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Let’s celebrate the excellence of black inventors who have made groundbreaking innovations in various fields. From Henry Boyd, who invented the Boyd Bedstead, to George Washington Carver, who created peanut products, these inventors have left an indelible mark on history. Henry Boyd – The inventor of the corded bed Henry Boyd was an inventor, carpenter, …
Bayard Rustin was an influential civil rights activist, advisor to Martin Luther King Jr., and the main organiser of the 1963 March on Washington. Despite his significant contributions to the movement, Rustin’s story remains less known due to his open homosexuality and past affiliations. Early life and family Bayard Rustin was born on 17 March …
Mary McLeod Bethune, an American educator, activist, and champion of civil rights, played a pivotal role in shaping the course of African American history in the United States. As a dedicated advocate for education and social equality, she founded the renowned Bethune-Cookman College. She established the National Council of Negro Women, becoming a prominent figure …
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, better known as Mahatma Gandhi, was the leader of India’s non-violent independence movement against British rule. Gandhi is often referred to as Mahatma, which is a Sanskrit term meaning “Great Soul.” The title was bestowed upon him for his unwavering commitment to non-violent resistance, civil rights, and social justice. Gandhi’s early life …
Crispus Attucks was the first American and African American to be killed in the Revolutionary War. Early family life Born into slavery around 1723, Attucks was said to be the son of Prince Yonger, an enslaved African brought to America, and Nancy Attucks, a Natick Indian. Prince Yonger, the father of Crispus, was taken captive …
Leopold II was the second King of the Belgians from 1865 to 1909. Born on 9 April 1835 in Brussels, he was the eldest surviving son of Leopold I, the first King of the Belgians, and his second wife, Louise-Marie of Orleans. Although Leopold II played a significant role in the development of the modern …
Roy Hackett, a remarkable figure in the civil rights movement, not only left an indelible mark on the city of Bristol, but he also played a crucial role in shaping its history. Born in Jamaica and later moving to England, his life’s experiences prepared him well for his role in one of Britain’s most significant …
Emperor Haile Selassie ruled Ethiopia between 1930 and 1974. He steered his country into mainstream post-World War II African politics through his modernisation efforts. Ethiopia was admitted to the League of Nations and the United Nations under his leadership. Addis Ababa became the primary centre for the Organization of African Unity (now the African Union). …
Dido Elizabeth Belle was a unique figure in 18th-century England, a time entrenched in the transatlantic slave trade. Born in 1761 to an enslaved woman named Maria Belle and a British naval officer, Sir John Lindsay, her story tells of her rise from a difficult start to becoming an influential figure in her own right. …
Francis Kerr-Jarrett was a landowner and sugar manufacturer in Jamaica. He served as Custos Rotulorum of Saint James Parish, Jamaica, from 1933–1965. Custos rotulorum is Latin for ‘keeper of the rolls. It is a civic post in Jamaica that involves helping to maintain law and order. The Kerr-Jarrett Family Francis Moncrieff Kerr-Jarrett was born …
The brutal abduction and murder of 14-year-old Emmett Till on 28 August 1955 brought nationwide attention to the racial violence and injustice prevalent in Mississippi. It also spurred the emerging civil rights movement in America. Emmett Till – Early life Emmett Louis Till was born on 25 July 1941, the only son of Mami Carthan …
Madam C J Walker was an entrepreneur best known for inventing Black haircare products. She was a political social activist, philanthropist and the first female self-made millionaire. Early years Born Sarah Breedlove on 23 December 1867, Madam C J Walker was the first child in her family to be born into freedom after the signing …
Onesimus was an enslaved West African man whose African teachings helped to reduce the impact of the smallpox outbreak in Boston, Massachusetts. Little is known about Onesimus before he was enslaved other than he was Coromantee (also known as Akan people from modern Ghana). Like many enslaved people his original name, age and date of …
You’ve heard of Rosa Parks, but what do you know of Claudette Colvin? Nine months before Rosa Parks refused to move to the back of a bus in Montgomery, Alabama, 15-year-old Claudette did the exact same thing. Early life Claudette Austin was born in Birmingham, Jefferson County, to Mary Jane Gadson and C P Austin …
In 1990 Justin Fashanu stunned the football world as the first professional footballer to come out as gay. At this time racism and homophobia were endemic in football. Justin’s early years Justinus Soni “Justin” Fashanu was born on 19 February 1961. He was raised in the London area of Hackney, where his Nigerian father was …
Marsha P Johnson was an outspoken transgender rights activist at the forefront of important moments in LGBTQ+ history. Her activism in the 1960s and 70s had an enormous impact on the LGBTQ+ community. Marsha P Johnson was born Malcolm Michaels Jnr on 24 August 1945 in New Jersey, United States. It was only after leaving …
Kwame Nkrumah (1909-1972) was a prominent Ghanaian politician, political theorist, and revolutionary who played a crucial role in leading the Gold Coast to independence from Britain in 1957. As Ghana’s first Prime Minister and later President, Nkrumah championed pan-Africanism and was a founding member of the Organization of African Unity. His socialist and nationalist policies …
Here are seven Caribbean and American women who were abolitionists, revolutionaries and activists. These women fought to free their people from the chains of slavery, discrimination and the lasting effects of slavery. Some took up arms, some used strategy and some used the pen. The women discussed in this video are: Sojourner Truth Sojourner Truth …
Flore Bois Gaillard was a St Lucian runaway slave who led a band of free slaves called ‘Armée Française Dans Les Bois (French Army in the Woods). The life of Flore Bois Gaillard Flore Bois Gaillard was an enslaved biracial woman owned by a man known as Master Bellac. For several years she worked on …
Marie Sainte Dédée Bazile is notable as part of the Haitian Revolution. While there is much written about the men of the Haitian Revolution, not much is known or written about the women who helped to emancipate the people of the island. Born near Cap-Francais (now Cap-Hattian) to enslaved parents, we rely on oral history …
Most people believe that black people came to Britain after the Second World War with the arrival of the Empire Windrush in 1948. But Black people have had a presence in Britain for as far back as Roman times. Even closer in history, there were Blacks in Britain during and after slavery. If white British …
Queen Anna Nzinga was a 17th-century African ruler who ruled the Ndongo and Matamba Kingdoms of the Mbundu people in Angola and fought against the slave trade and European influence in Angola. Anna Nzinga was born in 1581 in Kabasa, the capital of the Kingdom of Ndongo, which was ruled by a Mbundu-speaking people called …
Olaudah Equiano (c.1745-1797) was an eighteenth-century African writer whose experiences as a slave prompted him to become involved in the British abolition movement. Early years Equiano was born in c1745 in what is now Nigeria to an Ibo chief. He was captured by slave traders and sold into slavery at the age of 11. He …
Altheia Jones-LeCointe, a Trinidadian physician, research scientist, and political activist, is known for her significant role in the Black Power Movement in Britain during the 1960s and 1970s. Her dedication to fighting racial injustice and promoting equality has impacted British society and the global struggle for civil rights. Early life and education Born in 1945 in Port …
