People, Locations, Episodes

The Communist Party USA is Formed

*On this date, in 1919, the American Communist Party was formed.  Officially called the Communist Party of the United States of America (CPUSA), they are a communist party in the United States established after a split in the Socialist Party of America following the Russian Revolution.    The CPUSA has a long, complex history of intersectionality that ties with the American labor movement and communist parties worldwide. Initially operating underground […]

The National Conference on Lynching Convenes

*On this date in 1919, the National Conference on Lynching took place in Carnegie Hall, New York City. The goal of the two-day conference was to pressure Congress to pass the Dyer Anti-Lynching Bill. It was a project of the new NAACP, which released a report, Thirty Years of Lynching in the United States, 1889-1918. […]

The Women’s Service Club (Boston) is Founded

*This date in 1919 celebrates the founding of the Women’s Service Club, which was formed to support soldiers of color fighting in World War I. Founded in Boston, MA., hundreds of women joined the group, donating their talents to produce scarves and gloves for Black servicemen. Their building was purchased in 1919 and operated as […]

M. Carl Holman, Activist, and Businessman born

On this date in 1918, M. Carl Holman was born. He was an African American civil rights leader and president of the National Urban Coalition (1971-88) who promoted the need for a mutual partnership between industry and government to foster inner-city development.

Viola Duvall, Teacher, and Activist born

*Viola Duvall was born on this date in 1919.  She was a Black teacher and education activist.  Born in Charleston, South Carolina, Viola Louise Duvall was the only child of Vincent and Pearl Duvall.  She was named for two of her mother’s sisters who died in the Spanish flu pandemic of that era.  After her […]

Mineo Katagiri, Activist, and Minister born

*Mineo Katagiri was born on this date in 1919. He was a Japanese American activist, minister and strong advocate for civil rights for African and Asians in America.

The African Blood Brotherhood is formed

*The African Blood Brotherhood (ABB) is celebrated on this date in 1919. Sometimes referred to as the African Liberation and Redemption, this was a U.S. black liberation organization established in 1919 in New York City by journalist Cyril Briggs.  The summer of 1919 in America was a time of racial rioting and violence, remembered retrospectively by […]

Kathleen Livingstone, Broadcaster born

*Kathleen “Kay” Livingstone was born on this date in 1919.  She was a Black Canadian social activist, actress, and broadcaster.   The daughter of James and Christina Jenkins, she was born Kathleen Jenkins in London, Ontario. Her father was an assistant judge in the local juvenile court, and her parents founded a newspaper, Dawn of […]

Adelaide Cromwell, Professor and Activist born

*Adelaide Cromwell was born on this date in 1919. She was a Black sociologist, activist, and professor emeritus.  Adelaide McGuinn Cromwell was born in Washington, D.C. Her grandfather, John Wesley Cromwell, was a well-known activist and educator, and her father, John Wesley Cromwell Jr., was the city’s first black certified public accountant. Her aunt, Otelia […]

Johnnie Jones Sr., Soldier, and Activist born

*Johnnie Jones, Sr., was born on this date in 1919. He was a Black soldier, lawyer, and Louisiana state legislator. Johnnie A. Jones was born in West Feliciana Parish near Woodville, Mississippi, in Laurel Hill, Louisiana. One of eight children, he was the son of lease sharecropping farmers Henry E. Jones and Sarah Ann Coats and the […]

Recy Taylor, Activist born

*Recy Taylor was born on this date in 1919.  She was a Black activist for racial justice and women’s rights and a defendant in a high-profile rape case. From Abbeville in Henry County, Alabama, Taylor was one of four siblings, a brother and two sisters.  On September 3, 1944, Taylor was walking home from Rock Hill Holiness Church in Abbeville […]

James Farmer Jr., Educator, and Activist born

James Farmer, African American educator, administrator, activist was born on this date in 1920. He was also the founder of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE).

He was raised in an environment that valued education and religious faith. James Farmer was an outstanding student. After skipping several grades in elementary school, he entered Wiley College in Marshall, TX, at the age of 14, graduated in 1938, and then graduated from Howard University’s School of Religion in 1941.

The League of Women for Community Service is Formed

*On this date in 1920, the League of Women for Community Service was formed. The League was formed to undertake civic, social, educational, and charitable work for the benefit of Boston’s Black community. On that date, Florida Ruffin Ridley and her mother, Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin, purchased 558 Massachusetts Avenue from Eliza Farwell, widow of Nathaniel Farwell, […]

Odessa Brown, Cosmetologist born

*Odessa Brown was born on this date in 1920. She was an African American cosmetologist, and health activist.

She was born in Des Arc, Arkansas and received training as a licensed beautician at the C. J. Walker Beauty School in Chicago.  She moved to Seattle, WA in 1963. A mother of four, she supported her family by working as a Community Organizer for the Central Area Motivation Program beginning in 1965, and as a beautician.  Brown was a staunch supporter of a health care facility for children in the Central Area of Seattle. 

Marian Bruce Logan, Cabaret Singer, and Activist born

*The birth of Marian Bruce Logan is celebrated on this date in 1920. She was a Black cabaret singer, civil rights advocate, and former New York City Commissioner of Human Rights. During her career in show business, she sang using the stage name, Marian Bruce. In the 1940s and 1950s, she starred in the first […]