African American Latter Day Saints (LDS) Church activist Darius Gray was born in Colorado Springs, Colorado, to Elsie Johnson and Darius McKinley Gray on December 12, 1945. His mother was a domestic worker (maid), and his father a handyman. His grandfather, Louis Gray, was born … Read MoreDarius Aidan Gray (1945- )
Quack Walker Lewis, black abolitionist, barber, AND elder (priest) in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, was born in Barre, Worcester County, Massachusetts, on August 3, 1798. His father, Peter P. Lewis, was a free black yeoman farmer in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, and … Read MoreQ. Walker Lewis (1798-1856)
Gladys Maria Knight is an American Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, actress, and humanitarian. She was born in Atlanta, Georgia, on May 28, 1944, to Sarah and Merald Knight Sr. and began singing in church as a child. At age seven, she gained minor fame after … Read MoreGladys Knight (1944- )
Congresswoman Mia Love represents Utah‘s 4th Congressional District and is the first black Republican woman and the first Haitian-American elected to the United States Congress. She is also the first black person elected to Congress in Utah. Love was born Ludmya Bourdeau on December 6, … Read MoreMia Love (1975 – )
Image Ownership: Library of Congress Abner Leonard Howell was a star athlete in Utah whose accomplishments went largely ignored during the peak of his football career because of his race. Howell, born on August 9, 1877, moved with his family from Louisiana to Salt Lake … Read MoreAbner Leonard Howell (1877-1966)
Eldridge Cleaver, author and civil rights activist, was born on August 31, 1935 in Wabbaseka, Arkansas. Cleaver, a child of six, lived in a household where his father abused his mother. The Cleavers moved to Phoenix, Arizona and finally settled in Los Angeles, California where … Read MoreEldridge Cleaver (1935-1998)
Bridget “Biddy” Mason, born a slave in Mississippi in 1818, achieved financial success that enabled her to support her extended family for generations despite the fact that she was illiterate. In a landmark case she sued her master for their freedom, saved her earnings, invested … Read MoreBridget “Biddy” Mason (1818-1891)
Jane Elizabeth Manning was born in Wilton, Connecticut, one of five children of Isaac and Phyllis Manning, a free black family. Although Jane was a member of the local Presbyterian Church, she remained spiritually unfulfilled until 1842 when she heard the message of a missionary … Read MoreJane Elizabeth Manning James (1813-1908)
Born enslaved on January 6, 1828, on the Jordan Flake Plantation in Anson County, North Carolina, Green Flake was given to his owner’s son, James Madison Flake, when he married Agnes Love in 1838. Later, the couple moved to Mississippi with their three-year-old son, Green, … Read MoreGreen Flake (1828-1903)
Elijah Abel, early convert to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), was born on July 25, 1810 in Washington County, Maryland to Andrew and Delilah Abel, likely in bondage. There is some evidence that he used the Underground Railroad to escape slavery. He eventually … Read MoreElijah Abel (1810-1884)
