People, Locations, Episodes

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) is Created

On this date in 1935, the Works Progress Administration (WPA) was created.

This organization helped provide economic relief to the citizens of the United States who were suffering through the Great Depression. Established by the Roosevelt administration, by the time it ended in February 1943, it had allocated 11 billion dollars and employed more than 8 million people. Jobs formed by the WPA included a variety of construction, clerical, professional, and arts endeavors. The WPA came at a time of critical need for African-

The National Youth Administration Begins

*On this date in 1935, we celebrate the creation of the National Youth Administration (NYA). Franklin Roosevelt signed the executive order establishing the NYA, a New Deal program explicitly designed to address the problem of unemployment among (then) Depression-era youth. The number of unemployed youths in the 1930s drew attention to several fears adults had […]

The National Council of Negro Women is Formed

On this date in 1935, the National Council of Negro Women began.

Founded by Mary McLeod Bethune and started as way to unite women and secure justice, NCNW has grown into a multi-faceted, non-profit organization that works at the national, state, local, and international levels. It pursues goals to “leave no one behind” and improve quality of life for women, children, and families. NCNW consists of 38 affiliated national organizations, 250 community-based sections chartered in 42 states, 20 college-based sections, and 60,000 individual members.

The National Negro Congress is formed.

*The National Negro Congress (NNC) held its first convention on this date in 1936. The NNC was an American organization aiming to fight for Black labor liberation. Historically, many black workers were segregated and racially discriminated in the labor force. To combat racism within their respective jobs, they had to establish a union. However, most […]

Walter E. Williams, Economist, and Author born

*Walter E. Williams was born on this date in 1936. He was a Black conservative economist, commentator, and academic. Walter Edward Williams was born in Philadelphia, PA. His family during childhood consisted of his mother, his sister, and him; Williams’s father played no role in raising Williams or his sister. The family initially lived in […]

The Green Book is Published

*The Negro Motorist Green Book is celebrated on this date in 1936.   Also called The Negro Motorist Green Book, The Negro Travelers’ Green Book, or simply the Green Book) It was an annual guidebook for African American vacationers. It was originated and published by Black, New York City mailman Victor Hugo Green until 1966, […]

Wally Amos, Businessman, and Author born.

*Wally Amos was born on this date in 1936. He was a Black talent agent, businessman, and author. Wallace Amos Jr. was born to Wallace and Ruby Amos and raised in Tallahassee, Florida until he was 12. When his parents divorced, he moved to New York City with his aunt, where he enrolled at the […]

Dorothy Butler Gilliam, Journalist born

*Dorothy Butler Gilliam was born on this date in 1936.  She is a Black journalist, Professor, and author. Dorothy Butler was born in Memphis, Tennessee, the eighth child of Adee Conklin Butler and Jessie Mae Norment Butler. When Butler was in her first year at Ursuline College, she was a secretary for the weekly Louisville Defender, […]

Joe Dudley, Entrepreneur born.

*Joe Dudley was born on this date in 1937. He was a Black businessman and hair-care entrepreneur. Joe Louis Dudley Sr. was born in Aurora, North Carolina, the fifth of 11 children. When he was in the first grade, he was mistakenly labeled as mentally retarded because of a speech impediment. He had twice been […]

Robert Maynard, Journalist, and Publisher born

Robert C. Maynard was born on this date in 1937. He was an African American newspaper editor, publisher, writer, and social commentator.

Helen Williams Jackson, Fashion Model born

*This date in 1937 is celebrated as the birth date of Helen Williams Jackson, a Black dancer and fashion model.   Born Helen Williams from Riverton, New Jersey, she showed a great obsession with fashion at an early age and even began sewing her garments at 7. Before becoming a New York photography studio stylist, she […]

Jack & Jill of America is Founded

*Jack and Jill of America was founded on this date in 1938. It is a nonprofit philanthropic organization headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Jack and Jill of America, Inc. as one of the premier African American family organizations in the United States.

Reatha Clark King, Scientist, and Philanthropist born

Reatha Clark King was born on this date in 1938. She is an African American administrator, educator, scientist, and philanthropist.

From Pavo, Georgia, her father Willie was a farm laborer who left the family when Reatha was a child. Her mother, Ola Watts Campbell then moved the family to Moultree, Georgia where she worked as a domestic to support her three children. Clark-King spent her childhood years working in the cotton fields and on her aunt’s farm and on the property of landlords.

The Fair Labor Standards Act becomes Law

*The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) became law on this date in 1938. Signed by President Franklin Roosevelt, it established a 25-cent minimum wage (that would rise to 30 cents beginning in October 1939), introduced a 44-hour maximum work week (that would first fall to 42 hours in October 1939 and would then fall to […]

The Jackson Advocate Newspaper is Published

*The Jackson Advocate newspaper is affirmed on this date in 1938. It is an African American weekly newspaper in Jackson, Mississippi. It was founded by Percy Greene, a veteran of World War I and a civil rights activist in the 1940s and 1950s. The paper’s mission was to contribute to the struggle of Blacks in […]