The following are short descriptions of the women and men who have contributed to the shaping of Global African 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.
One of the most popular female vocalists in Britain during the last half of the twentieth century, Dame Shirley Veronica Bassey is a Welsh singer best known for recording the theme song to three James Bond movies: Goldfinger, Diamonds Are Forever, and Moonraker. Born the … Read MoreShirley Bassey (1937– )
Bernie Custis was a pioneer in American and Canadian football. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on September 23, 1928, he was the first black quarterback in the Canadian Football League. While he was in high school, he played football, baseball, and basketball and ran track, all … Read MoreBernie Custis (1928-2017)
“Image Ownership: Foreign and Commonwealth Office” Etienne Tshisekedi (wa Mulumba) was a statesman of the opposition in the Democratic Republic of Congo. He built and presided over the party of opposition, Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS: Union pour la Démocratie et le Progrès … Read MoreEtienne / Tshisekedi wa Mulumba, Etienne Tshisekedi (1932–2017)
In 1986 eighteen-year-old Deise Nunes became the first woman of visible African descent to be named Miss Brazil in the competition’s thirty-two-year history. As the Brazilian winner, she automatically went on to compete in the Miss Universe competition held in Panama City, Panama, in July … Read Morefire (1968- )
“Image Ownership: Bernadette Defrasne/Senat” Jeanne (Jane) Vialle was a black French journalist and senator coming from the French colonies, born on 27 August 1906. She is one of the rare French women senators of her time and one of the first black persons to be … Read MoreJeanne/Jane Vialle (1906–1953)
“Image Ownership: Public Domain” Eustace Edward Ricardo Braithwaite, more commonly known as E.R. Braithwaite, was a Guyanese-born British-American novelist, writer, teacher, and diplomat. He was best known for his stories of social conditions and racial discrimination against black people. He was the author of … Read MoreEustace Edward Ricardo Braithwaite (1912–2016)
Foday Saybana Sankoh was the founder and leader of the Sierra Leone rebel group, Revolutionary United Front (RUF), during the Sierra Leone Civil War (1991–2002). That conflict, the first civil war in the nation’s history, resulted in the death of an estimated fifty thousand people … Read MoreFoday Saybana Sankoh (1937–2003)
Emmanuel Abu Kissi, a prominent convert to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), was born in 1938 in Abomosu, Ghana. He married Benedicta Elizabeth Bamfo in June 1970, and they are the parents of seven children. Kissi attended medical school in London, … Read MoreEmmanuel Abu Kissi (1938– )
Ishmael Beah is a Sierra Leonean author and human rights activist who rose to fame with his personal history, A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Solider. Beah was born on November 23, 1980, in Mattru Jong, Bonthe District, Sierra Leone, in West Africa. … Read MoreIshmael Beah (1980- )
Veronica Campbell-Brown is a Jamaican track and field sprinter, who competes in 100- and 200- meter races. She is one of only nine athletes to win world championships at the youth, junior, and senior levels. Campbell-Brown’s personal best in the 100 meters (10.76) and 200 meters (21.74) ranks her among the all-time top ten in … Read MoreVeronica Campbell-Brown (1982– )
