Charles Blow is an American journalist, commentator, and op-ed columnist for The New York Times. Born to Spinner and Billie Blow on August 11, 1970, Charles McRay Blow grew up the fifth of five sons in Gibsland, a town in Bienville Parish in northern Louisiana … Read MoreCharles Blow (1970- )
Donald McEachin was the co-founder of the law firm McEachin & Gee and a U.S. Representative for Virginia’s 4th congressional district. Aston Donald McEachin was born on October 10, 1961 to Ivan Benton McEachin, Jr. and Edna McEachin in Nuremberg, Germany. The Army artillery officer … Read MoreDonald McEachin (1961-2022)
Insurance executive Ivan James Houston was born in Los Angeles, California on June 15, 1925 to Norman Oliver Houston and Doris Talbot (Young) Houston. He attended public schools in Los Angeles and graduated from John H. Francis Polytechnic High School in 1943. Later that year … Read MoreIvan James Houston (1925-2020)
Hakeem Sekou Jeffries is a congressman who has represented New York’s 8th congressional district in Brooklyn and Queens since 2013. On November 28, 2018, Jeffries’ House colleagues elected him Democratic Caucus chairman. He is currently House Minority Leader, putting him in line to become the … Read MoreHakeem Jeffries (1970- )
As an Army Major General, Frederic Ellis Davison paved the way for many African Americans who became military officers. Through Davison’s decorated career, those he led and served alongside respected him. His legacy as an officer in World War II and the Vietnam War marked his place in both military and … Read MoreFrederic Ellis Davison (1917-1999)
National Football League (NFL) head coach Mike Tomlin was born on March 15, 1972 in Hampton, Virginia to Julia and Ed Tomlin. Mike Tomlin’s birth father was not an extremely prominent figure in his life due to his divorce with his mom at a young age, so he and … Read MoreMike Tomlin (1972- )
Army 4-star General Dennis L. Via was born in 1958 in the industrial town of Martinsville, Virginia, the son of Henry Via, a house painter and small-contract repairman, and Margaret Via, a homemaker. He had worked in a local textile mill and intended to skip college and … Read MoreDennis L. Via (1958- )
John Daniel Singleton is an American film director, screenwriter, and producer known primarily for directing the films Boyz n the Hood (1991), Poetic Justice (1993), and Higher Learning (1995). Singleton was born on January 6, 1968, in Los Angeles, California, to Sheila Ward Johnson, a … Read MoreJohn Singleton (1968-2019 )
Edward Perkins served as U.S. Ambassador on four occasions; more than all but two other African Americans. He was born Edward Joseph Perkins, Jr. on June 8, 1928 in Sterlington, Louisiana to Edward Perkins, Sr. and Tiny Estella Noble. After moving to Portland, Oregon and graduating … Read MoreEdward Joseph Perkins, Jr. (1928-2020)
African American engineer, architect, and mathematician Archie Alphonso Alexander was born on May 14, 1888 in Ottumwa, Iowa, the oldest of Price Alexander’s and Mary Hamilton Alexander’s nine children. In order to help his educational opportunities, when he was 11 years old Alexander’s family moved … Read MoreArchie Alphonso Alexander (1888-1958)
