Ambassador Jerome Holland and His Wife Arrive in Stockholm, Sweden in 1970 Image Ownership: Public Domain Educator, diplomat and businessman, Jerome Heartwell Holland was born on January 9, 1916 in Auburn, New York. The parents of Holland, and that of his twelve other siblings, were … Read MoreJerome Heartwell Holland (1916-1985)
Image Ownership: Public Domain Willard Carroll Smith, Jr., better known as Will Smith, actor, rap and recording artist, was born in Wynnefield, Pennsylvania on September 25, 1968. His father, Willard Carroll Smith, is a veteran of the U.S. Air Force and a refrigerator engineer, and … Read MoreWill Smith (1968– )
Image Ownership: Public Domain Cape Coast Castle is a European-built fortress situated on the central coastline of Ghana. Since its initial construction in 1652, the Castle served as a trading post for European nations and as the headquarters of British colonial administration for the Gold … Read MoreCape Coast Castle (1652– )
In a speech before the Scandinavian Institute for African Affairs, Uppsala, Sweden, in December, 1972, Mangosuthu Gatsha Buthelezi, then the Chief Executive Officer of the KwaZulu Territorial Authority, describes his cooperation with South African leaders despite his opposition to the country’s apartheid system. The speech … Read More(1972) M. Gatsha Buthelezi, “My Role Within Separate Development Politics”
William Vacanarat Shadrach Tubman, an Americo-Liberian, served 27 years as President of Liberia, longer than any president before or after him. Tubman, who is regarded by some in his country as the “father of modern Liberia,” was born on November 29, 1895 in Harper, Liberia. … Read MoreWilliam V. S. Tubman (1895-1971)
The Partition of Africa began in earnest with the Berlin Conference of 1884-1885, and was the cause of most of Africa’s borders today. This conference was called by German Chancellor Bismarck to settle how European countries would claim colonial land in Africa and to avoid … Read MoreThe Partition of Africa
Vildana Muratovic, a native of Bosnia-Herzegovina and now a citizen of the United States, describes the impact of hip-hop music on the people of the Balkans following her 1997 return to Sarajevo. Her paper was written in 2007. Since its humble beginnings in the 1970s … Read MoreTupac in Sarajevo: The Rise of Rebellion Rap in Eastern Europe
Image Ownership: Public Domain Haile Gebre Selassie is regarded by many observers as the greatest Ethiopian long-distance runner of all time. He was born in the province of Arsi in central Ethiopia and was inspired by runners Abebe Bikila and Miruts Yifter. As a … Read MoreHaile Gebre Selassie (1973- )
In the following account, Professor Allison Blakely of Boston University describes the presence of blacks in Early Modern Europe. His article reminds us that persons of African ancestry resided across Europe. Their numbers ranged from a few hundred scattered across Germany, Scandinavia and Russia in … Read MoreThe Black Presence in Pre-20th Century Europe: A Hidden History
Image Courtesy of the Oregon Symphony The African American conductor James DePreist was the nephew of the singer Marian Anderson. DePreist was the Permanent Conductor of the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra, Laureate Music Director of the Oregon Symphony, and Director of Conducting and Orchestral … Read MoreJames DePreist (1936-2013)