Black History Month......
Feb. 10th, 2005 12:18 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
poltr1It's February. And February is "Black History Month" in the US. This is the month where we remember and recognize the achievements of the many African-Americans who have made history.
Perhaps the best-known African-American is Martin Luther King Jr., who was an instrumental and pivotal figure in the civil rights movement. But there are many others whose stories and accomplishments are either glossed over or forgotten. It's sad to think that many young men and women of color have so many positive role models, but the only ones that appear to be well-known and remembered outside the African-American community are those in professional sports or the entertainment and music industries. Those lists are exhaustive and their names are familiar to many of you.
It is time to mention some of these lesser-known people and their accomplishments.
Since I'm a science and technology geek, I want to place particular emphasis on African-American scientists and inventors. A table listing their accomplishments can be found here.
Some of the more notable people and their achievements:
George Washington Carver -- developed hundreds of applications for peanuts
Dr. Daniel Hale Williams -- first doctor to perform successful open heart surgery (1893)
Garrett Morgan -- inventor of the gas mask (1914) and traffic signal (1923)
Benjamin Banneker -- builder of the first clock in America (out of wood!) and wrote the first almanac
Dr. Charles Drew -- researched blood plasma and set up the first blood bank
Lewis Latimer -- inventor of carbon filment for light builbs (and worked with Thomas Edison)
Frederick Jones -- inventor of the first automatic refrigeration system for long-haul trucks
(Sidenote: In the fall of 1992, I took a Novell NetWare 3.11 class at Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio -- about 4 miles northeast of Xenia. Wilberforce is the home to the only two HBCU's (historically black colleges and universities) in Ohio -- Central State University and Wilberforce University. They happen to be across the street from each other. Central State is public; Wilberforce is private. The class happened to be held in....Banneker Hall, named for Benjamin Banneker.)
Other notable figures and their fields/accomplishments:
Military
Buffalo Soldiers -- the Ninth and Tenth Cavalries and the 38th through 41st infantries (from post-Civil War to just before WW II)
The Tuskeegee Airmen -- the Army Air Corps 99th Fighter Squadron (during WW II); it's leader, Capt. Benjamin O. Davis Jr., went on to become the first African-American general in the US Air Force.
Pioneers and Explorers
Matthew Henson -- first man to set foot on the North Pole (part of Adminal Peary's crew)
Maj. Robert H. Lawrence Jr., Guion "Guy" Bluford, Charles Bolden, Frederick Gregory, Mae Jemison, Bernard Harris, Ronald McNair, Michael Anderson -- US space shuttle astronauts (See this page for the complete list and mission patches)
Poets and writers
Langston Hughes
Paul Lawrence Dunbar
Booker T. Washington
W.E.B. DuBois
Ralph Ellison -- author of Invisible Man
Richard Wright -- author of Native Son
Science Fiction and Childrens' TV
Nichelle Nichols -- "Uhura" on ST:TOS
LeVar Burton -- "Geordi LaForge" on ST:TNG
Michael Dorn -- "Worf" on ST:TNG
Avery Brooks -- "Sisko" on ST:DS9
Tim Russ - "Tuvok" on ST:Voyager
Richard Biggs -- "Stephen Franklin" on Babylon 5
Kevin Clash -- Elmo's voice and muppeteer on Sesame Street
This list is by no means comprehensive. I'm sure I inadvertantly missed someone along the way.
Weblinks and resources:
Info from the Information Please almanac
Black History Pages
The (A&E) Biography Channel's page
The History Channel's page
The lyrics for "Black Man" by Stevie Wonder, off the "Songs In The Key Of Life" album/CD
Perhaps the best-known African-American is Martin Luther King Jr., who was an instrumental and pivotal figure in the civil rights movement. But there are many others whose stories and accomplishments are either glossed over or forgotten. It's sad to think that many young men and women of color have so many positive role models, but the only ones that appear to be well-known and remembered outside the African-American community are those in professional sports or the entertainment and music industries. Those lists are exhaustive and their names are familiar to many of you.
It is time to mention some of these lesser-known people and their accomplishments.
Since I'm a science and technology geek, I want to place particular emphasis on African-American scientists and inventors. A table listing their accomplishments can be found here.
Some of the more notable people and their achievements:
George Washington Carver -- developed hundreds of applications for peanuts
Dr. Daniel Hale Williams -- first doctor to perform successful open heart surgery (1893)
Garrett Morgan -- inventor of the gas mask (1914) and traffic signal (1923)
Benjamin Banneker -- builder of the first clock in America (out of wood!) and wrote the first almanac
Dr. Charles Drew -- researched blood plasma and set up the first blood bank
Lewis Latimer -- inventor of carbon filment for light builbs (and worked with Thomas Edison)
Frederick Jones -- inventor of the first automatic refrigeration system for long-haul trucks
(Sidenote: In the fall of 1992, I took a Novell NetWare 3.11 class at Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio -- about 4 miles northeast of Xenia. Wilberforce is the home to the only two HBCU's (historically black colleges and universities) in Ohio -- Central State University and Wilberforce University. They happen to be across the street from each other. Central State is public; Wilberforce is private. The class happened to be held in....Banneker Hall, named for Benjamin Banneker.)
Other notable figures and their fields/accomplishments:
Military
Buffalo Soldiers -- the Ninth and Tenth Cavalries and the 38th through 41st infantries (from post-Civil War to just before WW II)
The Tuskeegee Airmen -- the Army Air Corps 99th Fighter Squadron (during WW II); it's leader, Capt. Benjamin O. Davis Jr., went on to become the first African-American general in the US Air Force.
Pioneers and Explorers
Matthew Henson -- first man to set foot on the North Pole (part of Adminal Peary's crew)
Maj. Robert H. Lawrence Jr., Guion "Guy" Bluford, Charles Bolden, Frederick Gregory, Mae Jemison, Bernard Harris, Ronald McNair, Michael Anderson -- US space shuttle astronauts (See this page for the complete list and mission patches)
Poets and writers
Langston Hughes
Paul Lawrence Dunbar
Booker T. Washington
W.E.B. DuBois
Ralph Ellison -- author of Invisible Man
Richard Wright -- author of Native Son
Science Fiction and Childrens' TV
Nichelle Nichols -- "Uhura" on ST:TOS
LeVar Burton -- "Geordi LaForge" on ST:TNG
Michael Dorn -- "Worf" on ST:TNG
Avery Brooks -- "Sisko" on ST:DS9
Tim Russ - "Tuvok" on ST:Voyager
Richard Biggs -- "Stephen Franklin" on Babylon 5
Kevin Clash -- Elmo's voice and muppeteer on Sesame Street
This list is by no means comprehensive. I'm sure I inadvertantly missed someone along the way.
Weblinks and resources:
Info from the Information Please almanac
Black History Pages
The (A&E) Biography Channel's page
The History Channel's page
The lyrics for "Black Man" by Stevie Wonder, off the "Songs In The Key Of Life" album/CD
