Janet Emerson Bashen is the founder and CEO of the Bashen Corporation, a private consulting group that investigates Equal Employment Opportunity complaints under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. She is the first African American woman in the United States to hold a … Read MoreJanet Emerson Bashen (1957- )
William H. Grier was a psychiatrist who published the groundbreaking book, Black Rage, along with fellow psychiatrist Price M. Cobbs in 1968. Published in the aftermath of the assassination of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and subsequent outburst of race riots, the book sought … Read MoreWilliam H. Grier (1926-2015)
The first all-black city to be incorporated in Florida, Eatonville was established in 1887 after being settled two decades after the Civil War ended by former slaves. Located six miles north of Orlando, the town was first named Maitland and got its start when former … Read MoreEatonville, Florida (1887– )
Dr. George Cleveland Hall, Chicago, Illinois African American physician and humanitarian was born on February 22, 1864, to John Ward Hall, a Baptist minister, and Romelia Buck Hall in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Dr. Hall eventually rose to head the Chicago Urban League and became vice-president of … Read MoreGeorge Cleveland Hall (1864-1930)
Lieutenant Colonel Eldridge F. Williams was one of the first trainers of Tuskegee Airmen. Williams was born in Harris, Washington County, Texas on November 2, 1917, the son of cotton sharecroppers Ora and E.D. Williams who eventually moved to Kansas. Williams finished high school and … Read MoreEldridge F. Williams (1917-2015)
Although mostly known for widely-publicized photographs that depicted her assault during the 1965 Bloody Sunday civil rights march in Selma, Alabama, Amelia Boynton Robinson lived a long life of civil rights activism in both Georgia and Alabama. Her critical role promoting African American voting rights … Read MoreAmelia Boynton Robinson (1911-2015)
Prominent Virginia journalist Ray Boone Sr. was born February 2, 1938, in Suffolk, Virginia. His parents, foreign-born Japanese father, Tsujiro Miyanski, and mother, Leathia M. Boone, of mixed African and Native American descent, were banned from marrying in Virginia because of their different races. Yet … Read MoreRaymond Harold/ “Ray” Boone Sr. (1938-2014)
Image Courtesy of UCSF Archives and Special Collections Medical professor and civil rights leader Thomas Nathaniel Burbridge was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, on July 12, 1921. He received a bachelor of arts degree from Talladega College in Talladega, Alabama, in 1941. From 1942 through … Read MoreThomas Nathaniel Burbridge (1921–1972)
Minister, civil rights activist, vocalist, Jesse Lee Douglas, Sr. was born August 19, 1930 in New Orleans, Louisiana, to William and Isabella Douglas, a Merchant Marine cook and a maid. He attended Dillard University in New Orleans, Louisiana and Lane College in Jackson, Tennessee before … Read MoreJesse L. Douglas, Sr. (1930- )
“Image Ownership: Public Domain” Prentice Herman Polk, acclaimed photographer, was born November 25, 1898 in Bessemer, Alabama, to Jacob Prentice Polk, a miner, and Christine Romelia Ward, a seamstress. Mr. Polk was a portraitist who was especially adept with the effects of light and dark. … Read MorePrentice Herman Polk (1898-1985)
