Samuel Z. Westerfield, Jr., a Career Foreign Service Officer, was appointed ambassador to Liberia July 8, 1969 with the title of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary. He died of a heart attack July 19, 1972 at the embassy in Monrovia at the age of 52. Westerfield … Read MoreSamuel Z. Westerfield (1920-1972)
“Image Courtesy of The Black Heritage Society of Washington” Dr. William Henry Calhoun, a prominent early 20th century Seattle, Washington physician, was born on December 29, 1890 in Jackson, Tennessee. Little is known about his parents or his childhood. Calhoun attended Meharry Medical School located … Read MoreWilliam Henry Calhoun (1890–1967)
Rev. Dr. Iyanla Vanzant was born as Rhonda Eva Harris in Brooklyn, New York on September 13, 1953. In 1983, after being ordained as a Yoruba priestess, she renamed herself Iyanla, meaning “great mother.” Vanzant is now a famous relationship coach, author, TV host, ordained … Read MoreIyanla Vanzant (1953- )
Irvin Hicks was a career Foreign Service Officer who rose from a communications clerk position to serve three times as a U.S. ambassador. Hicks served in the Department of State during the nascent years of African Independence from European colonial rule. Hicks was appointed Ambassador … Read MoreIrvin Hicks Sr. (1938- )
Horace G. Dawson, Jr. was appointed U.S. Ambassador to Botswana by President Jimmy Carter in 1979. After his confirmation by the U.S. Senate, he served in that post until 1983. Dawson was born in Augusta, Georgia, on January 30, 1926. He attended Lincoln University in … Read MoreHorace G. Dawson (1926- )
Linda Thomas-Greenfield is the new United States Ambassador to the United Nations, a Cabinet-level post in the President Joseph Biden Administration. Born in Baker, Louisiana circa 1952, Linda Thomas-Greenfield graduated from a segregated high school in 1970. The first in her family to graduate from … Read MoreLinda Thomas-Greenfield (1952- )
First African Presbyterian Church, the nation’s oldest African American Presbyterian Church, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was founded in 1807 by former Tennessee slave John Gloucester. This church is the fourth of the first five African American churches founded in the city of Philadelphia. After gaining … Read MoreFirst African Presbyterian Church, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1807- )
Ambassador Johnny Young was a career diplomat and the third African American to be appointed ambassador by three presidents. In 1989 President George H.W. Bush appointed Young Ambassador to the Republic of Sierra Leone. Five years later President Bill Clinton named Young Ambassador to the … Read MoreJohnny Young (1940- )
Ambassador William Beverly Carter is the first Ambassador-at-Large, and the second African American, to be appointed an ambassador by three Presidents. In 1972, President Richard M. Nixon appointed him ambassador to Tanzania. Four years later, President Gerald R. Ford named him ambassador to Liberia. In … Read MoreW. Beverly Carter (1921-1982)
“Image Ownership: Oakland Public Library & African American Museum” Emmanuel Francis (E.F.) Joseph was the first professional African American photographer in the San Francisco Bay Area of California. Born on November 8, 1900 on the Caribbean island of St. Lucia, Joseph would later move to … Read MoreEmmanuel Francis Joseph (1900–1979)
