Black Americans
This two-time National Basketball Association Most Valuable Player plays for the Golden State Warriors and is also known by his nickname "Chef"
Stephen Curry
After 27 years in prison, this man was released and elected as South Africa's first Black President, serving from 1994-1999
Nelson Mandela
This month is celebrated annually in the United States as Black History Month
February
As the first African-American to study and work as a professionally trained nurse in the United States, Mary Eliza Mahoney received her degree from the New England Hospital for Women and Children, located in this capital of Massachusetts
Boston
This Alabama native who is best known for refusing to give up her seat on a bus has a building named for her in downtown Rochester, Minnesota
Rosa Parks
This singer/songwriter was known as the "Queen of Soul"
Aretha Franklin
This South African comedian replaced John Stewart as host of Comedy Central's "The Daily Show" in 2015
Trevor Noah
The Association for the Study of African-American Life and History's theme for the 2020 Black History Month was "African Americans and the Vote", in commemoration of 100 years since the ratification of the 19th amendment and 150 years since the ratification of this amendment granting the right to vote to all "citizens" without regard to "race, color, or previous condition of servitude"
15th Amendment
This pediatric neurosurgeon, memorialized in the TV film "Gifted Hands", was appointed Director of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins at the age of 33; he later served as the United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
Ben Carson, M.D.
This abolitionist nicknamed "Minty" as a child and later known as "Moses of the People", escaped slavery in 1841, led dozens of others to freedom, was known as a conductor, and served as a spy for the Union Army during the American Civil War
Harriet Tubman
This Grammy- and Tony-Award winning actor filled the original roles of Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson in the musical "Hamilton"
Daveed Diggs
Kofi Annan, a Ghanaian diplomat, served as the seventh Secretary-General of this organization and was a co-recipient of the the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize
United Nations
In 1926, the second week of February was chosen for what became the beginnings of Black History month; the week was chosen to coincide with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and this social reformer, abolitionist, writer, and former enslaved person
Frederick Douglass
This anesthesiologist served as Surgeon General of the United States from 2017-2021 and spoke at Mayo Clinic on 27 August 2019
Jerome Adams, M.D.
Garret Morgan's 1922 patent of this invention, found at traffic intersections around the world, (and often tipped on its side in Wisconsin), improved upon previous models and has arguably saved thousands upon thousands of lives
Three-indicator traffic signal
This former NASA mathematician who helped calculate trajectories, launch windows, and emergency return paths for the first U.S. crewed spaceflights was memorialized by Taraji P. Henson in the 2016 film "Hidden Figures"
Katherine Johnson
DAILY DOUBLE
Born in the capital of Monrovia, Ellen Sirleaf Johnson would grow up to become the first elected female head of state in Africa, serving as President of this country from 2006-2018
In 1976, this President of the United States became the first to recognize Black History Month
Gerald Ford
Harold D. West, M.D. was the first African-American dean of this medical school located in Nashville, Tennessee, chartered in 1876 as the first for African-Americans in the southern United States
Meharry Medical College
Lonnie Johnson, who started his career in the Air Force and later worked for NASA, invented this toy in 1990, beloved by summer waterfight participants everywhere
Super Soaker
She was the first Black woman elected to the United States Congress and was the first African-American candidate for a major party's nomination for President of the United States
Shirley Chisholm
Born in Mexico City, this Kenyan-Mexican actress won an Academy Award for her role as Patsey in "12 Years a Slave" and has also filled roles in "Black Panther" and the recent "Star Wars" films
Lupita Nyong'o
This historian and former dean of Howard University is credited as the originator of the idea for an annual celebration of Black History in 1926
Dr. Carter G. Woodson
Kenneth Frazier, President and CEO of this company since 2011, joined this organization as general counsel and is the first African-American to lead a Fortune 500 pharmaceutical company
Merck & Co.
This former United States Secretary of State who served from 2005-2009 also served as a member of the College Football Playoff selection committee from 2014-2016
Condoleezza Rice