D.C. Councilman Marion Barry explains why the struggle for rights is not over and the power of MLK's speech. Continue reading
On November 7, 1967, Democrat Carl B. Stokes was elected Mayor of Cleveland, Ohio. Stokes was the first African American to be elected mayor of a major U.S. city. In this video, Stokes speaks to his supporters following his victory, saying: “I can find no more fitting way to end … Continue reading
On November 4, 2008, Barack Obama became the first African American President of the United States. In this video, see students at Howard University in Washington, D.C., react emotionally to the news. Says one student: “I never thought in my lifetime that it would happen. But it happened tonight. It’s … Continue reading
Colleagues such as Mary Burton of Archbishop Desmond Tutu discuss how he got involved with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) assembled in South Africa after the end of apartheid. The TRC reviewed thousands of statements from witnesses and victims of human rights violations during the apartheid as a method … Continue reading
“I’ve always been at war with a system, not people”. On October 1, 1962, James Meredith became the first African-American student admitted to the University of Mississippi. Meredith’s enrollment sparked protests and riots at the University’s campus, causing President Kennedy to call in troops from the U.S. Marshals, U.S. Army … Continue reading
WERD AM in Atlanta, Georgia, began operating on October 3, 1949, becoming the first black-owned radio station in the United States. The radio station was in the same building as the headquarters of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, whose leader was Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr. King was a … Continue reading
Help us ID the people in this historic photo! Scroll down to see who we have been able to identify thus far. (1.) X (2.) Dr. Ralph David Abernathy (3.) X (4.) X (5.) X (6.) Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (7.) Coretta Scott King (8.) X (9.) X (10.) John Lewis? (11.) … Continue reading
The 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama was bombed on the morning of September 15, 1963. Ahmad Ward puts it succinctly, “Kids are supposed to be safe at church. This isn’t supposed to happen in America.” The bomb killed four teenage girls in an attack that was quickly identified … Continue reading
“It was a frightening time if you were a young person growing up because you never knew what the day would bring.” Reverend Carolyn McKinstry’s words describe the climate of Birmingham, Alabama on September 15, 1963. On that Sunday morning, a bomb blew up the 16th Street Baptist church while … Continue reading
