Hoyt W. Fuller, editor and writer, was born in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1923. After an illness caused his mother, Lillie Beatrice Ellafair Thomas, to become an invalid and after the death of his father, Thomas Fuller, in 1927, Fuller went to live with his aunt … Read MoreHoyt W. Fuller (1923-1981)
Haki R. Madhubuti is a poet, professor, and founder of Third World Press, the nation’s oldest publisher of Black thought and literature. Madhubuti was born Don L. Lee in Little Rock, Arkansas, on February 23, 1942. After a move to Detroit, his father abandoned the … Read MoreHaki R. Madhubuti (Don L. Lee) (1942- )
Alex Manly was editor of the Daily Record, a black newspaper from Wilmington, North Carolina at the time of the Wilmington Riot in 1898. Manly was born near Raleigh, North Carolina in 1866. He was reportedly a descendent of Governor Charles Manly and Corrine Manly, … Read MoreAlex Manly (1866-1944)
Seattle newspaper publisher Chris H. Bennett was born in Waynesboro, Georgia in 1943. He spent four years in the Air Force before attending Everett Community College in Everett, Washington, where he played football. Bennett then worked for the African American newspaper The Facts before leaving … Read MoreChris H. Bennett (1943- )
Nnamdi Azikiwe was the first President of Nigeria and was instrumental in founding a string of newspapers across Nigeria. Azikiwe was born on November 16, 1904 in Zungeru which was then the capital of Northern Nigeria. His father, Chukwumeka Azikiwe, was a civil servant in … Read MoreBenjamin Nnamdi “Zik” Azikiwe (1904-1996)
Mahommah Gardo Baquaqua’s biography is the only known biography of a former slave from Brazil. Baquaqua was born around 1824 near Djougou in modern day Benin to a Muslim merchant family. Baquaqua was captured from Djougou in 1845 while acting as a messenger for a … Read MoreMahommah Gardo Baquaqua (ca. 1824-ca. 1857)
20th Century poet Dudley Felker Randall was born January 14, 1914 in Washington D.C. He later moved to Detroit, Michigan. Born to Clyde and Ada Viola Randall, Dudley showed an interest in poetry at age four, writing lyrics to the song “Maryland, my Maryland” which … Read MoreDudley Randall (1914-2000)
Christopher J. Perry, a pioneering black businessman who championed racial equality, established the Philadelphia Tribune in 1884. The Tribune is the oldest continuously published African American newspaper in the nation. Perry was born in Baltimore, Maryland on September 11, 1854 to parents who were free. … Read MoreChristopher J. Perry (1854-1920)
Carl Thomas Rowan was a diplomat, author, reporter, and broadcaster. He was the first black deputy Secretary of State, and the first black director of the United States Information Agency (USIA). Rowan was born August 11, 1925, in the mining town of Ravenscroft, Tennessee. When … Read MoreCarl T. Rowan (1925-2000)
John Mitchell, Jr. edited and published the Richmond Planet newspaper from one year after its founding in 1883, until his death in 1929. He was known as the “fighting editor” for his writing against racism. In 1863, John Mitchell, Sr. and his wife Rebecca were … Read MoreJohn Mitchell Jr. (1863–1929) and the Richmond Planet (1883 -1996)
