Poetry
This famous male poet wrote, "What happens to a dream deferred?/Does it dry up/like a raisin in the sun?/Or fester like a sore—/And then run?/Does it stink like rotten meat?/Or crust and sugar over—/like a syrupy sweet?/Maybe it just sags/like a heavy load./Or does it explode?"
Langston Hughes
This famous politician said, Black History Month is about "the lived, shared experience of all African Americans, high and low, famous and obscure, and how those experiences have shaped and challenged and ultimately strengthened America. It’s about taking an unvarnished look at the past so we can create a better future. It’s a reminder of where we as a country have been so that we know where we need to go."
Former President Barack Obama
Harvard-educated historian Carter G. Woodson is credited with creating this concept. (Hint: It's the reason why we are doing this.)
Black History Month
Former First Lady
Michelle Obama
Famous Scientist known for his work with peanuts (and crops in general)
George Washington Carver
This famous rapper (think 90s) and poet wrote, "Did you hear about the rose that grew from a crack in the concrete? Proving nature's laws wrong, it learned to walk without having feet. Funny, it seems to by keeping it's dreams; it learned to breathe fresh air. Long live the rose that grew from concrete when no one else even cared."
Tupac Shakur
This famous Reverend and activist said, "Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that."
Martin Luther King Jr.
This war saw Southern states seceding from the Union.
The Civil War
Oprah Winfrey
Harriet Tubman
This famous female poet wrote, "The caged bird sings/with a fearful trill/of things unknown/but longed for still/and his tune is heard/on the distant hill/for the caged bird/sings of freedom."
Maya Angelou
This famous bus rider (This is a hint--she is so much more than this!) said, “I have learned over the years that when one’s mind is made up, this diminishes fear.”
Rosa Parks
This ammendment abolished slavery in 1863 in the Confederate states that seceded from the U.S.
13th
Famous Basketball Player who died last year
Kobe Bryant
Famous Political Activist who famousing changed his last name to one letter
Malcolm X
This famous female poet wrote, "The Pool Players./Seven at the Golden Shovel./We real cool. We/Left school. We/Lurk late. We/Strike straight. We/Sing sin. We/Thin gin. We/Jazz June. We/Die soon."
Gwendolyn Brooks
This famous speaker who escaped from slavery said, "If there is no struggle, there is no progress.”
Frederick Douglass
This president, whose name is the same as a car company, declared Black History Month official.
Former President Gerald Ford
Tennis Star
Serena Williams
Major league baseball player in the 20th Century (and first elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame)
Jackie Robinson
This young woman wrote a poem that she presented at the recent inauguration. It include the lines: "And yes we are far from polished/far from pristine/but that doesn’t mean we are/striving to form a union that is perfect/We are striving to forge a union with purpose"
Amanda Gorman
This famous boxer said, "He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life."
Muhammad Ali
We have Black History Month in February because of two famous birthdays--one a former president and the other a famous escaped slave.
Abraham Lincoln on February 12th and Frederick Douglass on February 14th
Musican who plays multiple instruments and is blind (older guy--not on the radio)
Stevie Wonder
first African-American woman to obtain an international pilot’s license
Bessie Coleman