Black Historical Figures
The first Black president of the United States
Who is Barack Obama?
(2008-2016)
This athlete has the most World gold medals of any gymnast, seven Olympic medals, and has 4 gymnastics moves named after them.
Who is Simone Biles?
This famous speech was delivered during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in 1963. This activist called for civil and economic rights and an end to racism in the US.
What is MLK's "I Have a Dream" speech?
Alfred L. Cralle helped kids have larger scoops of ice cream than spoonfuls with this invention.
What is an ice cream scooper?
Made popular by the Black and Latinx community, this was one of the most popular earrings in the 1960s + 70s. This trend received a negative stigma (... the bigger the hoe....), but is now an essential fashion accessory.
(the bigger the hoop, the bigger the hoe)
This American minister was one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968. He advanced civil rights through nonviolent civil disobedience against Jim Crow laws.
Who is Martin Luther King Jr.?
This singer holds the record for most-nominated female artist in Grammy history, with 79 nominations and 32 wins.
Who is Beyoncé?
This hashtag first appeared on Twitter in 2013 and was used to expose the deaths of Black Americans at the hands of police officers. This movement gained momentum in 2016 when 49ers players kneeled during the national anthem, and again in 2020 following the death of George Floyd.
What is The Black Lives Matter Movement?
George Crum, a NYC chef, was frustrated after a customer sent their fries back after saying they weren't good enough. He then sliced them as thinly as possible and fried them until they were crisp.
What are potato chips?
These intricate manicures grew popular through hip-hop and R&B and served as a popular form of self-expression for Black women.
What are acrylic nails?
This Pulitzer Prize-nominee, Tony-winning American poet and civil rights activist who published 7 autobiographies, 3 books of essays, several books of poetry, and plays and movies. This author/actress/professor closely worked with Malcolm X and MLK Jr to organize marches and organizations for Afro-American Unity. President Barack Obama awarded her the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011.
Who is Maya Angelou?
This athlete has 6 NBA championships with the Chicago Bulls and introduced a sneaker collaboration in 1984 with Nike that remains popular to this day.
Who is Michael Jordan?
Led by Rosa Parks, who refused to give up her seat to a white man in Montgomery, AL, this 381-day protest against segregated seating on city buses ended with a federal court ruling deeming segregated seating on buses was a violation of the 14th Amendment.
What is the Montgomery Bus Boycott, 1955?
George T. Sampson invented and patented a sled propeller. The propeller was then used for this invention that helped modernize how we do laundry!
What is an automatic clothes dryer?
A favorite among fashion sets in the 1970s, designer Stephen Burrows created this rippled hem after a misunderstanding with Vogue's Editor-in-Chief who wanted a dress made in "lettuce green."
What is a lettuce hem?
An American social reformer, abolitionist, orator, writer, and statesman. He was one of the most important leaders of civil rights in the 19th century after escaping slavery in Maryland. He later published 3 autobiographies describing his experiences as an enslaved person. He signed the Civil Rights Act of 1871 and became the first Black person nominated for Vice President of the US in 1872.
Who is Frederick Douglass?
Regarded as one of the most influential women in the world, this figure has a magazine, radio contract, production company, and their own TV network following the success of their talk show that holds the record for the largest TV contract.
Who is Oprah Winfrey?
This US Supreme Court unanimous ruling that racial segregation in public schools violated the 14th Amendment's mandate of equal protection of the laws of the US Constitution to any person within its jurisdiction.
What is Brown v. Board of Education, 1954?
What is a heater?
In the 1980s, hip-hop artists would perform in "regular street clothes" that were normally handed down from other family members. This trend eventually became welcomed by mainstream fashion.
What are baggy clothes?
The first Black student to attend an elementary school in Louisiana after desegregation at just 6 years old. She now has a foundation to "inspire the next generation of leaders to end racism together one step at a time."
Coined as the "Queen of Soul" and was the first female artist to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Her records have been sold over 75 million times and is one of the world's best-selling music artists. (She deserves some respect..)
Who is Aretha Franklin?
President Lyndon Johnson called for federal legislation to ensure the protection of the voting rights of Black citizens less than a week after the deadly Selma-to-Montgomery march.
What is the Voting Rights Act of 1965?
Garrett Morgan, the first Black person in Cleveland, OH to own a car, witnessed a severe accident at an intersection in the city. He expanded on the current system to add a "yield" component.
What is a 3-light traffic light?
Daniel "Dapper" Day, a Harlem-based designed in the 1980s began dressing hip-hop artists using fabric with knock-off designer logos that he'd use to customize virtually anything. Since 2018, Dan has a partnership with Gucci that influenced their collections, as well as the collections of other luxury brands. (What is now seen in brands!)
What is Logomania?