Robert Fikes, Author at

Robert Fikes

Independent Historian

Robert Fikes, Jr., a 1970 graduate of Tuskegee Institute, earned graduate degrees in modern European history and library science at the University of Minnesota. A reference librarian at San Diego State University where he is also subject bibliographer for Africana Studies and for American, Middle Eastern, and African history, Fikes has published journal articles, essays, encyclopedia entries, bibliographies, and monographs pertaining to history and literature.

Hamilton Earl Holmes (1941-1995)

Hamilton Earl Holmes was the lesser known of the Black duo who desegregated the University of Georgia in 1961. He was born July 8, 1941, in Atlanta, Georgia, the son of businessman Alfred Holmes and schoolteacher Isabella Holmes. A precocious, goal-driven youth, early on he … Read MoreHamilton Earl Holmes (1941-1995)

Rita Gertrudis Bosaho (1965- )

Rita Gertrudis Bosaho is the first person of color, male or female, to be elected to a seat in the Spanish Parliament. She was born on May 21, 1965, in Malabo, the capital city of the coastal central African nation of Equatorial Guinea, a former … Read MoreRita Gertrudis Bosaho (1965- )

Mikhail Milhailovich Egypteos (1861-1932)

The details of the birth and appearance of Russian shipbuilder and military Gen. Mikhail M. Egypteos remain uncertain. There are two competing stories: One is that as a teenager from an aristocratic Ethiopian family he was taken, perhaps by force, to the Russian Empire by … Read MoreMikhail Milhailovich Egypteos (1861-1932)

Wladyslaw Franciszek Jablonowski (1769-1802)

The astonishing appearance of a high-ranking Black military officer in late 18th century Poland who led troops across Europe and in the Caribbean is further evidence of the breadth of the African diaspora. The product of an illicit affair in Paris between British-born Princess Maria … Read MoreWladyslaw Franciszek Jablonowski (1769-1802)

Tomáš Zmeškal (1966- )

In the Czech Republic in 2011, the literary event of the year was the publication of a novel by Afro-Czech writer Tomáš Zmeškal, who was born in the capital city of Prague. He is the son of Czech citizen Anna Zmeškal, a multilingual office worker, … Read MoreTomáš Zmeškal (1966- )

William Lee (aka Billy Lee/ Will Lee) (1752?-1810)

The mulatto slave William Lee appears together with his owner, U.S. President George Washington, in two and quite possibly three paintings, including the iconic Washington Crossing the Delaware by the artist Emanuel Leutze, where he is seen third from left in the boat where Washington … Read MoreWilliam Lee (aka Billy Lee/ Will Lee) (1752?-1810)

Joanne Marie Anderson (1971- )

Joanne Marie Anderson is the first woman of color to win election as mayor of a major city the United Kingdom and the first Black and first female woman mayor of Liverpool, England. Born in January 1971 in Liverpool, she acknowledges she is biracial and … Read MoreJoanne Marie Anderson (1971- )

Shirley Nash Weber (1948- )

Currently California Secretary of State, Shirley Nash Weber was born September 20, 1948, in Hope, Arkansas, one of the eight children of David Nash, a semi-literate sharecropper and later steel mill worker, and Mildred Nash, a homemaker. When her father disagreed with a white farmer … Read MoreShirley Nash Weber (1948- )

Kedist Deltour (1997- )

Kedist Deltour was a most unlikely winner of the 2021 Miss Belgium beauty pageant. At the time she was 24 and a native of East Africa. Born in Ethiopia’s capital city of Addis Ababa on July 29, 1997, Deltour was the oldest of three children. … Read MoreKedist Deltour (1997- )

Saad Al-Salim Al-Sabah (aka Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah) (1930-2008)

For nine days in early 2006, Saad Al-Salim Al-Sabah headed the government of Kuwait. He was born in 1930, the son of a Ethiopian slave named Jameela (or Jamila) who was one of the five wives of his father, Sheikh Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah, the 11th ruler … Read MoreSaad Al-Salim Al-Sabah (aka Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah) (1930-2008)