Tag Archives: Black History

The Montgomery Bus Boycott – a summary

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On December 1, 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama, Rosa Parks, a 42-year-old African American seamstress, seated in a segregated bus, refused to give up her seat to a white man. It sparked the 13-month Montgomery Bus Boycott and resulted in an early and significant victory for the Civil Rights movement. It brought to national attention a 26-year-old recently appointed Baptist reverend by the name of Martin Luther King, Jr.

Three years earlier, in 1952, the US Supreme Court declared that segregation on interstate railways was unconstitutional, and, two years later, also outlawed segregation on interstate buses. However, the practice was not barred on state-run bus services and persisted in many southern states.

Whites Only

White people entered the bus from the front, black people from the back. If the bus was full, and another white person boarded, then a black person was expected to give up their seat. Martin Luther King described the situation: ‘Negroes (were forced) to stand over empty seats reserved for “whites only”. Even if the bus had no white passengers, and Negroes were packed throughout, they were prohibited from sitting in the front seats.’ Continue reading →

Bert Williams – Funny Man Who Inspired Millions

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Egbert Austin Williams, who was known as “Bert Williams,” was born on November 12, 1874, and died March 4 1922. He was one of the most well-known entertainers of the Vaudeville era, and made a name for himself as one of the most popular comedians of the time.

One of Williams’s most noteworthy achievements was that he was the best-selling black recording artist before the year 1920. The New York Dramatic Mirror dubbed Williams, “one of the best comedians of the world.”

During his lifetime, Bert Williams played a key role in African–American entertainment. Racial inequality was a fact of life and stereotyping was still commonplace in America. That didn’t stop Williams from becoming the first black American entertainer to step into a leading role on Broadway. He was not content with the status quo, and would go on to push back the number of racial barriers during his career. Comedian W.C. Fields once described Bert Williams as “the funniest man I ever saw – and the saddest man I ever knew.”

Early Life

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Sweatt v Painter

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The Sweatt v Painter case of 1950 is an important but often overlooked landmark in the progress of the Civil Rights Movement in the US, writes Angelita Williams.

Sweatt v Painter

In February 1946, Heman Sweatt, a young African-American mail carrier, applied for admission to the University of Texas’ School of Law. Upon reviewing the young man’s application, the school refused admission on the grounds that Texas schools prohibited integrated education. Despite the fact that much of the nation already embraced integration, states in the Deep South – including Texas and Alabama – had resisted integration. Using the “separate but equal” doctrine established by the 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson case, states were allowed to resist racial integration as long as the separate facilities they created for African Americans were of – you guessed it – equal condition.

Sweatt and his lawyer Thurgood Marshall challenged the UT School of Law in 1950, saying that the law school UT considered equal to theirs – the Texas State University for Negroes – was in no shape or form equal to the University of Texas’ School of Law, given that the UT Law School had 16 full-time professors and the Texas State University for Negroes only had 5 full-time professors; the UT Law School had 850 students and a 65,000-volume law library, while the Texas State University for Negroes only had 23 students and a 16,500-volume library; and the University of Texas Law School had many graduates working in public and private law practice, while the Texas State University for Negroes only had one graduate admitted to the Texas Bar Association.

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Malcolm X’s Influence on the Black Panther Party’s Philosophy

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The Black Panther Party, founded in 1966 by Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale, was based on ideas such as black nationalism and a staunch belief in the necessity of violence and armed self-defence in order to obtain freedom from white oppression – ideas which are strongly associated with Malcolm X’s life work.

Following Malcolm X‘s assassination in 1965, it has been suggested by some historians that the Black Panther Party used his philosophy of gaining freedom “by any means necessary” both as a justification of their methods and as a means of inspiring other African Americans to join their cause. Although Huey Newton later stressed in his autobiography a belief that the party had not done things the way that Malcolm X would have done them had he lived beyond 1965, the fact that Malcolm X had a huge influence on the philosophy of the party is virtually indisputable.

Bobby Seale

It is also clear is that Malcolm X had a strong influence on the individual, personal philosophies of key Black Panther members, especially the two founding members. Both Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale were drawn in by Malcolm’s speeches and agreed with many of the revolutionary ideas he expressed within them. Bobby Seale wrote about listening to Malcolm X’s speeches, proclaiming him to be “a better speaker than even Martin Luther King.” He went on to name his son Malik Nkrumah Stagolee Seale, later explaining “Malik” was “for Malcolm X”. After Malcolm’s death, Seale wrote that he “cried like a baby” and announced soon afterwards: “I will make my own self into a motherf**king Malcolm X…they’ll have to kill me!” In the process, Seale made clear the extent to which Malcolm X had influenced his beliefs.

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John Brown and the Raid on the Harpers Ferry Armoury

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John Brown, the radical abolitionist, ensured his place in US history when on 16 October 1859 he led a group of 21 men on a raid on the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia. The raid failed and Brown, wounded, was tried, convicted and hanged. But by his action, John Brown deepened further still the chasm between the anti and pro-slavery camps and by his death became a martyr for the abolitionist cause.

Pottawatomie Massacre

Brown’s raid on the Harpers Ferry arsenal was not his first. During a spell in Kansas, Brown was involved in more than one attack on pro-slavery supporters. After a group of pro-slavery supporters attacked the anti-slavery town of Lawrence in Kansas, Brown, who believed it was his divine mission to extract revenge, retaliated and led a nighttime attack on a proslavery settlement at Pottawatomie Creek on 24/25 May 1856.  Among his group of seven men were four of his sons and one son-in-law.  Three pro-slavery supporters were dragged from their homes and hacked to death.  Two more were killed before the sun rose.  Brown escaped the pursuing peace-keeping troops of the US Army.

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Harriet Tubman – a summary

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As the concept of banning slavery within the United States grew, so did the number of people who were willing to risk their safety and security to help runaway slaves.  One such person was Harriet Tubman. Here, Kat Smutz summarizes her life.

Harriet Tubman was a fugitive slave with a high price on her head in the American South.  Born Araminta Ross in Dorchester County, Maryland, Tubman, the eleventh child, was often called Minty. Harriet was a name she chose for herself as an adult.

“I felt like I was in heaven”

In 1844, aged about 25, Harriet sought permission from her owners to marry. She married John Tubman, a freeman, and lived with him in his cabin, but was obliged to continue working for her master. She once confided in her husband her dreams of running away and obtaining freedom. John Tubman threatened to denounce her if she ever tried it.

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W. E. B. Du Bois

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Born 23 February 1868, William Edward Burghardt Du Bois was perhaps the most influential African American leader of the first half of the twentieth century. The first black graduate from Harvard, W.E.B. Du Bois believed in protest and activism to advance the rights and conditions of African Americans.

His views were in stark contrast to his fellow campaigner, Booker T Washington, who believed that through education and hard work, blacks could eventually win the respect of whites and thus gain greater equality. Du Bois became increasingly critical of what he considered Booker T Washington’s accommodating approach to racial integration, believing that Washington’s approach undermined the black person’s status in society. Instead, Du Bois believed in a more proactive approach, and strove to achieve greater political representation for blacks. He believed education should do more than merely teach vocational trades; it should teach black people how to live assertively, fighting for equality and to be demanding of their civil rights.

Du Bois was also critical of fellow black campaigner, Marcus Garvey. ‘Without doubt,’ wrote Du Bois of the flamboyant Garvey, ‘he is the most dangerous enemy of the Negro race in America and in the world. He is either a lunatic or a traitor.’

NAACP

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Frederick Douglass – a summary

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The title of Renaissance man would not be inaccurate in describing Frederick Douglass.  Born a slave in about February 1818, Douglass, originally called Frederick Augustus Washington Bailey, was raised by his grandmother. Denied even the most basic education, Douglass rose beyond life in bondage to a man of intelligence, principles, and influence.

Douglass’ mother was a slave named Harriet Bailey.  The identity of his father is uncertain, but is believed to be his mother’s owner, Anthony Bailey. Like most slave children, Douglass was taken from his mother at birth and fostered by an older slave woman.  He later said that he saw his mother no more than five times in his life.

At the age of 12, he went to live with a relative of his owner whose wife began teaching Douglass to read.  When her husband learned of it, he demanded his wife desist.  Not only was it illegal to educate a slave, but it was believed that if a slave learned to read, he might become dissatisfied with his lot in life and attempt to rise above it.

But Douglass had already obtained the rudimentary skills of reading and continued to teach himself using the Bible and newspapers.

Slave breaker

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Paul Cuffee – a summary

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The story of how Paul Cuffee made his way from farmer’s son to wealthy ship owner might not sound unique unless you consider that he was African American.  In his lifetime, free African Americans were not entitled to vote in most states and slavery was still a common practice.

Cuffee’s father, Kofi, was born in Africa, a member of the Ashanti tribe, and was transported to the colonies as a slave.  His owner, a Quaker, felt that slave ownership and his religion were in conflict, and so, freed Kofi who, having gained his freedom, worked to support his family, eventually acquiring a 116-acre Massachusetts farm which Cuffee and his siblings inherited. Cuffee’s mother, Ruth Moses, was a Native America of the Wampanoag tribe.

Cuffee the shipbulider

Born 17 January 1759, Paul Cuffee was one of ten children. As a youngster, Cuffee worked on whaling ships and learnt the art of navigation sailing out from the ports of Massachusetts. Spurred on, he built his own ship which he used to trade locally before venturing out to Nantucket. Soon he made enough of a profit to purchase another ship, eventually owning a whole fleet and, in the process, becoming one of the richest African Americans in the US.

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Black History: History in an Hour

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History for busy people. Black History, or African-American History, looks at the story and culture of black Americans from the seventeenth century to the present day.

Encompassing everything from immigration to civil war, emancipation, slavery and migration, Black History in an Hour gives you a neat overview of this vast and fascinating subject.

This book is a superb introduction to the powerful varied history of African Americans. The study of Black History in the West has to be seen primarily in the context of American history. It was in the USA, where all men are created equal, that slavery and the fight for civil rights had its most profound effect.

Love your history? Find out about the world with History in an Hour…

Only 99p. Buy now from iTunes, Amazon, B&N and other online stores.

Also available as an audio download and an app for the iPhone / iPad

Contents:

  • Slavery: the “peculiar institution” 
  • The Black Slave: three-fifths the man
  • North and South: “If slavery is not wrong, nothing is wrong” 
  • War and emancipation: “Previous condition of servitude”
  • The Jim Crow Era: “Separate but equal”
  • War, Migration and depression: “Black is beautiful”
  • War and Windrush: “To secure these rights”
  • The Civil Rights movement 1: “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere”
  • The Civil Rights Movement 2: “Burn, burn, burn”
  • Black Power: “We gonna stop them white men from whuppin’ us” 
  • Britain and South Africa: “Rivers of blood”
  • Forty years later: “Because of the color of her skin”

Reader reviews:

“Hard to believe anyone could cover black history in an hour… But History In An Hour does a great job!”

“Perfect History Lesson’s For People On The Go!  I really enjoyed Rupert Colley’s audio book collections of History in an Hour. They teach me so much, and for a busy person like me on the go, it works out great to pick up such informative information of things that I thought that I already knew. 

This audio book, Black History: History in an Hour, really ‘hit the spot’ and reminded me of things that I already knew, but at the same time helped me to learn a couple of new things too. 

I highly recommend the whole series of “History in an Hour” audio books. 

It would make perfect classroom teaching too!” Audio review

“I stumbled upon a tweet mentioning slavery and I clicked the link which led me to the iTunes store. I bought it and read it… Bought another and another and another… Get it now!”

“This is a compelling read.”

“For an hour’s read I thought this was perfect. You can’t cover everything in an hour so given that constraint this is an excellent intro. Very good writing too.”

“Excellent. Must use it as part of my teaching :) ”

“The book was true to its title. It took me about an hour to read. It contained a number of key facts, but it left me wanting more depth, more detail. Still, I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in Black History, and wants a basic introductory grounding.”

“The History in an Hour series continues to turn out high quality books that grab the attention and spark interest in very diverse subjects.  And so it is with ‘Black History’. The book is in the familiar History in an Hour format with a couple of pages of introduction, the main narrative peppered with illustrations, short biographies of all the major characters involved and finally a chronology of events.  With a short book some events that happened over years are covered in a couple of brief paragraphs yet there is still time for detailed facts which can illustrate with fascinating facts. I was amazed to read that London in 1760 had a population that was 3-6% Black and after the War of Independence the British helped 4,000 Black people escape to Canada and Britain who had fought on the Royalist side. The gas mask of WW1 was invented by a Black man, it was not until 1967 the US Supreme Court ruled against laws banning inter-racial marriage which was the same year the first Black US mayors were elected.  This book introduces the reader to a long list of historical figures who were well ahead of their time yet managed to out manoeuvre the laws and values of the times in which they lived that may of otherwise constrained others, concluding with the election of Barack Obama in 2008.  For the purposes of this book ‘Black History’ primarily relates to the struggle for equality in the face of adversity and ignorance which means a lot of the book revolves around the Black experience of the Caribbean and the United States with the familiar supporting stories of the European abolition movement but not leaving out other facts such as Denmark and Norway being the first countries to outlaw slavery in 1803. There is much more to Black history but that will be another book; can Harper Press produce “African History in an Hour”? ’Black History’ is the subject name but it is also part of the history of all of our forefathers who as perpetrators, victims or improvers all have their footnote in history. This should be read in conjunction with two other History in an Hour books: American Slavery: History in an Hour and The American Civil War: History in an Hour”

“This is a great way to understand the basics of black history and the civil rights movement. An excellent read.”