Ursula Burns, Chief Executive Officer of Xerox, began life in a lower east side housing project in New York City. Burns was born on September 20, 1958 to a single mom. She was sent to Catholic school as a child to get the best education … Read MoreUrsula Burns (1958- )
Renowned surgeon and pioneer in organ transplants, Samuel Lee Kountz was born on August 20, 1930 to Samuel Kountz, Sr. and Emma Montague in Lexa, Arkansas. He was raised in the town of Lexa, one of the most impoverished areas of Arkansas. Without a doctor … Read MoreSamuel Lee Kountz Jr. (1930-1981)
Clilan (C.B.) Powell, longtime owner of the Amsterdam News, was born in 1894 to former Virginia slaves. Very little is known about his childhood. He received his medical degree in 1920 from Howard University School of Medicine and began his career specializing in x-ray technology. … Read MoreC. B. Powell (1894-1977)
Hugh Bernard Price, civil rights activist and president of the National Urban League, was born on November 22, 1941 in Washington, DC. Raised in a middle-class home by his parents, Charlotte Schuster and Kline Price, Price became aware of racial struggles and the importance of … Read MoreHugh Price (1941 – )
Shields Green Image Ownership: Public Domain Known as the “Emperor,” Shields Green was a fugitive slave who was executed in 1859 for his role in John Brown’s Raid on Harper’s Ferry. Shields Green was born a slave in South Carolina, with his birth year varying … Read MoreShields Green (c. 1830- 1859)
Medical researcher, health care administrator, and now college president, Helene Gayle was born in Buffalo, New York on August 16, 1955. Growing up in Buffalo, Gayle was surrounded in an atmosphere of compassion and generosity. Her mother, Marietta, was a social worker, her father, Jacob, … Read MoreHelene Gayle (1955- )
During his life historian Lawrence Dunbar Reddick used his scholarly expertise to fight for civil rights. Born in Jacksonville, Florida, on March 3, 1910, Reddick received his Bachelor’s and Master’s in history from Fisk University in 1932 and 1933, respectively. He went to the University … Read MoreLawrence Dunbar Reddick (1910-1995)
Shawn Corey Carter, who uses the stage name of Jay-Z, has become one of the most successful hip-hop artists and entrepreneurs. By 2011 Jay-Z’s net worth was near $450 million, making him one of the wealthiest and most successful businessmen in the entertainment industry. Carter … Read MoreShawn Corey “Jay-Z’ Carter (1969- )
Hip-Hop music star Christopher Wallace, better known as Biggie Smalls or The Notorious B.I.G., was part of an East Coast-West Coast rap rivalry that included Tupac Shakur and Sean “P. Diddy” Combs. A year after Shakur was murdered, Notorious B.I.G. was preparing to release his … Read MoreChristopher G. “The Notorious B.I.G.” Wallace (1972-1997)
Beyoncé Giselle Knowles, one of the most successful African American women artists in today’s music industry, was born on September 4, 1981 in Houston, Texas, to Mathew and Célestine Ann Knowles. Her father was a salesman and her mother owned a hair salon. Beyoncé began … Read MoreBeyoncé Giselle Knowles (1981- )
