THE ARTS: MUSIC AND DANCE
Nicknamed "Lady Day"... her composition included "God Bless the Child", "Don't Explain", and the haunting "Strange Fruit"; her autobiography was titled LADY SINGS THE BLUES 1915- 1959
Billie Holiday
First African American woman to speak publicly against slavery; worked with freed slaves and nursed wounded black soldiers; asked, "And ain't I a woman?" 1797 - 1883
Sojourner Truth
Currently holds the world record in the heptathlon for women; despite having asthma, she has won three Olympic medals; started the JJK Community Foundation to develop leadership programs in urban areas. 1962 - _____
Jackie Joyner-Kersee
Author of BELOVED and THE BLUEST EYE who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1993 1931 -- ____
Toni Morrison
Surely the most respected and influential Civil Rights Leader of the 20th century; known for non-violence; tragically assassinated on April 4, 1968
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Nicknamed "Satchmo"; famous trumpet player; revolutionized jazz; sang about it being "...a wonderful world" 1901-1971
Louis Armstrong
Some consider her the "Moses" of her people; known for her use of the "underground railroad"; led some 300 African slaves out of slavery in the south; was a cook, nurse, scout, and spy for the Union Army 1820 - 1913
Harriet Tubman
"Arguably the greatest fighter of all time."; took the gold medal at the 1960 Olympics; born Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr. 1942 - ____
Muhummad Ali
Named U.S. poet laureate during Bill Clinton's administration; author of I KNOW WHY THE CAGED BIRD SINGS 1928 -- ____
Maya Angelou
Jesse Jackson
Famous Jazz Pianist and composer who composed musicals, reviews, an opera, film scores, and television productions... may have taken the A train! 1899 - 1974
Duke Ellington
Was president of Tuskegee Institute; founded National Negro Business League; author of UP FROM SLAVERY 1856 - 1915
Booker T. Washington
Broke down racial barriers in the game of tennis; first black male to win the United States tennis championship and England's Wimbledon tournament; died from AIDS which infected him after a blood transfusion 1943 - 1993
Arthur Ashe
In 1940 wrote NATIVE SON and became the leading black U.S. author; also wrote UNCLE TOM's CHILDREN and his autobiography, BLACK BOY 1908 - 1960
Richard Wright
Extremely well-known jazz singer, known for "scat singing"; her singing career spanned 60 years; her first big hit was "A Tisket a Tasket" and her second big hit was "Undecided" 1917 - 1996
Ella Fitzgerald
At age 18, moved to Paris to dance with "La Revue Negre"; in 1951, she visited the U.S. to perform to rave reviews; famous for her risque yet elaborate costumes, and flair 1906-1975
Josephine Baker
Famous abolitionist who published the abolitionist newspaper, NORTH STAR; wrote his famous autobiography in 1845; often called "father of the civil rights movement" 1817 - 1895
Frederick Douglass
Took four gold medals in the 1936 Olympics while Hitler watched him defeating Germany's Aryan athletes; track and field star
Jesse Owens
First African American to write a play to be produced on Broadway; author of RAISIN IN THE SUN; playwright who died of cancer in 1965
Lorraine Hansberry
Author of THE COLOR PURPLE, whose film version was directed by Steven Spielberg; urged president Bill Clinton to develop better relations with Cuba's president Fidel Castro 1944 - ____
Alice Walker
First black singer to perform in a production at The Metropolitan Opera in New York City; gave a memorable concert at the Lincoln Memorial; was banned from singing in Washington D.C.'s Constitution Hall 1897 - 1993
Marian Anderson
First African American woman elected to U.S. Congress; first African American to launch a campaign for a major party presidential nomination (happened in the 1960s); founded National Political Congress of Black Women 1924 - 2004 (or 2005?)
Shirley Chisholm
First African American baseball player to see his team to the World Series; named Rookie of the Year in 1947; played for the Brooklyn Dodgers 1919-1972
Jackie Robinson
Headed the Anti-Lynching League; Founded Alpha Suffrage Club of Chicago; perhaps the most famous black female journalist of her time 1862 - 1931
Ida B. Wells-Barnett
One of the original writers of the Harlem Renaissance; published WEARY BLUES; published "The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain" 1902-1967
Langston Hughes