Black History Month: A Salute to Dr. Shirley Ann Jackson

Shirley Ann Jackson, born in 1946 in Washington, D.C., has achieved numerous firsts for African American women.  She was the first black woman to earn a Ph.D. from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (M.I.T.); to receive a Ph.D. in theoretical solid state physics; to be elected president and then chairman of the board of the American …

Black History Month: A Salute to Eartha Kitt

Born in North, a small town in Orangeburg County near Columbia, South Carolina, famed singer and actress Eartha Kitt had a difficult childhood. Her mother abandoned her, and she was left in the care of relatives who mistreated her. Kitt was often teased and picked on because of her mixed-race heritage—her father was white, and …

Black History Month: A Salute to Serena Williams

American tennis player Serena Jameka Williams was born on September 26, 1981 in Saginaw, Michigan. The youngest of Richard and Oracene Williams's five daughters, Serena Williams, along with her sister Venus, would eventually dominate the sport at various times throughout her career, capturing 15 Grand Slam singles and 13 Grand Slam doubles titles. Serena's father—a …

Black History Month: A Salute to Sarah E. Goode

Born into slavery in 1850, inventor and entrepreneur Sarah E. Goode went on to become the first African-American woman to be granted a patent by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, for her invention of a folding cabinet bed in 1885. After receiving her freedom at the end of the Civil War, Goode moved to …

Black History Month: A Salute to Charlotta Bass

Charlotta Spears Bass was a journalist and activist who, as editor of the California Eagle, championed African-American equality and freedom. Born on February 14, 1874, in Sumter, South Carolina, Charlotta Spears Bass worked as managing editor of the African-American newspaper The California Eagle. She and husband Joseph Bass called for an end to segregation and …

Black History Month: A Salute to Madame C.J. Walker

Madam C.J. Walker was born Sarah Breedlove on December 23, 1867, on a cotton plantation near Delta, Louisiana. Her parents, Owen and Minerva, were recently freed slaves, and Sarah, who was their fifth child, was the first in her family to be free-born. Minerva Breedlove died in 1874 and Owen passed away the following year, …

Black History Month: A Salute to Gwendolyn Brooks

Gwendolyn Elizabeth Brooks was born on June 7, 1917, in Topeka, Kansas. When Brooks was six weeks old, her family moved to Chicago as part of the Great Migration. Brooks was known as "Gwendie" to close friends and family during her childhood. Brooks attended three high schools: the prestigious, integrated Hyde Park High School; the …

Black History Month: A Salute to Assata Shakur

Assata Shakur was born in Jamaica, Queens, New York City, on July 16, 1947, where she lived for three years with her parents and grandparents, Lula and Frank Hill. After her parents divorced in 1950, Shakur spent most of her childhood in Wilmington, North Carolinawith her grandmother, until her family relocated to Queens when she was a teenager. For …

Black History Month: A Salute to Lupita Nyong’o

Lupita Nyong'o is an international filmmaker and actress known for her Academy Award-winning role as Patsey in Steve McQueen's 12 Years a Slave. Born in 1983 in Mexico City, Mexico. Her parents, Dorothy and Peter Anyang' Nyong'o, were in political exile at the time of her birth, but were able to return to their homeland …

Black History Month: A Salute to Septima Poinsette Clark

Septima Poinsette Clark (nicknamed the 'Mother of the Movement') was a teacher and civil rights activist whose citizenship schools helped enfranchise and empower African Americans. Born on May 3, 1898, in Charleston, South Carolina, Clark branched out into social action with the NAACP while working as a teacher. As part of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, …