Charles Lucièn Lambert, Sr., also known as Lucièn Lambert, Sr., was an internationally prominent classical musician and composer, and part of the middle generation of acclaimed Lambert musical artists. Both his father, Charles-Richard Lambert, and his son, Lucièn-Léon Guillaume Lambert, had distinguished careers in classical … Read MoreCharles Lucièn Lambert Sr. (1828-1896)
Fred Luter Jr., the first African American First Vice President and President of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), was born on November 11, 1956. Luter and his four siblings were raised in New Orleans, Louisiana’s Lower 9th Ward by his mother, Viola Brooks, who worked … Read MoreFred Luter Jr. (1956- )
Tommy Johnson is one of the most exemplary of all the Delta bluesmen. Though he recorded only fourteen titles between 1928 and 1930, almost all of these compositions became classics: for example “Big Road Blues,” “Cool Drink of Water,” and “Slidin’ Delta.” One of them, … Read MoreTommy Johnson (1896-1956)
Clayton Pitre was a longtime Seattle, Washington-based community activist, former Chief Housing Developer for the Central Area Motivation Project (CAMP), and a retired Montford Point Marine. Born on June 30, 1924, to Gilbert Pitre and Eugenie Lemelle, Clayton Pitre was the fourth child of seven … Read MoreClayton Pitre (1924-2020)
Plessy v. Ferguson (1896) was the seminal post-Reconstruction Supreme Court decision that judicially validated state sponsored segregation in public facilities by its creation and endorsement of the “separate but equal” doctrine as satisfying the Constitutional requirements provided in the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States … Read More(1896) The Plessy v. Ferguson Decision
Image Courtesy of Oregon Department of Transportation Margaret Louise Carter, the first African American woman elected to the Oregon State Legislature, was born in Shreveport, Louisiana on December 29, 1935. Carter and her eight siblings were raised by Reverend Hilton Hunter, her Baptist minister father, … Read MoreMargaret Louise Carter (1935- )
Few lives in African American history are surrounded by more myth and misinformation than the life of Marie Laveaux. Although she is best known today as the “legendary Creole voodoo priestess of New Orleans,” Laveaux was in fact a 19th century hairdresser, confidant, and community … Read MoreMarie Laveaux (1801-1881)
Elmer “Geronimo” Pratt was a high ranking Black Panther Party (BPP) leader in Los Angeles who was targeted by the United States federal government’s domestic surveillance COINTELPRO program. He was accused and convicted of a murder and spent twenty-seven years in prison but the conviction … Read MoreGeronimo Pratt (1947-2011)
Rodolphe Lucien Desdunes was a prominent editor, author, and civil rights activist from New Orleans, Louisiana. He is best known for his work in Plessy v. Ferguson, the most important civil rights case decided by the U.S. Supreme Court in the 19th Century, and a … Read MoreRodolphe Lucien Desdunes (1849-1928)
Pearl L. Stewart, freelance journalist and journalism educator was the first African American woman to lead a major daily newspaper when she was hired in 1992 to head the Oakland Tribune. In 2002 she founded the website Black College Wire (blackcollegewire.org), an online news service … Read MorePearl Stewart (1950- )
