Academic Historian

 

Aaron Modica is a graduate of the master’s program in Educational Leadership at the University of Washington, Seattle.  He has a BA and MA in Sociology from the University of Nevada, Reno. He is currently full-time faculty in the sociology department at Highline College.

Democratic Progressive Voters League (1936- )

Organized in 1936 in Dallas, Texas, The Democratic Progressive Voters League is one of the oldest political organizations for African Americans in the state.  It developed in the Dallas-Fort Worth area with the goal of ensuring the rights of African Americans around the state to … Read MoreDemocratic Progressive Voters League (1936- )

Cabrini Green Housing Project, Chicago, Illinois (1942 -2009)

The Cabrini-Green Housing Project was a Chicago, Illinois Housing Authority (CHA) managed housing project located on the city’s Near North Side neighborhood.  The project was authorized by the Housing Act of 1937 which called for the construction of public housing as part of the effort … Read MoreCabrini Green Housing Project, Chicago, Illinois (1942 -2009)

Eric Walrond (1898-1966)

Eric Walrond was an Afro-Caribbean-American fiction writer and journalist of the Harlem Renaissance era.  Born December 18, 1898, in Georgetown, British Guyana, Walrond would write short stories with the interwoven themes of immigration, racial pride, and discrimination as he captured the early urban experience of … Read MoreEric Walrond (1898-1966)

Pruitt-Igoe Housing Project, St. Louis, Missouri (1956–1976)

The Pruitt-Igoe Housing Project was located in the predominantly African American and economically depressed Desoto-Carr neighborhood just north-west of downtown St Louis, Missouri. By 1956, the project totaled 33 high-rise buildings that consisted of the Wendell Oliver Pruitt Homes (1,736 units) and the William L. … Read MorePruitt-Igoe Housing Project, St. Louis, Missouri (1956–1976)

Robert R. Taylor Homes, Chicago, Illinois (1959-2005)

The Robert R. Taylor Homes in Chicago, Illinois were named after Robert Rochon Taylor, a black architect and civic leader who became the Chicago Housing Authority’s first African American chairman in 1942.  Construction of the Robert R. Taylor Homes began in 1959 and was completed … Read MoreRobert R. Taylor Homes, Chicago, Illinois (1959-2005)

Robert Robinson Taylor (1868-1942)

Architect and educator Robert Robinson Taylor was the first African American to graduate from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).  He is the father of architect and Chicago, Illinois, business leader Robert Rochon Taylor and the great-grandfather of Valerie Jarrett, senior advisor to President Barack Obama. … Read MoreRobert Robinson Taylor (1868-1942)