*On this date in 1828, the American Democratic Party was founded. Sometimes called the Democratic Farmer Labor Party (DFL), they are a center-left political party in the United States. One of the major parties of the U.S., it is the world’s oldest active political party. Its main adversary since the 1850s has been the right-wing […]
learn more*Herbert Bright was born on this date in 1883. He was a Black African doctor and political activist. Herbert Christian Bankole-Bright was born in Okrika, Sierra Leone, the son of Jacob Galba Bright and his wife Letitia (née Williams), Creole descendants of Sierra Leone Liberated Africans. Bright’s paternal grandfather, John Bright, was an ex-slave who […]
learn more*The Danville Massacre occurred on this date in 1883. Also known as the Danville Riot, it was a deadly assault on Blacks at a Danville, Virginia market, and continued for several days after, with violent attacks continuing until after the election. The shooting took place during tensions between white supremacists and members of the Readjuster […]
learn more*François Duvalier was born on this date in 1907. Also known as Papa Doc, he was a Haitian politician and Vodouisant. Duvalier was born in Port-au-Prince, the son of Duval Duvalier, justice of the peace, teacher, and journalist, whose family came from Martinique, and Ulyssia Abraham, a baker. His aunt, Madame Florestal, raised him as […]
learn more*Jean-Claude Duvalier was born on this date in 1951. Nicknamed ‘Baby Doc,’ he was a Black Haitian president. The son of Simone Ovide, a Mulatto-Haitian woman, and François Duvalier, a Black Nationalist anti-mulatto leader who became dictator of Haiti, Duvalier was born in Port-au-Prince and was brought up in an isolated environment. He attended Nouveau […]
learn more*C.C. Sabathia Jr. was born on this date in 1980. He is a Black former MLB professional baseball pitcher. Carsten Charles Sabathia was born in Vallejo, California, and attended Vallejo High School, where he played baseball, basketball, and football. As a teenager, Sabathia was the top high school prospect in Northern California. In football, he […]
learn more*Tyler Perry was born on this date in 1969. He is a Black actor, filmmaker, and playwright. Perry was born Emmitt Perry Jr. in New Orleans, Louisiana, to Willie Maxine Perry (Campbell) and Emmitt Perry Sr., a carpenter. He has three siblings. In contrast to his father, his mother took him to church each week, where […]
learn more*The birth of Germaine Acogny is celebrated on this date in 1944. She is a Black African dancer, teacher, and choreographer. Born in Benin to a Senegalese civil servant, Germaine Acogny was also a descendant of the Yoruba people through her grandmother. When she was 10, the family moved to Dakar, Senegal, where she spent the remainder of her […]
learn more*On this date in 1943, the Detroit race riot took place. This was a two-day episode of racial unrest in Michigan’s largest city. By 1920, Detroit had become the fourth-largest city in the United States, driven by an industrial and population boom fueled by the rapid expansion of the automobile industry. In this era of […]
learn more*Shais Rishon was born on this date in 1982. He is a Black Orthodox rabbi, activist, and writer. Shais Rishon, known by the pen name MaNishtana, was born in Brooklyn, New York, to an Ashkenazi Jewish family linked with the Chabad-Lubavitch movement. He says his mother’s ancestors have practiced Judaism since the 1780s. His father, Asher Rishon, […]
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