus on the [...]
March 17th in African American History – Bayard Rustin
March 17, 1912 Bayard Rustin, civil rights leader and the chief organizer of the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, was born in West Chester, Pennsylvania. In 1942, Rustin assisted in the founding of the Congress of Racial Equality. A declared pacifist, he was imprisoned from 1944 to 1946 for violating the Selective [...]
March 15th in African American History – David Ruggles
March 15, 1810 David Ruggles, entrepreneur and anti-slavery activist, was born in Norwich, Connecticut. He moved to New York City and ran a grocery store, opened the first African American bookstore in the United States, and edited a newspaper called The Mirror. Ruggles also published a pamphlet called The Extinguisher and contributed to abolitionist newspapers. [...]
February 3rd in African American History – Percival Prattis
February 3, 1947 Percival Prattis became the first African American news correspondent admitted to the press galleries of the United States Senate and House of Representatives. A veteran of World War I, Prattis joined the Pittsburgh Courier in 1935, became editor in 1956, and retired in 1962.