George Watson was a United States Army private who during World War II was responsible for rescuing several soldiers from drowning at sea near Porlock, Harbor, New Guinea. Watson was born in 1915 in Birmingham, Alabama. He attended Colorado A&M University (now Colorado State University) … Read MoreGeorge Watson (1915-1943)
Nikema Williams is the first Black chairwoman of the Georgia Democratic Party, a former state senator, and the first woman to serve as representative of Georgia’s 5th Congressional District, filling the seat held since 1987 by the late civil rights icon John Lewis. Williams was … Read MoreNikema Williams (1978- )
Clyde Foster, scientist and mathematician, was a significant figure who worked for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). His calculations helped launch rockets into space and throughout his career he was an advocate for African Americans in Science. Foster was born in Birmingham, Alabama … Read MoreClyde Foster (1931-2017)
On January 13, 1997 Lieutenant Charles L. Thomas was awarded the Medal of Honor for “heroism in action” in Climbach, France during World War II. born on April 17, 1920 in Birmingham, Alabama. Thomas’s family relocated to Detroit, Michigan as part of the Great Migration. … Read MoreCharles L. Thomas (1920-1980)
Dorothy Butler Gilliam is a journalist, editor, media educator, feminist, author, and former president of the National Association of Black Journalists. She was the first African American female reporter hired by The Washington Post. Born in the Dixie Homes Project in Memphis, Tennessee, Gilliam was … Read MoreDorothy Butler Gilliam (1936- )
Raphael Gamaliel Warnock is the senior pastor at the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church, once led by Reverends Martin Luther King Sr., and Martin Luther King Jr, in Atlanta, Georgia. On January 5, 2021 he made history by becoming the first African American elected to represent … Read MoreRaphael G. Warnock (1969- )
Steven L. Reed is the first African American mayor of Montgomery, Alabama. Reed was born in 1974 in Montgomery, to Mollie and Joseph L. Reed. His mother was an educator, and his father was a former educator and well-known politician who served on the Montgomery … Read MoreSteven L. Reed (1974- )
Bryan Stevenson is a lawyer, social justice advocate, and law professor at New York University School of Law. Stevenson was born on November 14, 1959 in Milton, Delaware. His father, Howard Carlton Stevenson, Jr. was a laboratory technician at General Foods, and his mother, Alice … Read MoreBryan Stevenson (1959- )
Vivian Juanita Malone was one of the first two black students to enroll at the University of Alabama and was the first black graduate of the institution. Malone was born on July 15, 1942, in Monroe County, Alabama. Both of her parents worked at Brookley … Read MoreVivian Juanita Malone Jones (1942-2005)
