Augustus Freeman Hawkins of Los Angeles is elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, becoming the first Black Congress member from west of the Mississippi. […]
Category: This Week in Black History
This Week in Black History, October 30, 1979
Richard Arrington Jr. Richard Arrington Jr. was elected as the first African-American mayor of Birmingham, Alabama. He served 20 years, working to overcome Birmingham’s history […]
This Week in Black History, October 24, 1935
Langston Hughes’ play “Mulatto” opens in New York, becoming the first Black-authored play to become a long-running Broadway hit. It holds the record for longest-running […]
This Week in Black History October 16, 1968
San Jose State track stars Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised gloved fists during a medal ceremony at the Summer Olympics in Mexico City, signaling […]
This Week in Black History, October 5, 1985
Grambling State University defeats Prairie View A&M 27-7, giving Grambling coach Eddie Robinson 324 career victories in college football, breaking the legendary Paul “Bear” Bryant’s […]
This Week in Black History September 27, 1950
Gwendolyn Brooks becomes the first African-American writer to win a Pulitzer Prize for her book of poetry, “Annie Allen,” a coming-of-age tale about a young […]
This Week in Black History September 20, 1987
Actress Alfre Woodard Actress Alfre Woodard wins the Emmy Award for outstanding guest performance in a dramatic series for NBC’s “L.A. Law.” She also won […]
This Week in Black History, September 12, 1992
Chicago physician Dr. Mae Jemison becomes the first African-American woman in space when the space shuttle Endeavour lifts off from the Kennedy Space Center and […]
This Week in Black History, Sept. 5, 1960
A young boxer named Cassius Clay won the gold medal in the light heavyweight division at the Summer Olympics in Rome. Clay would later become […]
This Week in Black History
August 30, 1967The U.S. Senate confirms the appointment of Thurgood Marshall to the U.S. Supreme Court by President Lyndon Johnson. Marshall, who argued before the […]