MAPLE HEIGHTS AFRICAN AMERICAN GAZETTE

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BLACK HISTORY PART 2: CONTRIBUTIONS OF AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN

BLACK HISTORY PART 1: CONTRIBUTIONS OF AFRICAN AMERICAN MEN

DR. JOY DEGRUY SAYS THE INCLUSION OF BLACK HISTORY IN SCHOOL CURRICULUMS IS JUST A NOTION AND IS NOT TAKEN SERIOUSLY

Post by Maple Heights African American Gazette.

AFRICAN HISTORY NETWORK SHOW - LISTEN IN, MON TO FRI 8PM TO 10PM

LISTEN TO THE AFRICAN HISTORY NETWORK BY CLICKING HERE

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Post by Maple Heights African American Gazette.

IN HONOR OF BLACK HISTORY MONTH

Instead of doing a separate piece for Black History Month, we thought we'd honor Black Americans by linking to a few webpages/websites:

Newsnet 5 Cleveland




AARP CELEBRATES BLACK HISTORY MONTH




10 Great Myths of American History Dismantled


Top 10 Black History Month Scholarships -- Now Accepting Applications



African and African American History - "Maple Heights African American Gazette" Playlist




Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture



National Rites of Passage Institute


Soul Dancing! The Essential African American Cultural Dance Book



Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture



This Black History Month, Help Make A Better Black Economic Future With PurchaseBlack.com


PBS Celebrates Black History Month With New Programs and a Digital Campaign That Unites More Than a Century of History and Culture


Grio books: Great reading for the start of Black History Month



Black History Month: The Descendants


Black History Month: Celebrating African-American
female inventors



Black History Month: Remembering African-American women who have served


Huffington Post - Black History Month


Black History Month: 23 Prominent Black LGBT Icons


What Black History Month Should Be


Other Black History Month Search on The Grio


Great African-American Entrepreneurs Who Made History


African American News


Afro


African American Firefighter Museum




While you're on these websites/webpages/youtube, check out other topics related to African Americans; and, of course check out relevant posts and links on this blog.

HOUSEWIVES OF ATLANTA GIVE BLACK HISTORY LESSON

I'm not really into reality (uh?) shows; however, I do watch "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" from time to time.  Hey, ... Black folks need money so I'm going to support those ladies. Actually these exceptional ladies do extremely well, my support or not.

Anyway, last night on Bravo, I watched the segment where NeNe decided to treat the ladies to a trip to Savannah, Georgia. [Now actually this was the second time I watched that particular episode.]  The trip started off kind of rocky because some of the ladies were fashionably late (CP time).  Late or not, I thought it was real cute that Nene's Greg gave flowers to the ladies when they arrived at the "kick off" site.

The bus trip to Savannah was indeed memorable because Kandi got into it with "work your nerves, is she stealing your man" Kenya. Honestly Kandi, ... but okay, I totally got the fact you were stressed about the Mama Joyce (what's up with her?)/Carmen/Todd drama and you were on edge.



The creme de la creme of that particular episode goes to "the coackroach attack".  Honey, ... too funny for words.

And thank you NeNe, because before that episode, I was unaware of Savannah's black history, and now that I know something about it, I'm doing my research.

And yes, it was most embarrassing, to say the least, when (God bless her innocence) Porsha had to be schooled on "The Underground Railroad".   Nope it wasn't a real train girlfriend.



"Kandi, ... Phaedra ... I love those weird facial expressions you make when you're ticked off, perplexed, or whatever."



These "Housewives of Atlanta" are a real hoot.  Love to all.

Related:

Black History Tour - Savannah

Discover Savannah's Black Heritage

The Real Housewives of Atlanta

REGINALD LEWIS FIRST BLACK BILLIONAIRE

We're going to switch gears for the next several months and talk about African American history.  

While on a brief hiatus, a friend and I talked about what it seems most African Americans won't talk about and may be ashamed to talk about because they think African American history begins and ends with Slavery, Abraham Lincoln, and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

When it comes to African Americans and their history, far too many Blacks feel that historical  framework is within the confines of slavery, which is painful,  shameful and horrific and a topic that most African Americans in addition to not wanting to talk about (what they think is their history), don't want to even think about it. 

Well, slavery (although significant) is only a small part of African American history.  The rest of African American history is rich, powerful, glorious, and full of heroes and heroines.

One such hero is Reginald Lewis, a businessman who became the first Black billionaire in the 1980s.  Reginald was born in Baltimore, MD, grew up in "a middle class-class neighborhood", and graduated from Virginia State University with a degree in economics in 1965.  

Mr. Lewis was a member of the Black fraternity Kappa Alpha Psi, and in 1968, graduated from Harvard Law School. 

Mr. Lewis also wrote a book titled "Why Should White Guys Have All the Fun". 

According to Wikipedia, "in 1992, Forbes listed Lewis among the 400 richest Americans, with a net worth estimated at $400 million. He also was the first African American to build a billion dollar company, Beatrice Foods."

Related:

Reginald Lewis (Wikipedia)

Kappa Alpha Psi


Marcus Garvey (2)


Chronology Of The History Of Slavery: 1619-1789


Black Wall Street  (2) See also the video
 

THE GERMANTOWN PROTEST

Lonnie Bunch, museum director, historian, lecturer, and author, is proud to present A Page from Our American Story, a regular on-line series for Museum supporters. It will showcase individuals and events in the African American experience, placing these stories in the context of a larger story — our American story.     A Page From Our American Story   “Pray, what thing in the world can be done worse towards us, than if men should rob or steal us away, and sell us for slaves to strange countries; separating housbands (sic) from their wives and children.” — from The Germantown Protest (against slavery).   In 1565, the Spanish colony of St. Augustine, in what is now Florida, became the first permanent European settlement in North America. Among the settlement's population were some of the first enslaved Africans brought to the New World.   The first permanent settlement of African slaves in British Colonial North America arrived in Jamestown, Virginia, via a Dutch slave trading ship in 1619. It wasn't long before the American colonies found themselves economically dependent on slave trading and enslaved labor.   Reproduction of the Emancipation Proclamation at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati, Ohio. More than two hundred years later, on January 1, 1863, in the midst of our civil war, Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation would free slaves in the rebellious southern states. The Proclamation, along with the voices and actions of individuals such as Frederick Douglass, Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, William Lloyd Garrison, and others, would ultimately lead to the passage of the 13th Amendment two years later, ending slavery in the United States and freeing nearly four million African Americans.   Reaching that milestone, however, was a long, painful, and bloody process. One of the earliest recorded actions toward ending slavery was taken by a small group of Quakers in Germantown, Pennsylvania Colony, in 1688. Before slavery truly became institutionalized in the colonies, some Africans were sometimes treated more like indentured servants who were freed once their service ended or debt had been paid, a practice employed at times by various early Dutch and Spanish explorers and settlers. However, this changed dramatically in 1641 when Massachusetts became the first British mainland colony to legalize slavery. From that time forward, colonial slave laws became more restrictive, further codifying the institution.   Not everyone was blind to slavery's immorality. Although slavery played a major role in the economy of colonial Rhode Island, there were some who tried to temper the practice with a 1652 law that placed restrictions on slave owning and prohibited enslavement of any person for more than 10 years. However, the effect was limited. Slave holders simply sold anyone nearing the deadline and took ownership of new slaves, thus continuing the cycle.   Bas-relief portrait of Francis Daniel Pastorius, c. 1897. From the Library of Congress. In 1688, Francis Daniel Pastorius, and three of his fellow Quakers, drafted the first, formal anti-slavery resolution in America. The resolution raised objections to slavery on both moral and practical grounds during a period when Pennsylvania Quakers were nearly unanimous in their acceptance of the practice.   The decree is referred to as “The Germantown Protest,” or “1688 Germantown Quaker Petition Against Slavery.” It articulated themes of justice and equality that would be echoed throughout the long, painful period of slavery in America.   The authors’ premise was based on the biblical “Golden Rule” — treat others as you wish to be treated. Additionally, the authors recognized that colonial slave treatment mirrored the persecution Quakers had seen in Europe, and, to an extent, in the colonies.   "There is a saying, that we should do to all men like as we will be done ourselves; making no difference of what generation, descent, or colour (sic) they are... To bring men hither [to America], or to rob and sell them against their will, we stand against.”   Sadly, “The Germantown Protest” did not spark a significant change in the Americas against slavery. Even within Quaker communities the declaration was ignored, at least initially. But a seed had been planted. A belief shared silently by many was given voice.   This year marks the 150th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation. While it is tempting to view the Proclamation solely through the lens of Civil War events, in order to grasp the full context and importance of Lincoln’s decision, we must examine the issue of slavery in the North American colonies from its beginnings. From the Spanish colony in St. Augustine, to the first Dutch ship sailing into Jamestown, and to the Civil War waged to end it, slavery was a 300-plus year institution in America, leaving scars, fortunes, and repercussions we deal with still today.   All the best, Lonnie Bunch Director

The National Museum of African American History and Culture is the newest member of the Smithsonian Institution's family of extraordinary museums. The museum will be far more than a collection of objects. The Museum will be a powerful, positive force in the national discussion about race and the important role African Americans have played in the American story — a museum that will make all Americans proud.

TALE OF THE DESCENDANTS OF THE LAST SLAVE SHIP

I came across this amazing story of the descendants of the last slave ship while on my usual internet journey looking for fascinating stories on Black history.

This a brief excerpt from  Dreams of Africa in Alabama: The Slave Ship Clotilda and the Story of the Last Africans Brought to America  

Please make sure you get "Dreams of Africa in Alabama ..." by award winning author, Sylviane Diouf.

"On a January night in 2002, a truck backed up to a statue in front of Union Missionary Baptist Church, north of Mobile, Alabama.

One or two people got out, cut through parts of the heavy bronze bust, ripped it from its brick base, and disappeared with their loot.  The theft shocked and angered the congregation of pastor A.J. Crawford Sr..  They  had just celebrated the New Year and were preparing to commemorate, the following month, the 130th anniversary of the church. Unlike those of the Virgin Mary or George Washington, this statue was the only one of its kind in the country. The theft struck at the very core of a community that will never have any equivalent in North America. Determined to bring the statue back home, the congregation established a reward fund. In case the bust was not found, the money would be used to cast a new one. The wooden model, carved fifty years earlier, was still in town.

The statue dated back to 1959, when a steel shaft was sunk 100 feet into the earth in front of the church, to commemorate the one hundred years that had passed since the honored man and his companions had set foot on Alabama soil. The bust and the shaft were the symbols of an exceptional tale. In the summer of 1860, less than a year before the outbreak of the Civil War, one hundred and ten young men, women, and children were brought to the Alabama River, north of Mobile. They had just spent six weeks onboard the Clotilda, a fast schooner that had brought them from a world away. They were the last recorded group of captive Africans brought to the United States. Acting for Timothy Meaher, one of the most prominent businessmen in Mobile, Captain William Foster had smuggled them in under cover of night. He had to be careful because decades earlier, on January 1, 1808, the country had abolished the international slave trade. Although tens of thousands of Africans had since landed, the slavers could, in theory, be hanged.

Follow the rest of the introduction HERE