Academic Historian

W. Gabriel Selassie I is an assistant professor of Africana Studies at California State University, Northridge. He was born in Arizona and resided on the Navajo Indian Reservation before moving to California.  He earned a Bachelors of Architecture (5 year professional) from Prairie View A & M University of Texas (HBCU). He earned an M.A. from the California State University at Dominguez Hills in Public History, He also earned an M.A. in African American studies at the University of California at Los Angeles where he did extensive course work in African American nationalism under Robert Hill. He also earned an M.A., and Ph.D. in history from the Claremont Graduate University.

Marcus Jacques Garvey, Jr. (1930-2020)

Marcus Jacques Garvey, Jr., was the oldest son of Marcus Mosiah Garvey, Sr., founder of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League (UNIA-ACL) and Amy Euphemia Jacques. The UNIA-ACL, a leading black nationalist organization, was founded in 1914 in Jamaica and later headquartered … Read MoreMarcus Jacques Garvey, Jr. (1930-2020)

David Nesta “Ziggy” Marley (1968- )

Ziggy Marley is a Jamaican Grammy award-winning reggae musician, singer, and philanthropist. Marley was born in the Trench Town section of Kingston, Jamaica, on October 17, 1968, to parents and famed reggae artists Robert “Bob” Nesta and Alpharita “Rita” Constantia (Anderson) Marley. Ziggy’s family features … Read MoreDavid Nesta “Ziggy” Marley (1968- )

Abram Lincoln Harris Jr. (1899-1963)

Abram Lincoln Harris, Jr., the grandson of slaves, was the first nationally recognized black economist. Harris was highly respected for his work that focused primarily on class analysis, black economic life, and labor to illustrate the structural inadequacies of race and racial ideologies.  Harris’s major … Read MoreAbram Lincoln Harris Jr. (1899-1963)

Josiah Thomas Walls (1842-1905)

First elected to the Congress in 1870, Josiah T. Walls became Florida’s first elected African American congressman. Walls was born a slave in Winchester, Virginia on December 30, 1842.  He was conscripted by the Confederate Army and captured in Yorktown by Union forces in 1862.  … Read MoreJosiah Thomas Walls (1842-1905)

Ernest Everett Just (1883-1941)

Dr. Ernest E. Just was an eminent biologist and author recognized worldwide for his work unlocking the role of the cell surface in the development of organisms. He published some fifty scientific papers and two influential books, Basic Methods for Experiments on Eggs of Marine Mammals (1922) … Read MoreErnest Everett Just (1883-1941)

John Henrik Clarke (1915-1998)

Image Ownership: Public Domain John Henrik Clarke, historian, black nationalist, and Pan-Africanist, was a pioneer in the formation of Africana studies in the United States.  Principally a self-trained historian, Clarke dedicated his life to correcting what he argued was the prevailing view that people of … Read MoreJohn Henrik Clarke (1915-1998)