“They sat there dressed in African garb & dark sunglasses listening to the brothas play taking notes We didn’t realize who they were until their next recording had been released: The Beatles Play Soulmusic”
. - Haki Madhubuti
For more Divinely Melanated Bodies, Follow IG Instagram.com/TheMightyDexter Post link
“He was cool Super-cool Ultrablack A tan/purple Had a beautiful shade He had a double natural that would put the sisters to shame His dashikis were tailor made & his beads were imported sea shells He was triple-hip His tikis were hand-carved Out of ivory And came express from the motherland He would greet you in Swahili and say goodbye in Yoruba Mannnn he was so cool & intelligent Cool-Cool, ultra cool, icebox cool, so cool his wine didn’t have to be cooled He was air condition cool Cool-Cool was so cool he made me cool Cool-Cool so cool we nicknamed him refrigerator Cool-Cool so cool he didn’t know After Detroit, Newark, Oakland, and Chicago We had to remind Cool-cool that to be black is to be very hot”
-Don L. Lee, 1969
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“Can we pretend for 5 minutes? Close your eyes And dream in color Paint me your favorite color And outline me with broken chalks You are your favorite fairy tale Your grandmothers recipe to hugs You have scars With time, they transform to memories” - Priscilla Azaglo
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Today we honor #RootDisruptor Miriam Makeba. Miriam Makeba or “Mama Africa,” was a South African singer and civil rights activist, known for denouncing apartheid on the world stage and campaigning abroad for the end of the oppressive policy. As a result of her activism, her South African passport was revoked in 1960 by the apartheid regime, and they banned her from returning to her country in 1963. However, the world came to Makeba’s aid and Guinea, Belgium and Ghana issued her international passports. She received passports from six other countries in her lifetime, and was granted honorary citizenship in 10 countries. Despite the success that made her a star, she refused to wear makeup or curl her hair for performances, proudly wearing what came to be known internationally as the “Afro-look.” Her fourth marriage to civil rights activist, Black Panther, and Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee leader Stokely Carmichael in 1968 caused controversy in the United States, and her record deals and tours were canceled. The couple then moved to Guinea, and as the apartheid system crumbled, she returned to South Africa for the first time in 1990. #BlackHistory
Today’s #RootDisruptor is Matthew Henson. Born to sharecroppers on a farm in Nanjemoy, Md., Matthew Alexander Henson became the first African-American Arctic explorer, and is credited by many as the first man to reach the North Pole, in 1909. Henson was an associate of the American explorer Robert Peary on seven voyages over a period of nearly 23 years. Henson served as a navigator and craftsman, traded with Inuit and learned their language. He was known as Peary’s “first man” when it came to tackling the arduous expeditions. #BlackHistoryMonth #BlackHistory #OurHistory #BHM #BHM2015
Today’s #RootDisruptor is none other than: Anna Arnold Hedgemen. A civil rights leader, politician, and writer, Anna Arnold Hedgemen was also the first African-American student at Hamline University, a Methodist college in Minnesota. After college she became a teacher, and during her tenure, Hedgemen witnessed segregation and decided to fight for its end. After holding a position as assistant dean of women at Howard University in 1946, Hedgemen later moved to New York and became the first African-American woman to hold a mayoral cabinet position in the history of the state. #BlackHistoryMonth #BlackHistory #Our#History #BHM
Today we’d like to acknowledge #RootDisruptor Claudette Colvin. On March 2, 1955, a full nine months before Rosa Parks’ famous arrest, Claudette Colvin was dragged from a Montgomery bus by two police officers, arrested and taken to an adult jail to be booked. She was only 15 years old and was the first person to be arrested for defying bus segregation in Montgomery. Her arrest and her story has long since been forgotten, but it provided the spark for the Black community in Montgomery that ultimately led to Parks’ actions, the bus boycott, and the Supreme Court ruling to end segregation on buses. #BlackHistoryMonth #BlackHistory #BHM #BHM2015 #OurHistory
Today we honor #RootDisruptor William T. Shorey. Affectionately known as the “Black Ahab,” William T. Shorey was a black whaling captain who escaped prejudice at sea. After learning navigation and moving up rapidly through the ranks, Shorey would become the only African American ship captain on the west coast. #BlackHistoryMonth #BlackHistory #OurHistory #BHM #BHM2015
In honor of Black History Month, we’re celebrating the innovators and game-changers who ‘disrupted’ our history all month long. Today we honor the legacy of Robert Smalls.
Robert Smalls was an enslaved African-American born into slavery in Beaufort, S.C., who after the American Civil War, became a sea captain and politician. He freed himself, his crew and their families from slavery on May 13, 1862, when he led an uprising aboard a Confederate transport ship, the CSS Planter, in Charleston harbor, and sailed it north to freedom. His feat successfully helped persuade President Abraham Lincoln to accept African-American soldiers into the Union Army. #RootDisruptor #BlackHistory #OurHistory #BlackHistoryMonth #BHM2015
Today we honor the legacy of Septima Poinsette Clark. Septima Poinsette Clark is perhaps the only woman to play a significant role in educating African Americans for full citizenship rights without gaining sufficient recognition. Known as the “Grandmother of the American Civil Rights Movement,” Septima Poinsette Clark developed the literacy and citizenship workshops that played an important role in the drive for voting rights and civil rights for African Americans. In 1920, while serving as an educator in Charleston, Clark worked with the NAACP to gather petitions allowing blacks to serve as principals in Charleston schools. #RootDisruptor #BlackHistoryMonth #OurHistory #Legend #BlackHistory
Didn’t want to miss the daily post(though I missed yesterday, hehe)
This is part of a larger commission piece that I can’t show yet, but it’s a project created by #DedrenSnead, he will announce soon. It was an honor to contribute art with a strong theme. Will def be a conversation starter, especially with Feb in just 2 days.
Keep creating. Me? I’m on to the next art burst ;)
Your Nonfiction Friends are celebrating #BlackHistoryMonth in every episode this month, starting with #biographies! The #nffriendscast each chose two #historical figures to cover. Rebecca chose famous #singers, Billie Holiday (bottom left) and Ella Fitzgerald (top right), and Josh chose famous #astronauts, Mae Jemison (top left) and Guion Bluford (bottom right)! How did their stories begin? What walls did they break? Find out anywhere #podcasts are heard!
Read more fascinating biographies in this week’s book, BLACK AMERICAN BIOGRAPHIES: THE JOURNEY TO ACHIEVEMENT edited by Jeff Wallenfeldt in the 920 shelf of the Nonfiction section. Know some more #funfacts our hosts didn’t mention? Share them on Twitter @ NFFriendscast! #osceolalibrary #librarypodcast #billieholiday #ellafitzgerald #maejemison #guionbluford #historicalfigures #blackhistory #representation #representationmatters https://www.instagram.com/p/CKzgYPTBZtD/?igshid=1ut7ri7mmw5gm
It is said that “ to envision the future 100 years forward, we must examine the history 500 years back”. The NASSI pop up takes you through snippets of the history of African peoples, starting from pre colonisation. Here is a taste of the opening experience. The conversations that were occurred among the community after going through this five room installation was moving and a part of our healing process to live into a new future. Open Wednesday - Sunday 10-6pm. At 546, 9th St Old Oakland, California. Please go check it out if you’re in the area and see some of my motion art on display alongside other artists. || Video & Edit : @teddy_ruxpin || #nassi #rebirth #afrofuturism #blackhistorymonth #blackhistory #africa #blackart #popup #events #artinstallation #content #media #exhibition #musician #visualstorytelling (at Old Oakland) https://www.instagram.com/p/BuGQ-oRF7-6/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=skmo9trqpdbs
How Is Your Mental Health ? Especially With Everything Thats Going On In The World And The Media Right Now? ⠀ ⠀ __⠀ ⠀ Iv Had To Do A Little Mental Maintenance Myself Over The Past Few Weeks.⠀ Taking A Step Back From The Media And Negativity Is Always Encouraged And Recommended.⠀ ⠀ Im Still Apart Of This Fight, And Will Continue To Fight For Change. WE NOT DONE YET!⠀ ⠀ __⠀ ⠀ Planning On Getting Back To More Normal Content Soon Yall. ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ __⠀ ⠀ ⠀ ⠀ #melanin #blackpride #blackexcellence #blackgirlmagic #black #blackbusiness #africanamerican #blackandproud #blacklegacybrand #blacklegacy #blackwomen #dreamchasers #blackhistorymonth #blackman #blackgirls #blacklove #blackhistory #blackisbeautiful #love #blackpower #blackamericatoday #blackowned #blackmen #melaninpoppin #buyblack #webuyblack #naturalhair #selfcare #mentalhealthawareness #healing https://www.instagram.com/p/CBdr-GHpGjD/?igshid=en1iu6q7jhq
Protested And It Felt GREAT! ⠀ ⠀ Babygirl To The Left Of Me Marched With Us With One Leg And Cruches IN THE RAIN!⠀ ⠀ This Speaks Volumes!⠀ ⠀ ⠀ .⠀ .⠀ .⠀ .⠀ .⠀ .⠀ ⠀ ⠀ #blacklivesmatter #feminism #socialjustice #intersectionalfeminism #blackhistory #blackgirlmagic #protest #activist #feminist #humanrights #resist #brooklyn #blackpower #equality #blkcreatives #blackblogger #lawofattraction #blackexcellence #blackwomen #blacklove #blackpride #blackhistory #melanin #blackgirls #problack #briannataylor #africanamerican #blackisbeautiful #blackamericatoday #georgefloydprotest (at Orlando, Florida) https://www.instagram.com/p/CBBcP67JgAJ/?igshid=4lokw55hpaea
I hold a beast, a celestial being and a maniac inside of me. It’s up to you which one you meet. ____ Ladies Is this What We Be Looking Like When We Getting Ready To Go Out Vs. When The Night Over! (SWIPE ) ___ . . . . . . . . #blackgirlmagic #melanin #blackgirlsrock #naturalhair #melaninpoppin #blackexcellence #explorepage #love #fashion #protectivestyles #beauty #blackwomen #hair #makeup #blackisbeautiful #blackownedbusiness #naturalhairstyles #melaninmagic #blacklove #explore #braids #blackgirls #selflove #black #model #blackqueen #blackhistory #curlyhair #blackwoman #bhfyp (at Tampa, Florida) https://www.instagram.com/p/B9XiV6Kpm2s/?igshid=1p44rnu5dwjdb
#OTD in 1974, Hank Aaron (who died in January 2021) hit his 715th home run, breaking Babe Ruth’s legendary record before a crowd of 53,775 people, the largest in the history of Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium. This achievement was bittersweet; at each step of his historic rise, he faced systemic and extreme racism that included hate mail and death threats. He described the effects of this vitriol on his family and his heart:
“It really made me see for the first time a clear picture of what this country is about. My kids had to live like they were in prison because of kidnap threats, and I had to live like a pig in a slaughter camp. I had to duck. I had to go out the back door of the ball parks. I had to have a police escort with me all the time. I was getting threatening letters every single day. All of these things have put a bad taste in my mouth, and it won’t go away. They carved a piece of my heart away.” NYT interview.
Aaron saved many of those letters and even the death threats.
“To remind myself that we are not that far removed from when I was chasing the record. If you think that, you are fooling yourself. A lot of things have happened in this country, but we have so far to go. There’s not a whole lot that has changed.” USA Today interview.
Such hatred didn’t stop him. Instead, Aaron seized the opportunity for greatness and advancement on the field and beyond (from here): :
“In playing ball, and in life, a person occasionally gets the opportunity to do something great. When that time comes, only two things matter: being prepared to seize the moment and having the courage to take your best swing.” - Hank Aaron
President Carter welcomes Hank Aaron to the White House, 8/15/1978, Carter Library, NARA IDs 180805 and180806.
“A breaker of records and racial barriers, his remarkable legacy will continue to inspire countless athletes and admirers for generations to come.” –President Carter
President George W. Bush Presents Presidential Medal of Freedom to Hank Aaron, 7/9/2002, George W. Bush Library, NARA ID 6734115.
