Janet Mock is an African American, Hawaiian, and Transgendered person. She was born on March 3, 1983 in Honolulu, Hawaii and raised there and in Oakland, California and Dallas, Texas as Charles Mock III. Her father is Charles Mock II and her mother is Elizabeth … Read MoreJanet Mock (1983- )
Simeon Saunders Booker Jr.’s innovative career in journalism transformed how African American readers engaged with news coverage of politics and social injustices. As the first African American reporter for the Washington Post, he provided insight into the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s. On August … Read MoreSimeon S. Booker (1918-2017)
Leslie “Les” Payne, raised in the Jim Crow South, was dedicated to utilizing the realm of journalism to improve living conditions of African Americans. As a Pulitzer Prize recipient for his 33-part series titled “The Heroin Trail,” Payne’s late career continues to inspire rising generations … Read MoreLes Payne (1941-2018)
Alice Allison Dunnigan was the first African American female correspondent at the White House and the first black female member of the Senate and House of Representatives press galleries. Dunnigan was born April 27, 1906, in Russellville, Kentucky, to Willie and Lena Pitman Allison. Her father worked as … Read MoreAlice Allison Dunnigan (1906–1983)
The first mayor of African descent of a major European city, Severiano de Heredia, was born in Havana, Cuba, on November 8, 1836. He was the son of prosperous mulatto parents, Henri de Heredia and Beatriz de Cárdenas. Registered as a “mulatto born free” in the parish of Jesus del Monte, some … Read MoreSeveriano de Heredia (1836-1901)
Hilton Als is an American writer and art critic who was born in 1960 in Brooklyn, New York, the child of two Barbados immigrants. Raised by his mother with his five siblings, four sisters and one brother, he studied art history at Columbia University but dropped out before graduation and became a … Read MoreHilton Als (1960- )
Harry McAlpin Outside the White House, 1944 Image Ownership: Public domain Harry S. McAlpin was the first African-American reporter to attend a press conference at the White House. McAlpin was born in St. Louis, Missouri on July 21, 1906. He grew up in St. Louis and then attended the … Read MoreHarry S. McAlpin (1906-1985)
Homer Smith Shortly After His Arrival in Moscow, 1932 Image Ownership: Public domain Homer Smith, Jr., best known for his fourteen-year sojourn in the Soviet Union, was born in 1909 in Quitman, Mississippi to parents Mr. and Mrs. Homer Smith, Sr. In 1916, at the age of seven, … Read MoreHomer Smith, Jr. (1909-1972)
Ethel Payne in Shanghai, 1973 Image Ownership: Public domain Pioneering journalist Ethel Lois Payne was born on August 14, 1911 in Chicago, Illinois to William A. Payne and Bessie Austin. Known as the “First Lady of Black Press” for her extensive list of accomplishments as a writer, journalist, and reporter, … Read MoreEthel Lois Payne (1911-1991)
Merritt Talking to Police Officer Image Ownership: Public domain Afro-Filipino author, journalist, and government official, Jesus V. Merritt was born in Agoo, a city in the province of La Union in the Philippines, on October 15, 1913. He was the son of Julius Merritt of … Read MoreJesus Villanueva Merritt (1913- ?)
