*On this date, in 1863, the 7th United States Colored Infantry was formed. This an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. The regiment was composed of African American enlisted men commanded by white officers. It was authorized by the Bureau of Colored Troops, which the United States War […]
learn more*On this date in 1949, Webb v. School District No. 90 was decided. This Supreme Court case involved 39 Black students fighting for educational rights. Background Population growth after World War II prompted the construction of a new $90,000—South Park Elementary School near Merriam, Kansas. The district school board had unlawfully established Walker School for […]
learn more*Theodore Sedgwick was born on this date in 1746. He was a white-American attorney, slave owner, and politician. Born in West Hartford in the Connecticut Colony, Sedgwick was the son of Benjamin Sedgwick. His paternal immigrant ancestor, Major General Robert Sedgwick, arrived in 1636 in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Sedgwick attended Yale College, where he […]
learn more*Ruy Barbosa, also known as Rui Barbosa, was born on this date in 1849. He was a Brazilian diplomat, writer, jurist, and politician. Rui Barbosa de Oliveira de Oliveira was born in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. He gave his first public speech for the abolition of slavery when he was 19. For the rest of his life, he […]
learn more*On this date in 57 BCE, we affirm the birth of Queen Amanirenas. She was a queen and military leader of the Kingdom of Kush from the end of the 1st Century BCE to the beginning of the 1st Century C.E. Biography Queen Amanirenas was born in Kush in present-day Sudan. This affluent city was the […]
learn more*The Black Guard is affirmed on this date in 1699. They were the corps of Black African slaves and slave soldiers assembled by the ‘Alawi sultan of Morocco, Isma’il ibn Sharif. Isma’il ruled for 55 years between 1672 and 1727, one of the longest reigns in Moroccan history. He distinguished himself as a ruler who wished […]
learn more*On this date in 1825, Haiti signed the Ordinance of King Charles X. Often called the Haiti Indemnity, this was a controversial agreement between Haiti and France where France demanded an indemnity of 150 million francs from Haiti in claims over property, including Haitian slaves. 1791, France lost colonial control of the island through the […]
learn more*On this date in 1926, Corrigan v. Buckley, 271 U.S. 323 (1926), was decided. This U.S. Supreme Court case ruled that the racially restrictive covenant of multiple residents on S Street N.W., between 18th Street and New Hampshire Avenue, in Washington, DC, was a legally binding document that made selling a house to a Black […]
learn more*Hamid Awate was born on this date in 1910. He was a Black Eritrean guerrilla commander. Idris Hamid Awate was born in Gerset, in southwestern Italian Eritrea. His father, a peasant, trained him as early as childhood in the use of guns. Hamid was of Tigre and Nara descent. In 1935, Hamid was drafted and […]
learn more*On this date in 1961, Eritrea gained independence from Ethiopia. Eritrea is in East Africa. It is bordered to the northeast and east by the Red Sea, Sudan to the west, Ethiopia to the south, and Djibouti to the southeast. Eritrea lies between latitudes 12° and 18°N and longitudes 36° and 44°E. A branch of the […]
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