Black History Facts You May Not Know!

black history facts
Vector Illustration with 10 EPS of side view of African American man. African History Month, Underground Railway, African Culture. Male, person, people, portrait, head and shoulders and masculine, features, side view and abstract, afro, face, expression. White background, celebration. Black heritage celebration. African Heritage Day.  Black Americans ethnic group, person of color.

Black History Facts..since January 2021, according to a list compiled by Education Week, 37 states have introduced measures to limit how race and discrimination can be taught in public school classrooms, and 14 have imposed laws or rules to enforce these restrictions.

In July 2021, Gov. Chris Sununu of New Hampshire signed a bill that says no public employer should teach that people of any race or gender were “inherently racist, sexist, or oppressive.”

As an example, the proposed law in New Hampshire would prohibit teachers from teaching negative accounts of the founding and history of the United States.

In Oklahoma, like in several other states:

  • Educators are prohibited from teaching that people are responsible for past actions by other members of the same race or sex. 

  • And from telling students that people should feel “discomfort, guilt, anguish or any other form of psychological distress” based on their race or sex.

The bills also address transparency in the curriculum. 

Several states have introduced bills, including Missouri and Indiana.

It requires schools and teachers to make instructional materials available for parents to review.

 It goes one step further in Florida by giving parents “private rights of action” to sue if they believe their children are being taught critical race theory in schools.

Some laws passed during the 2021 legislative session have already faced legal challenges. Read More

They have filed lawsuits… in Oklahoma and New Hampshire claiming that the laws deprive teachers of free speech and equal protection rights.

GETTING shit done

That being said…

If you’re interested in black history, here’s a list of 30 facts that you might not know.

Facts About Slavery

1. Slavery has existed for as long as humans have existed.

2. The first slave market was established in 1260 AD in Cairo, Egypt.

3. The first enslaved Africans arrived in Jamestown, Virginia, on May 20, 1619:

– almost half a century before American independence from British rule:

And centuries before, the abolition of slavery throughout the British Empire (1838).

4. During the transatlantic slave trade (1441-1867) 16 and 17 million Africans were forced to move to the Americas. 

Half of those individuals never made it across the ocean because of disease and death.

5. To maintain control over enslaved people, white Americans used a variety of methods, including white supremacy ideology.

The threat of violence, laws that prohibited enslaved people from being educated.

Or from reading books written by whites or about white culture, religion, etc.”

Black Firsts…Black History Facts.

-The first African American sketch comedy show was called “In Living Color.”

-The first African American to play in a major league baseball game was Jackie Robinson.black history facts

 

-The first African American to hold a high-ranking position in a major corporation was Percy Ellisblack history facts Sutton.

-The first African American to have their voice heard on the radio was Paul Laurence Dunbar.black history facts

James Van Der Zee, Garveyite Family, Harlem, 1924, printed 1974, gelatin silver print, Corcoran Collection (Gift of Eric R. Fox), 2015.19.4388

Harlem Renaissance was a cultural movement of the 1920s;

Which brought Black writers, artists, actors, and musicians together.

 African Americans rose to prominence for the first time in art, music, literature, and cinema.

Facts About the Flint Sit-Down Strike

-The first sit-down strike occurred in Flint, Michigan, on December 30, 1936.

-the United Auto Workers (UAW) and General Motors (GM) organized the strike.

-It was the first major industrial dispute involving workers who had not been unionized in the past.

-The UAW comprised 350 Flint GM workers before the strike. The strikers grew to over 3,000 at one point.

-The strike lasted 44 days and ended with General Motors agreeing to recognize the UAW as the bargaining agent for hourly paid production workers.

Vivien Thomas and assistants operating on a laboratory dog …Vivien Thomas · The Blue Baby Operation · Exhibits: The Sheridan Libraries and Museums (jhu.edu)Vanderbilt University, c. 1930s.

 

In January of 1930, Vivien Thomas took a job in Alfred Blalock’s Vanderbilt University Hospital laboratory.

Thomas was supposed to be in his first semester of college, and had planned to become a doctor, but his life savings were wiped out in the stock market crash that set off the Great Depression.

Blalock’s lab was his best chance to pursue medical work, though his contributions often went unacknowledged.

Thomas quickly learned to perform the surgical procedures and chemical determinations needed for their experiments, to calculate the results, and to keep precise records.

Famous Black Women …Black History Facts.

black history facts
Harriet Tubman

Although black history is often overlooked, many famous black women have shaped American history.

 Here are some of the most influential black women in history: 

– Harriet Tubman was an abolitionist, Underground Railroad conductor, and humanitarian. She helped free over 700 enslaved people through the Underground Railroad.

Rosa Parks refused to give up her bus seat to a white person on December 1, 1955, which started the Montgomery Bus Boycott. The boycott lasted nearly 381 days and led to the desegregation of public transportation in Alabama.

Facts about Malcolm X

– Born Malcolm Little, Malcolm X joined the Nation of Islam and adopted the name, Malcolm X.

– In his speeches, he often referred to white people as “blue-eyed devils” and called them “devils with blue eyes.”

– Prior to his assassination in 1965, they had offered him a position to become a Muslim minister at a mosque in the north.

Conclusion

Sadly, some states try to downplay the sins of their forefathers. 

As a result, they appear and act like enslavers today.

The history of white people is false, according to those who contest the portrayal of them as people who built their empire on the backs of the enslaved.

My opinion, as a descendant of slaves, is that you are morally bankrupt. You are infuriating and full of BS. 

What the hell are you talking about?

You can try to cover up all the wrongs of the past…you won’t succeed. Why? There is too much evidence.

Anyway…

I hope this post has inspired you to learn more about the history of black people in America. 

“If you like what you read, share it.” 

Thanks for coming by!!

Black history is American history.

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