People, Locations, Episodes

Louise Bennett, Jamaican Poet born

Louise Bennett was born on this date in 1919. She was a Jamaican poet.

Louise was born in Kingston, Jamaica, where she remained affectionately known as “Miss Lou,” and where she remains a household name, a “Living Legend,” and a cultural icon. She received her education from Ebenezer and Calabar Elementary Schools, St. Simon’s College, Excelsior College, and Friends College (Highgate). Although she lived in Toronto, Canada, for years, she still received the homage of the expatriate West Indian community in the north as well as a large Canadian following.

Langston Hughes, Writer born

*Langston Hughes was born on this date in 1902. He was an African American writer

John Howard Griffin, Writer born

On this date in 1920, John Griffin, a White American writer and musicologist, was born. He is probably most famous for assuming the identity of a Black man in the late 1950s and early ‘60s, touring six segregated states, and writing a book about it.

Amos Tutuola, African Writer born

*Amos Tutuola was born on this date in 1920.  He was a Black Nigerian writer.   Amos Tutuola was born Olatubosun Odegbami in Wasinmi, a village just a few miles outside Abeokuta, Nigeria.  His parents, Charles Tutuola Odegbami and Esther Aina Odegbami, were Yoruba Christian cocoa farmers.  He was the youngest son of his father, […]

Anatole Broyard , Writer and Literary Critic born

*Anatole Broyard was born on this date in 1920. He was a Black writer and literary critic.  Anatole Paul Broyard was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, into a Black Creole family established as free people of color before the American Civil War. The first Broyard recorded in Louisiana was a French colonist in the mid-eighteenth century.  He was the son of Paul […]

Karel Shook, Ballet Master born

*Karel Shook was born on this date in 1920.  He was a white-American ballet master, choreographer, stage administrator, and writer. Karel Shook was born in Renton, Washington, as a child actor in the Seattle Repertory Theatre. He was awarded a scholarship to the Cornish College of the Arts at the age of 13; there, he was encouraged by founder Nellie Cornish to study ballet. […]

James Emanuel, Poet, and Educator born

James Emanuel, an African American poet, was born on this date in 1921.

Alex Haley, Author born

*Alex Haley was born on this date in 1921. He was an African American author, whose books helped popularize the study of Black history and genealogy.

Todd Matshikiza, South African Pianist born

*Todd Matshikiza’s birth is celebrated on this date in 1921. He was a Black South African jazz pianist, composer, and journalist. Todd Tozama Matshikiza, who came from a musical family, was from Johannesburg, South Africa. He graduated from St Peter’s College in Rosettenville, Johannesburg, and obtained a diploma in music and a teaching diploma. He […]

The ’S Street Salon,’ a story

*This date in 1922 celebrates the ’S Street Salon.’ This home was a gathering of writers and one of the most understudied communities of the 20th-century ‘New Negro’ authors. The house at 1461 S Street NW became known as a satellite for writers in the nation’s segregated capital. It was considered one of the great […]

Rosa Guy, Author, and Playwright born

*Rosa Guy was born on this date in 1922. She was a Black playwright and writer. Rosa Cuthbert was born in Diego Martin, Trinidad. She and her younger sister Ameze were left with relatives when their parents, Audrey and Henry Cuthbert, emigrated to the United States in 1927. The children did not join their parents in […]

Madeline W. Murphy, Writer and Activist born.

*Madeline W. Murphy was born on October 24, 1922.  She was a Black writer and community activist.  Madeline Wheeler was born in Boston and raised in Wilmington, Delaware. She was the second of three children of Arthur E. Wheeler, Sr., and Madeline (née Hall) Brooks. Murphy attended Wilmington public schools and graduated from Howard High […]

Opportunity Magazine is Published

*The first issue of Opportunity: A Journal of Negro Life was published in January 1923. Opportunity was an academic journal published by the National Urban League (NUL). The journal acted as a sociological forum for the emerging topic of African American studies and was known for fostering the literary culture during the Harlem Renaissance. It was published monthly from 1923 to 1942 and then […]

Naomi Madgett, Poet, and Publisher born

Naomi Long Madgett was born on this date in 1923. She is an African American teacher, writer, poet, and editor.

Nathan Wright Jr., Activist born

*Nathan Wright Jr. was born on this date in 1923.  He was a Black author, minister, activist, and educator. He was from Shreveport, Louisiana, and grew up with his twin brother Benjamin Hickman Wright and their sisters in Cincinnati, Ohio. His father, Nathan Wright Sr., was an insurance agent and the executive secretary of the […]