AIDS caregiver and activist Mavis Thompson-Blaize who practiced medicine and provided community services for more than five decades, was born in Newark, New Jersey, on June 20, 1927, to parents who migrated from Jamaica. After graduating from Hunter College High School in New York City … Read MoreMavis Thompson-Blaize (1927-2020)
Born on February 9, 1926, Bromley Lloyd Armstrong was a Canadian civil rights activist, community organizer, trade unionist, and Jamaican immigrant. He was heavily involved in Canada’s blossoming civil rights era, beginning with his arrival in 1947. Born in Kingston, Jamaica to working-class parents, Eric … Read MoreBromley Lloyd Armstrong (1926-2018)
On January 1, 2020, Dr. Antoine J. (Tony) Allen Sr. became the 12th President of historically Black Delaware State University in its 129-year history. The son of a Lamar Allen, Jr., who never completed the 11th grade and a mother who raised him as a … Read MoreTony Allen (1970- )
Born in Westmoreland, Jamaica on June 15, 1940, Orlando Patterson is one of the foremost sociologists in the United States. The son of Charles, a detective, and Almina, a seamstress, Patterson displayed academic talent at a young age. A frequent visitor to his local library, … Read MoreOrlando Patterson (1940- )
Johnny Lester (Johnny) Nash Jr. was a singer-songwriter and actor, best known for his 1972 hit song “I Can See Clearly Now.” Nash was born on August 19, 1940 in Houston, Texas, to Eliza (Armstrong) and John Lester Nash. He sang in his church choir … Read MoreJohnny Nash (1940-2020)
Patricia Ann McGrath is founder and CEO of a cosmetic business which in 2018 was valued in excess of $1 billion and she is heralded as the world’s most influential make-up artist. Born June 11, 1966 in Northampton, England, she is the daughter of Jean … Read MorePatricia Ann McGrath (1966- )
Donald Jasper Harris is a Jamaican American economist, author, and Professor Emeritus at Stanford University in Stanford, California, since his retirement in 1998. He is now best known as the father of Kamala Harris, the Democratic Party’s Vice-Presidential Nominee. Harris joined the Stanford faculty in … Read MoreDonald Jasper Harris (1938- )
Patrick Aloysius Ewing is a professional basketball player and coach who played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for 17 seasons for the New York Knicks, Seattle Supersonics (Now Oklahoma City Thunder), and Orlando Magic. Ewing was born on August 5, 1962 to Dorothy Ewing … Read MorePatrick Aloysius Ewing (1962- )
Luther Roderick Campbell, also known as Uncle Luke or Luke Skyywalker, is an African American rapper, promoter, actor, and record executive. Campbell was born on December 22, 1960, in Miami, Florida. His father has Jamaican ancestry and worked as a custodian, and his mother had … Read MoreLuther Campbell (1960- )
Olive Elaine Morris was a member of the British Black Panther Party and a grassroots activist in Great Britain. Morris was born in St. Catherine, Jamaica on June 26, 1952. Her parents migrated to post-World War II Great Britain while Morris and her siblings were … Read MoreOlive Elaine Morris (1952-1979)
