*On this date in 1961, the Revolutionary Action Movement (RAM) is affirmed. RAM was a Marxist-Leninist, Black nationalist organization. They were the first group to apply the philosophy of Maoism to the conditions of Black people in the United States. They informed the revolutionary politics of the Black Power movement. Group formation. In 1961, students […]
learn more*Barack Obama was born on this date in 1961. He is an African American lawyer, politician and activist. He is also the first Black person elected as President of the United States of America.
learn more*The SNCC Freedom Singers were formed on this date in 1962. The Freedom Singers were connected to the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), which was formed in Raleigh, North Carolina, to organize against growing injustice and violence against black people. In the 1960 Greensboro sit-ins, four African American college students protested Jim Crow laws by sitting at a “whites-only” lunch […]
learn more*Jackie Copeland was born on this date in 1962. She is a Black environmentalist women’s activist, author, administrator, and philanthropist. Jackie “Bouvier” Copeland was born in Philadelphia, the daughter of James and Willette Copeland. She received her B.A. in literature from the School of Arts and Sciences with an African Studies Certification from the School […]
learn more*The Council of Federated Organizations (COFO) was formed on this date in 1962. They were a coalition of the major Civil Rights Movement organizations operating in Mississippi. The COFO was the effort of local activists and indigenous leadership. The prelude to the Civil Rights Movement in Mississippi began after World War II when veterans such as Medgar Evers, his brother Charles Evers, Aaron Henry, and Amzie Moore returned home […]
learn more*On this date in 1963, we affirm 100 Black Men of America. They are a men’s civic organization and service club aiming to educate and empower African American children and teens. 100 Black Men has 110 chapters in different cities in the United States and worldwide. The mission statement is “to improve the quality of life within our communities and enhance educational and […]
learn more*The Progressive Club was celebrated on this date in 1963. This historic clubhouse was at Johns Island, Charleston County, South Carolina. It was established in 1948 to provide a home for Esau Jenkins’ Progressive Club’s legal and financial assistance program, adult education program, and dormitory lodging. It also served as a community recreational, childcare, meeting place, and grocery store. […]
learn more*On March 30, 1964, Hamilton v. Alabama was decided. This was a United States Supreme Court case in which the court held that a Black woman, Mary Hamilton, was entitled to the same courteous forms of address customarily reserved solely to whites in the Southern United States and that calling a Black person by his […]
learn more*Freedom Summer is briefly described on this date in 1964. Sometimes called the Mississippi Summer Project, it was a volunteer campaign against voter suppression in the United States. Its launch was to register as many Black voters as possible in Mississippi. Blacks had been cut off from voting since the turn of the century due […]
learn more*On this date in 1964, Malcolm X announced the establishment of the Organization of Afro-American Unity (OAAU) at a public meeting in New York’s Audubon Ballroom.
learn more*The Campaign Against Racial Discrimination (CARD) is celebrated on this date in 1964. This was a British organization that lobbied for race relations legislation. The group’s formation was inspired by a visit by Martin Luther King Jr. to London in December 1964 on his way to Oslo to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. The Trinidadian pacifist […]
learn more*The Deacons for Defense and Justice are celebrated on this date in 1964. This was an armed African American self-defense group. They were founded during the 20th century American Civil Rights era in the United States, in the mill town of Jonesboro, Louisiana. It is intended to protect civil rights activists and their families. They […]
learn more*On this date in 1965, the Edmund Pettus Bridge attack occurred. The incident began when about 600 Blacks left the Brown Chapel AME Church for a 50-mile march to Montgomery.
learn more*Rodney King was born on this date in 1965. He was an African American laborer and civil rights symbol (police brutality).
learn more*The U.S. Organization is affirmed on this date in 1965. They are a Black nationalist group established as a community organization in the United States. After the assassination of Malcolm X in February 1965 and the Watts riots the following August, the Black Congress was founded as a community-rebuilding effort in Watts, Los Angeles. Two BC members, Maulana […]
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