The following are short descriptions of individuals, places and 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.
Salome Bey was an American-born, Grammy-nominated singer, songwriter, and actress who, after emigrating to Toronto, became known as “Canada’s first lady of the blues.” Salome Wideman was born in Newark, New Jersey, on October 10, 1933, to Andrew and Victoria Wideman. Her father was a … Read MoreSalome Bey (1933-2020)
Dr. Denis Mukwege is a Nobel Prize-winning gynecologist, human rights activist, and Pentecostal pastor from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). He specializes in the treatment of women who have experienced sexual violence during armed conflicts. The recipient of numerous international honors and awards, … Read MoreDenis Mukwege (1955- )
Patricia Ann McGrath is founder and CEO of a cosmetic business which in 2018 was valued in excess of $1 billion and she is heralded as the world’s most influential make-up artist. Born June 11, 1966 in Northampton, England, she is the daughter of Jean … Read MorePatricia Ann McGrath (1966- )
Both a pharaoh of Egypt and a king of Kush (in present-day Sudan), Taharqa (meaning “young man” or “young warrior”) was the son of Piankhi (or Piye), the king of the Kushites who conquered Egypt in 744 and founded its 25th dynasty that lasted 88 … Read MoreTaharqa (?-664 B.C.E.)
Olympic and world heptathlon champion Nafissatou Thiam was born in Namur, Belgium, 43 mile southeast of Brussels, on August 19, 1994, one of the four children of Bamba Thiam, a native of Senegal who worked as a sculptor and painter, and Belgian citizen Danièle Denisty … Read MoreNafissatou Thiam (1994- )
The only person of African descent known to have had a face-to-face conversation with the infamous Nazi Führer Adolf Hitler was the economist Milton Samuel J. Wright. Born in Savannah, Georgia, on June 28, 1903, the son of William Wright and Edith Burnside Wright, he … Read MoreMilton S. J. Wright (1903-1972)
Alfred-Amédée Dodds, one of the ablest French army generals in the late 19th century, was mixed-race. Dodds was born February 6, 1842 in Saint-Louis, Senegal. He was the oldest of the seven children of Antoine Henry Ermery Dodds, a metis (mixed race) director of the … Read MoreAlfred-Amédée Dodds (1842-1922)
Chattel slavery was practiced in the Danish West Indies from around 1650 until July 3, 1848, when Colonial Governor Peter von Scholten issued an emancipation proclamation. The Danish government, however, then enacted rules that kept people enslaved by contracts for another two years. Moreover, in … Read MoreThe Fireburn Labor Riot, United States Virgin Islands (1878)
Barack Obama Sr., father of the 43rd President of the United States, was born in the Rachuonyo District, in the then British colony of Kenya, on June 18, 1936, to Onyango Obama and Habiba Akumu Nyanjango. He was raised in the Nyang’oma Kogelo village, Siaya … Read MoreBarack Hussein Obama Sr. (1936-1982)
