Happy #BlackHistoryMonth!
Madam C. J. Walker was the first female self-made millionaire in America. Born the daughter (and sister) of former slaves, her dream of a way to regrow hair led her to build a major business that lifted thousands out of poverty.
Happy #BlackHistoryMonth!
Patricia Bath was an American ophthalmologist and inventor. She created the Laserphaco Probe, a device for laser cataract surgery. From this invention and her five patents, she founded the American Institute for Prevention of Blindness. ( http://www.blindnessprevention.org/index.php )
Happy #BlackHistoryMonth !
Marie Maynard Daly was a Ph.D. in chemistry who turned her intellect toward biology. She proved the relationship between cholesterol and heart blockage, and she deepened our knowledge of the relationship between sugars and our arteries.
https://www.sciencehistory.org/historical-profile/marie-maynard-daly
Overcoming the dual hurdles of racial and gender bias, Marie Maynard Daly (1921–2003) conducted important studies on cholesterol, sugars, and proteins. In addition to her research, she was committed to developing programs to increase the enrollment of minority students in medical school and graduate science programs. Daly's early research included studies of the effects of cholesterol on the mechanics of the heart, the effects of sugars and other nutrients on the health of arteries, and the breakdown of the circulatory system as a result of advanced age or hypertension.
Happy #BlackHistoryMonth!
Mark Dean was one of the fathers of the IBM PC. His work helped create the color PC monitor, the ISA system bus (which ties together the system), and the first gigahertz chip. He is an IBM Fellow, a member of the National Academy of Engineers, and was inducted into the National Academy of Engineers.
Happy #BlackHistoryMonth!
Romare Bearden created collages and collage-like paintings celebrating African Americans. He was a member of the National Institute of Arts and Letters and the National Academy of Design, and he received the National Medal of Arts.
Happy #BlackHistoryMonth !
Meta Faux Warrick Fuller was known as the sculptor of the African-American experience. A protégée of Auguste Rodin, she became famous in Paris before returning to the United States. Her sculptures often depicted racial injustice and societal traumas.
Happy #BlackHistoryMonth !
Rear Admiral Marilyn Hughes Gaston created a groundbreaking treatment for sickle cell disease, letting thousands live more normal lives. She was the first African American woman to direct a public health service bureau, and she has received the National Medical Association Scroll of Merit and the National Medical Association's Lifetime Achievement Award.
Source: https://cfmedicine.nlm.nih.gov/physicians/biography_124.html
Happy #BlackHistoryMonth !
Leland Melvin is the only person to have both been drafted in the NFL and been an astronaut. But, frankly, he deserves perpetual fame for his official NASA photograph.
Happy #BlackHistoryMonth !
Paul Williams designed houses full of luxury and grace -- even when covenants would prohibit him from living in those homes. He architected 2,500 buildings, mostly in Southern California. In 1957, he was inducted as a fellow of the American Institute of Architects.
Source: https://www.npr.org/2012/06/22/155442524/a-trailblazing-black-architect-who-helped-shape-l-a
Happy #BlackHistoryMonth !
In the 1930s through the 1950s, the Lone Ranger was one of the most popular radio and television shows. Many stories and his character were inspired the real-life Deputy U.S. Marshall Bass Reeves.
Quoting from my source:
Reeves became famous among criminals for his skills and relentless pursuit. Although shot at many times, he remained untouched by a single bullet, and because of this he was called “The Indomitable Marshal,” so tough he could “spit on a brick and bust it.”
A newspaper of his times reported, “Place a warrant for arrest in his hands and no circumstance can cause him to deviate.”
The Oklahoma City Weekly Times-Journal reported, “Reeves was never known to show the slightest excitement, under any circumstance. He does not know what fear is.”
Another newspaper reported Reeves had brought in 3,000 living felons and 20 dead. He corrected the record, saying that during his storied career he had killed 14 men in self-defense.
Image of Bass Reeves by Unknown author - http://www.legendsofamerica.com/photos-oldwest/BassReeves-275.jpg The Western History Collections at the University of Oklahoma Library have a copy of this image in their holdings., Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1134185
If you’re like me, you remember watching the popular television show, The Lone Ranger, where it depicted a white man who wore a disguise on a white horse and had a Native American counterpart with him named Tonto. The story we are most familiar with started out as a radio show, then a popular television show that ran from 1949 to 1957, then comic books, and several cartoons and big-budget movies. But like many things during slavery, history may have been obscured and the actual “Lone Ranger”...
Happy #BlackHistoryMonth !
Dr Shirley Ann Jackson started her professional career conducting research in theoretical physics, solid-state and quantum physics, and optical physics at AT&T Bell Laboratories in Murray Hill, New Jersey. She then taught physics at Rutgers University for four years.Then Bill Clinton appointed her as chair of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), and she served in high-profile boards to advise Presidents in science, technology, and innovation. Finally, in 1999, she became the first Black woman to be president of a major research university -- Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
Happy #BlackHistoryMonth !
Bessie Coleman was the first Black, female pilot in the United States. At a time when no pilot school in the US would accept either African-Americans -or- women, she learned French to learn to fly. She became a barnstormer, doing trick flying to demonstrate her skill.
https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/bessie-coleman
Happy #BlackHistoryMonth !
Marian Anderson was a contralto opera singer. The Daughters of the American Revolution refused to allow her to perform at Washington's Constitution Hall because she was Black. Instead, Franklin D. Roosevelt invited her to perform in front of the Lincoln Memorial.
A newsreel of her performance is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XF9Quk0QhSE&t=110s
Her episode of American Masters can be found at: https://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/marian-anderson-documentary/14262/
Source: https://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/marian-anderson-broke-these-records-made-her-famous/20328/
Happy #BlackHistoryMonth !
Thurgood Marshall started his public career as a lawyer for the NAACP, where his cases led to overturning the "separate but equal" doctrine in the case _Brown v Board of Education_. In 1967, President Johnson named him the first African-American justice on the Supreme Court.
Happy #BlackHistoryMonth !
On February 25, 1870, Hiram Revels became the first African-American Senator. He had been elected by Mississippi's Reconstruction-era government as a moderate, educated man.
But Southern Democrats claimed that Sen. Revels could not serve, as -- according to them -- he had not been a citizen for nine years. (Citizenship was granted to formerly enslaved people in 1868, with the 14th Amendment.) His right to be a senator was brought before the Senate, and with a 48-8 vote, he was allowed to serve.
Source: https://constitutioncenter.org/blog/hiram-revels-the-first-african-american-congressman
On this day in 1870, a Black politician was seated in the United States Senate for the first time, but only after Republican leaders rebuffed a challenge based on the infamous Dred Scott decision.
Happy #BlackHistoryMonth !
The Tuskeegee Airmen fought two wars at the same time: the military battle against the Nazis and the social battle against racism at home. They were among the most decorated airmen of the Air Force, but their officers had to fight to be allowed into a dining hall on their own base.
Happy #BlackHistoryMonth !
Maj. Gen. Hugh G. Robinson graduated from both West Point and MIT. He was appointed in 1965 as military aide to President Lyndon B. Johnson. In 1978, he was promoted to brigadier general and became the Corps of Engineers’ first African American general officer. He became vice president of Southland Corporation to oversee construction of the corporation’s huge new office complex in Dallas. He also served seven years as vice chairman and then chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.
Marion Anderson and Paul Robeson were two of the greatest voices of the 20th century in the English-speaking world. And they were treated beyond shabbily, to the great detriment of all English-speaking music lovers. It shows you just how stupid and destructive racism truly is.
In Los Angeles at the beginning of the Second World War, air raid wardens were instructed that, when making their rounds to verify that people had their prescribed blackout curtains, precautions against fire, and so on, they should inquire at every house occupied by a white person whether they had a restrictive deed covenant in place ― and if not, to give them a pre-printed form to sign.
The utter disgust this inspires in me is difficult to express.
Of course, not too many years before that, large numbers of US citizens were deported to Mexico for the crime of speaking Spanish. Given the way the 14th Amendment and the associated laws work (you're a citizen automatically if you were born in the USA, or generally if one of your parents was), there is literally no knowing at this point how many "undocumented immigrants" from Mexico have a perfect legal right to be in the USA but no way to prove the fact (and don't even know it).
@Chip_Unicorn Look I'll be honest, this photo 100% made me have a crush on Leland Melvin when I first saw it years ago.
Astronaut and Friend of Dog?! Best man.
Chip_Unicorn
theruran 🌐🖥️🖲️
Atomic Fox
Virginicus
Dan D.
Kevin Karhan 
Scruffo