The following are short descriptions of major events which have contributed to the shaping of African American history. These encyclopedia entries serve as a starting point for much more inclusive descriptions and discussions that appear in other sources. For additional information please consult the print or website sources cited in the entry.
Kwanzaa is an annual African American and pan-African celebration of family, community, and culture. It is observed between December 26 and January 1. It was created in 1966 by founder Dr. Maulana Karenga, in the wake of the 1965 Watts Rebellion, and is based on … Read MoreKwanzaa (1966- )
The Tampa Bay Race Riot was one of dozens of race riots that occurred in U.S. cities during the spring and summer of 1967. The riot took place between June 11 and June 14, 1967 after nineteen-year-old Martin Chambers who was a suspect in the … Read MoreTampa Bay Race Riot (1967)
The Ocoee Massacre, which occurred in the town of Ocoee, Florida on November 2-3, 1920, was the largest election-related massacre in the 20th Century. Approximately 50 Blacks and two whites died in the violence and the entire Black community of Ocoee was forced to flee … Read MoreThe Ocoee Massacre (1920)
The Longview Race Riot occurred on July 10-12 in this northeast Texas city where 1,790 blacks comprised 31% of the town’s 5,700 people in 1919. Racial tensions were high across the United States due to race riots that began in March 1919. Just before the … Read MoreLongview, Texas Race Riot, 1919
The Peekskill Riot was a series of violent attacks by mobs of white citizens directed against African Americans and Jews attending a civil rights benefit concert in Westchester County, New York, in 1949. More than 150 people were injured in the riots. The concert, planned … Read MorePeekskill Riot (1949)
The Slocum Massacre occurred on July 29, 1910 in Slocum, Texas, an unincorporated community in southeast Anderson County. The city used to be home to a thriving African American community with several businesses and farms owned by black residents. Leading up to the massacre, a … Read MoreThe Slocum Massacre (1910)
The Double V campaign was a slogan championed by The Pittsburgh Courier, then the largest black newspaper in the United States, that promoted efforts toward democracy for civilian defense workers and for African Americans in the military. The Pittsburgh Courier newspaper, founded in 1907, had … Read MoreThe Double V Campaign (1942-1945)
The Camilla Massacre was aftermath of a political rally in Mitchell County, Georgia, that ended with numerous participants killed and wounded in the town courthouse square. Following the Georgia Constitution of 1868, thirty-three African American men, all Republicans and often called the Original 33, were … Read MoreThe Camilla Massacre (1868)
The MOVE organization was founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1972 by John Africa. When members greeted each other they would say “on the MOVE.” The MOVE organization spoke about racial and environmental injustice on street corners and protested in front of numerous organizations throughout the … Read MoreMOVE Bombing (1985)
