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Happy Black History Month

Black History Facts:

In 1831, Nat Turner, an enslaved African-American preacher, leads the most significant slave uprising in American history.

In 1849, Harriet Tubman escapes from slavery and becomes one of the most effective and celebrated leaders of the Underground Railroad.

In 1863, President Lincoln issues the Emancipation Proclamation, declaring “that all persons held as slaves” within the Confederate states “are, and henceforward shall be free.”

More than your skin

by: Nicole “Sunshine” Ellis

You are more than the mahogany colored skinned that graces the world with beauty

You are more than the dark chocolate silhouette that traces the night sky

More than a hue on the black spectrum

You are more than your skin

Engineering runs through your veins

You are scientists, inventors, mathematicians and teachers

Singers, artist, dancers, preachers

You hold world records and honors higher than most

Accolades so high that even your skin begins to boast

Shouting “I AM MORE THAN MY SKIN”

From slavery, to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to President Barack Obama you were destined to win

You were the “first” at many premier designs

You reached for discoveries that still boggle the minds

The minds of many who limited you by color and race

You even became a person who traveled in space

Your reign in the government, Congress, and Senate

Knows no boundaries and holds no limits

You are more than the coffee color that shines on your face

You’ve been washed in precious blood and saved His grace

Never put limits on whether or not you can win

You are a beautiful person who is more than their SKIN!

Happy Black History Month to you all!

God bless.

Have a blessed day!

Mrs. Nicole “Sunshine” Ellis, MBA

Can’t breathe: Try Spiritual CPR: Consistent in praying, Persistent in pursuing the knowledge of God, and Resistant to temptation.

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Category:

Black History Facts, Poetry Corner, TFTD-Thought for the Day

Did you know???

Henry Blair is believed to be the second African-American to receive a patent. He invented a corn seed planter in 1834 and a cotton planter in 1836. Because he could not read or write, Blair signed his patent with an “X.”

In 1897, African-American inventor Alfred L. Cralle patented the first ice cream scoop. His original design remains in wide use.

In 1884, Judy W. Reed became the first African-American woman to receive a patent for a hand-operated machine used to knead and roll dough.

Mark Dean, along with Dennis Moeller, invented the Industry Standard Architecture systems bus, which allowed for the use of computer plug-ins such as disk drives, printers and scanners.

Source: http://www.biography.com/tv/classroom/black-history-inventions-and-discoveries

Category:

Black History Facts

Did you know???

African-American Firsts: Government

Mayor of major city: Carl Stokes, Cleveland, Ohio, 1967–1971. The first black woman to serve as a mayor of a major U.S. city was Sharon Pratt Dixon Kelly, Washington, DC, 1991–1995.
Governor (elected): L. Douglas Wilder, Virginia, 1990–1994. The only other elected black governor has been Deval Patrick, Massachusetts, 2007–
U.S. Representative: Joseph Rainey became a Congressman from South Carolina in 1870 and was reelected four more times. The first black female U.S. Representative was Shirley Chisholm, Congresswoman from New York, 1969–1983.
U.S. Senator: Hiram Revels became Senator from Mississippi from Feb. 25, 1870, to March 4, 1871, during Reconstruction. Edward Brooke became the first African-American Senator since Reconstruction, 1966–1979. Carol Mosely Braun became the first black woman Senator serving from 1992–1998 for the state of Illinois. (There have only been a total of five black senators in U.S. history: the remaining two are Blanche K. Bruce [1875–1881] and Barack Obama (2005–2008).
U.S. cabinet member: Robert C. Weaver, 1966–1968, Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development under Lyndon Johnson; the first black female cabinet minister was Patricia Harris, 1977, Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development under Jimmy Carter.
U.S. Secretary of State: Gen. Colin Powell, 2001–2004. The first black female Secretary of State was Condoleezza Rice, 2005–2009.
Major Party Nominee for President: Sen. Barack Obama, 2008. The Democratic Party selected him as its presidential nominee.
U.S. President: Sen. Barack Obama. Obama defeated Sen. John McCain in the general election on November 4, 2008, and was inaugurated as the 44th president of the United States on January 20, 2009.

Source: http://www.factmonster.com/spot/bhmfirsts.html

Category:

Black History Facts

Did you know???

Before he became an NBA legend, Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team.
Lewis Howard Latimer drafted patent drawings for Alexander Graham Bell’s telephone while working at a patent law firm.
Heavyweight boxing champion Joe Louis helped to end segregation in the U.S. armed forces while serving in the Army during World War II.

Source: http://www.biography.com/tv/classroom/black-history-little-known-facts

Category:

Black History Facts

Did you know???

Jesse Jackson successfully negotiated the release of Lieutenant Robert O. Goodman Jr., an African-American pilot who had been shot down over Syria and taken hostage in 1983.
Jack Johnson, the first African-American heavyweight champion, patented a wrench in 1922.
The theme song for the groundbreaking African-American sitcom Sanford and Sons was composed by music great Quincy Jones.
In her early life, Coretta Scott King was as well-known for her singing and violin playing as she was for her civil rights activism. The young soprano won a fellowship to the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, Massachusetts, the city where she met future husband Martin Luther King Jr.

Source: http://www.biography.com/tv/classroom/black-history-little-known-facts

Category:

Black History Facts

Did you know:

When African-American neurosurgeon Ben Carson was a child, his mother required him to read two library books a week and give her written reports, even though she was barely literate. She would then take the papers and pretend to carefully review them, placing a checkmark at the top of the page to show her approval. The assignments inspired Carson’s eventual love of reading and learning.
Politician, educator and Brooklyn native Shirley Chisholm survived three assassination attempts during her campaign for the 1972 Democratic nomination to the U.S. presidency.
As a young girl in Harlem, Althea Gibson was a local table tennis champion. Her skills were eventually noticed by musician Buddy Walker, who invited her to play tennis on local courts.

Source: http://www.biography.com/tv/classroom/black-history-little-known-facts

Category:

Black History Facts

Did you know???

Paul Cuffee, a philanthropist, ship captain and devout Quaker who supported a return to Africa for black citizens, transported 38 free African-Americans to Sierra Leone in 1815. He also founded one of the first American integrated schools in 1797.
At a time when universities did not typically offer financial assistance to black athletes, African-American football star Ernie Davis was offered more than 50 scholarships.
W.E.B. Du Bois and William Monroe Trotter founded The Niagara Movement, a black civil rights organization that got its name from the group’s meeting location – Niagara Falls.
W.E.B. Du Bois died one day before Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech at the March on Washington (August 28, 1963).

Source: http://www.biography.com/tv/classroom/black-history-little-known-facts

Category:

Black History Facts

Did you know????

In 1938, first lady Eleanor Roosevelt challenged the segregation rules at the Southern Conference on Human Welfare in Birmingham, Alabama, so she could sit next to African-American educator and activist Mary McLeod Bethune. Roosevelt would come to refer to Bethune as “her closest friend in her age group.”
Legendary singer James Brown performed in front of a televised audience in Boston the day after Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated. Brown is often given credit for preventing further riots with the performance.
Female science fiction author Octavia Butler was dyslexic. Despite her disorder, she went on to win Hugo and Nebula awards for her writing, as well as a “genius” grant from the MacArthur Foundation.

Source: http://www.biography.com/tv/classroom/black-history-little-known-facts

Category:

Black History Facts

Black History Month

Happy Black History Month!!!

As an African-American woman, I believe it’s important to share interesting facts about my history. This month, along with the blog, I will be posting Black History Facts.

God bless!

Black History little known facts:

Allensworth is the first all-black Californian township, founded and financed by African-Americans. Created by Lieutenant Colonel Allen Allensworth in 1908, the town was built with the intention of establishing a self-sufficient city where African-Americans could live their lives free of racial prejudice.
Before Wally Amos became famous for his “Famous Amos” chocolate chip cookies, he was a talent agent at the William Morris Agency, where he worked with the likes of the Supremes and Simon & Garfunkel.
Scientist and mathematician Benjamin Banneker is credited with helping to design the blueprints for Washington, D.C.

Source: http://www.biography.com/tv/classroom/black-history-little-known-facts

Have a blessed day!

Category:

Black History Facts

Black History Facts:

2/20/1927: On this day Sidney Poitier, who will be the first African-American to win an Academy Award in a starring role, is born in Miami, Fl.

Nathaniel Alexander was the first to patent the folding chair. His invention was designed to be used in schools, churches and at large social gatherings

Otis Boykin invented electronic control devices for guided missiles, IBM computers, and the control unit for a pacemaker.

Scientists like Katherine G. Johnson has made a significant mark in NASA’s history, playing a key role in their use of digital electronic computers.

It’s important to teach the youth of today how many contributions African-Americans made to life as we know it. Show them how to value where they came from so that they can strive to be better in the future. Share a Black History fact with your child today. Show them how innovative African-Americans were and still are. Encourage them when they dream big and don’t tear down their ambitions. You never know you may have the next scientist or inventor living in your home. Show them how they can build on the success of their ancestors. If they were able to succeed in tough times during segregation and racism, then our children can succeed in better conditions.