In this constitutional case, the U.S. Supreme Court, composed entirely of Bok Guey (whites), adjudged Hon Yen (Chinese) to be in the same social classification as Lo Mok (blacks). The Supreme Court’s decision permitted the state of Mississippi to define Martha Lum as a member … Read MoreGong Lum v. Rice (1927)
George Samuel Schuyler, conservative columnist, was born in Providence, Rhode Island on February 25, 1895 to George Francis and Eliza Jane Schuyler. Upon his father’s death in 1898, George and his mother moved to Syracuse, New York. In 1912, at age 17, George enlisted in … Read MoreGeorge Schuyler (1895-1977)
Although he never held public office, George S. Jeffrey barber, orator, and post-reconstruction civil rights leader, emerged as one of the most important African American political figures in late 19th Century Connecticut. Jeffrey was born in Middletown, Connecticut in 1830, to free parents George W. … Read MoreGeorge S. Jeffrey (1830-1906)
A journalist, radical activist, and theoretician, George Padmore did more than perhaps any other single individual to shape the theory and discourse of Pan-African anti-imperialism in the first half of the twentieth century. Born Malcolm Nurse in Trinidad in 1901, Padmore moved to the United … Read MoreGeorge Padmore (1901-1959)
George Lewis Ruffin was born December 16, 1834 in Richmond, Virginia, the son of free blacks. He was educated in Boston, Massachusetts and soon became a force in the city’s civic leadership. After marrying Josephine St. Pierre, Mr. Ruffin supported his family by working as … Read MoreGeorge Lewis Ruffin (1834-1886)
Fayard and Harold Nicholas, whose careers spanned over six decades, made up one of the most beloved dance teams in the history of dance, The Nicholas Brothers. They were best known for their unforgettable appearances in more than 30 Hollywood musicals in the 1930s and … Read MoreNicholas Brothers
The daguerreotypist James Presley (J.P.) Ball was born in 1825 in Virginia, probably a freeman. As a young man he learned daguerreotyping and opened his first studio in Cincinnati, Ohio at age twenty. The city was a center for anti-slavery activity as well as the … Read MoreJames Presley Ball (1825-1904)
Reverend J(esse) J(ames) Clow was a beloved minister and a prominent figure in the struggle for civil rights in Portland, Oregon. In 1936, Rev. Clow began a service of ministry at Portland’s Mt. Olivet Baptist Church. Mt. Olivet was the first African American Baptist Church … Read MoreJ.J .Clow (1893-1979)
Isaiah Edwards was a community activist and advocate in Seattle’s Central Area. Isaiah Edwards and his wife, Marie, moved from Topeka, Kansas, to Seattle in 1942 to work at Boeing. Edwards worked for 40 years at Boeing as a maintenance dispatcher without missing a day, … Read MoreIsaiah Edwards (1913-1994)
Isaiah Dorman was born free in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1832 although the precise date of his birth is unknown. The date of his death, June 25, 1876, however, will be both long admired by many and reviled by others in American history. On that day, this … Read MoreIsaiah Dorman (1832-1876)
