Being A Good Sport!
Long before Venus and Serena Williams, this individual became the first Black player to win a Grand Slam tournament and Wimbledon, receiving the trophy from Queen Elizabeth II.
who is Althea Gibson
This queer individual organized the 1963 March on Washington and helped King establish Southern Christian Leadership Conference.
Who is Bayard Rustin
This individual was one of the most important Black thinkers of the 20th century. One of his best books, 1970’s “The Omni-Americans,” was a collection of essays and a punishing critique of Black separatism.
who is Albert Murray
This Black graduate of NYU and Columbia Law School became the lead trial attorney for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund and was THE FIRST Black woman to argue before the Supreme Court.
who is Constance Baker Motley
This social worker and prosecutor, laid the foundation for the case against notorious mob boss Charles “Lucky” Luciano and what was at the time the largest prosecution of organized crime in US history.
who is Eunice Hunton Carter
Brown University's first Black player who led Brown to the 1916 Rose Bowl, went on to become the first Black coach in the NFL.
Who is Fritz Pollard
This NAACP organizer co-found the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and SNCC and is often referred to as the mother of the civil rights movement.
who is Ella Baker
Best known for his recordings on the Pacific Jazz label, which redefined big band music, this composer's arrangements were archived by the Library of Congress and in 1990 and the National Endowment for the Arts honored him with a Jazz Masters Award.
who is Gerald Wilson
This Individual developed THE FIRST large-scale blood banking program in America and became THE FIRST Black student to earn a medical doctorate from Columbia University
who is the Charles Richard Drew
Undeterred by the US's gender and race restrictions around piolet school, this individual learned French, moved to Paris and enrolled in a prestigious aviation school, to became the first Black woman to earn a pilot’s license in 1921.
who is Bessie Coleman
This baseball all-star is credited with hitting almost 800 home runs over his 17-year career and was such a fearsome hitter that many fans called him the “black Babe Ruth.”
who is Josh Gibson
President of the Arkansas NAACP, this individual planned the strategy for desegregation in the state and selected the Little Rock Nine students, driving them to the school and protecting them from crowds.
who is Daisy Gatson Bates
Self-described “Black, lesbian, mother, warrior, poet,” this individual's writing called out racism & homophobia while also humanizing Black women in a way that was rare for her time.
who is Audre Lorde
This individual was THE FIRST Black person in the nation to earn a Ph.D. in economics in 1921 and THE FIRST Black woman to pass the Pennsylvania bar and practice law in the state.
who is Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander
This trailblazer in broadcasting and journalism, became the first Black person to anchor the nightly network news in 1978.
who is Max Robinson
This Cyclist set world records and became the second Black athlete to win a world championship in any sport.
who is Major Taylor
this individual was a veteran of the Stonewall Inn protests, a pioneering transgender activist and a pivotal figure in the gay liberation movement.
who is Marsha P. Johnson
This individual traveled the country capturing iconic images of the segregated South, the civil rights movement and such figures as Muhammad Ali and Malcolm X. His images now grace the permanent collections of major art museums.
who is Gordon Parks
This pastor, professor, and mystic wrote, “Jesus and the Disinherited,” and became THE FIRST African American pastor to travel to India and meet Mohandas Gandhi. And he was one of THE FIRST pastors to inspire King to merge Gandhi’s philosophy of nonviolent resistance with the civil rights movement.
who is Howard Thurman
This individual was the first Black woman to graduate from Yale Law School, first Black woman to join the New York City Bar Association, and the nation’s first Black female judge.
who is Jane Bolin
A true Renaissance man and All-American football star at Rutgers University, is superstar turned to the theater in the 1920's performing in at least 25 different languages and became one of the most famous concert singers of his time.
who is Paul Robeson
This "Double Agent" infiltrated the British army as a spy near the end of the Revolutionary War providing crucial intelligence that helped defeat the British and end the war.
Who is James Armistead Lafayette
Referred to as the Godfather of Rap, this New York City poet, activist, musician, social critic and spoken-word performer laid the foundation for rap music and coined the term "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised"
Who is Gil Scott-Heron
Photos of this individual being beaten and gassed by Alabama state troopers horrified the nation and led to the passage of the Voting Rights Act. In 1964, she became THE FIRST African American woman to run for Congress in Alabama.
who is Amelia Boynton Robinson
This renowned inventor was the creator of traffic lights, hair-straighteners for African Americans, personal breathing device that protected against smoke and harmful gases, and more!
Who is Garrett Morgan