Concert musician Calvin Edouard Ward was born on February 10, 1925, in Atlanta, Georgia, to Effie Elizabeth Crawford Ward, a graduate of Spelman Seminary for Women and Girls. His father, Jefferson Sigman Ward, a World War I Veteran, graduated from the Haynes Institute in Augusta, Georgia. … Read MoreCalvin Edouard Ward (1925-2018)
Marcel Pliat was one of several French nationals who served in the Russian Imperial Army during World War I but he was the only black man to serve in the Russian Imperial Air Force. Pliat was born in French Polynesia (now Tahiti) around 1890. His … Read MoreMarcel Pliat (ca. 1890-1917?)
In the following article, Russian DJ Ivan Tchijevsky describes exclusively for BlackPast.org the long history of black music and black musical performers in Russia. Writing from a musical festival in Odessa, Ukraine in June 2019, he outlines his views below. As I visit festivals of … Read MoreThe Afro-Beat in Russia: The Influence of Black Music on Russian Popular Culture, 1890-2002
In 2007, Ambassador John L. Withers II, a second generation diplomat, was appointed by President George H.W. Bush to serve as ambassador to Albania. Withers was born in 1948 in Guilford, North Carolina, to John L. Withers, Sr. and Daisy P. Withers. His father had briefly worked as a political science professor … Read MoreJohn Lovelle Withers, II (1948- )
