Connecting the past to the present for a better future.
I was born and raised in Memphis but knew little about the history of the interesting and historical city located on the Fourth Chickasaw Bluff. The city was named after Memphis, Egypt. In ancient Egypt, Memphis meant “good abode.” The city is bordered by Mississippi to the south and Arkansas to the west. Many people …
I visited Cape Cod and Martha’s Vineyard with a different tour group for the second time in almost three months. Prior to visiting the first time, I was curious about the experience of Black Americans on the island. For years, I thought it was a place where on the Black elite went. I didn’t …
Sixty years ago on this date, August 28, 1963, The March on Washington D.C. for Jobs and Freedom was the largest civil rights rally in American History. I was almost ten years old and living in abject poverty with my family in the segregated South. My parents did not have jobs outside of working …
In 1972, on the campus of Tennessee State University, I became a member of the Divine Nine. I was the first in my family to pledge a sorority or fraternity. My niece, nephew, and two daughters followed in my footsteps. My son in love also pledged a fraternity when he was in college. …
During the civil war, enslaved men fled from their enslavers and flocked to Union lines. John C. Fremont, a Union general, issued a proclamation freeing the enslaved people of Missouri rebels. President Lincoln revoked the proclamation. In spite of pressure from congressional liberals, abolitionists, and free black leaders, he ignored them and for almost …
In June 2022, I visited Charleston, South Carolina for the first time. My niece and her husband planned a family trip to this historic city. They arranged an extensive black history tour with a local tour company. We departed from the Charleston Visitor Center for our two hour tour. Our energetic and knowledgeable guide …
American women have always been involved in politics. They may have been excluded from party membership, voting, or running for office but they were vocal about political issues and participated in party activities. Women in western territories were voting long before the national woman suffrage amendment of 1920. There were so many great women who …
To prepare for this article, I read a book entitled, Women, Politics, And American Society. The book is the third edition and a collaborative effort written by four female authors, Nancy E. McGlen, Karen O’Conner, Laura van Assendelft and Wendy Gunther-Canada. This edition helps readers fully understand women’s struggles by tracing the efforts, achievements, and …
Women’s History Month- The Early Women’s Movement Read More »
Black History Month is observed every February, but many people are not familiar with how or why it was created. To understand why it was created, we have to look back to Dr. Carter G. Woodson. As the son of formerly enslaved parents and the second Black American to earn a doctorate from Harvard, Woodson …
The nature of slavery is not always understood. At the time the trade developed, both Africans and Europeans had a tradition of slavery, but the traditions were different. African slavery was a domestic institution. It was necessary to do something with captives of war, criminals, and wrong doers. The African answer was to turn them …