Dr. Dolores Irene Silas was a person of many Tacoma, Washington “firsts”–the first woman of color to become a school principal at DeLong Elementary School (1970), the first to become a member of the City Council (1991), the first to be Deputy Mayor (1995) and … Read MoreDolores Irene Silas (1926-2021)
Louise Alone Thompson Patterson, civil rights activist, communist, and educator, was born in Chicago, Illinois on September 9, 1901 to Lulu (Louise) F. Brown Toles and William J. Toles. After her parents 1904 separation, Thompson lived in Seattle, Washington as well as Utah, Nevada, Idaho, … Read MoreLouise Thompson Patterson (1901-1999)
Ted Rasberry was a player and team owner in the Negro Baseball Leagues. Rasberry was born on October 8, 1913, in West Point, Mississippi, and in his youth, played basketball, baseball and football. He attended Mississippi Industrial College and graduated with a degree in teaching … Read MoreTed Rasberry (1913-2001)
Marc H. Morial is an American politician and civil rights activist. He is best known as an influential political figure in Louisiana and the CEO and president of the National Urban League. Morial, the second of five children, was born in New Orleans, Louisiana on … Read MoreMarc H. Morial (1958- )
Benjamin Harrison Hill was a legislator, teacher, and African Methodist Episcopal (AME) minister born in Sidney, Nova Scotia, Canada on November 1, 1903 to Joseph L. Hill, a laborer in the steel mill industry and Anna E. Hill, a servant for a private family. Hill … Read MoreBenjamin Harrison Hill (1903-1971)
On January 1, 2020, Dr. Antoine J. (Tony) Allen Sr. became the 12th President of historically Black Delaware State University in its 129-year history. The son of a Lamar Allen, Jr., who never completed the 11th grade and a mother who raised him as a … Read MoreTony Allen (1970- )
Rufus Calvin Kuykendall was an attorney, politician, and one of the first African Americans to be elected judge in Indiana’s Marion County Superior Court. Kuykendall was born on September 24, 1903 in Indianapolis, Indiana to John, a former slave from Tennessee, and Belle (Jackson) Kuykendall. … Read MoreRufus Calvin Kuykendall (1903-1977)
Lisa Gelobter is a computer scientist, entrepreneur, and technology executive. Gelobter worked on several pioneering internet technologies, and she is credited with developing the animation used to create GIFs. She served as the Chief Digital Service Officer for the U.S. Department of Education during the … Read MoreLisa Gelobter (1971- )
Sheila Y. Oliver is a politician and the lieutenant governor of New Jersey. Oliver was born in Newark, New Jersey on July 14, 1952, and raised there. She graduated from Weequahic High School in 1970 and then attended Lincoln University (Pennsylvania) graduating cum laude with … Read MoreShelia Y. Oliver (1952- )
Rufus Early Clement was an educator and administrator who served as president of Atlanta University Center, a consortium of historically black colleges, from 1937 to 1967. Clement was born on June 26, 1900, in Salisbury, North Carolina, to Emma Williams and George Clinton Clement, Bishop … Read MoreRufus Early Clement (1900-1967)
