Niger Armed Forces fighting Boko Haram in March 2015 “Image Ownership: Public Domain” Nigerian militant Islamist group Boko Haram was founded by Mohammed Yusuf in the north-eastern city of Maiduguri in 2002.The official Arabic name of the group is Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad, … Read MoreBoko Haram (2002- )
Memorial to James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, and Michael Schwerner at Mt. Zion United Methodist Church “Image Ownership: Public Domain” On June 15, 2014, as part of the commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of the Mississippi Freedom Summer, Rita Bender returned to Mt. Zion United Methodist … Read More(2014) Rita Bender, “Thoughts for the People of Mt. Zion United Methodist Church”
Kenneth C. Frazier is the first African American President of Merck & Co., a major pharmaceutical corporation. Frazier was elected by the Board of Directors to be the next CEO on May 1, 2010, and assumed the post on January 1, 2011. Kenneth Frazier was … Read MoreKenneth C. Frazier (1954- )
Tanner Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Phoenix is the oldest African American Church in the State of Arizona. Tanner Chapel was founded by African American settlers who came to Arizona Territory to escape racism, oppression, and violence in the post-Reconstruction South. They also came … Read MoreTanner Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church (1887- )
MC, or Master of Ceremonies, is a term traditionally associated with someone who determines the forms to be observed on a public occasion, acts as host at a formal event, or is host for a program of entertainment. Since the 1970s the term MC (or … Read MoreMC/Master of Ceremonies (Emcee)
Ice-T, pioneering West Coast rapper, singer and actor, was born Tracy Marrow in Newark, New Jersey to Solomon and Alice Marrow on February 16, 1958. The Marrows were a working-class African American family who lived in the predominantly white town of Summit, New Jersey, where … Read MoreTracy Lauren “Ice-T” Marrow (1958- )
In the wake of Nelson Mandela’s passing on December 5, 2013, tributes came forth from around the world and more than 100 heads of state attended his memorial service in South Africa. One such tribute, a eulogy to Madiba (his clan name), was paid at … Read MoreI Remember Madiba: Paul Suzman Eulogizes Nelson Mandela
Kanye West, rapper, singer, producer, and entrepreneur was born in Atlanta, Georgia on June 8, 1977 to Donda and Ray West. Donda was an English professor, and Ray, a former Black Panther, was an award winning photojournalist. West’s parents divorced when he was three, and … Read MoreKanye West/Kanye Omari West (1977- )
Jason Collins, a National Basketball Association center, made history in May 2013 by becoming the first professional athlete in a major American team sport to reveal his homosexuality in an interview which appeared in Sports Illustrated magazine. The oldest by eight minutes, Jason and his … Read MoreJason Paul Collins (1978- )
50 Cent, rapper, actor, and entrepreneur was born Curtis James Jackson III in Queens, New York to Sabrina Jackson on July 6, 1975. His mother, who had given birth when she was 15 years old, raised him by herself while dealing cocaine. She died when … Read MoreCurtis James (“50 Cent”) Jackson III (1975- )
