The fight to end segregation was a three-pronged attack. The beloved Dr. Martin Luther King Dr. evoked sympathy from the nation, the militant Malcolm X evoked fear, and Thurgood Marshall evoked the law. While King and X gave blacks the courage to stand up to segregation, it was Marshall who fought for these brave people in court. Through a systematic plan of legal attack, Marshall and the NAACP legal defense fund dismantled a system that had shackled blacks since slavery. Before Marshall won his landmark cases in the Supreme Court, he got a little pay-back as a young attorney in Maryland. In 1936, Marshall won a major civil rights case that’s almost forgotten. The case, Murray v. Pearson forced the University of Maryland to accept its first African-American student. It was a sweet victory for Marshall who was denied entrance to Maryland five years later because he was black. The case caught the attention of NAACP leaders and Marshall joined the legal defense fund. As a lawyer for the NAACP, Marshall won 27 of 33 cases that argued before the Supreme Court. His success also brought international acclaim. The United Nations and the United Kingdom asked Marshall to help draft the constitutions of the emerging African nations of Ghana and what is now Tanzania. Before his subsequent nomination to the United States Supreme Court in 1967, Thurgood Marshall won 14 of the 19 cases he argued before the Supreme Court on behalf of the government. Some of his more recognized triumphs were : Chambers v. Florida , 309 U.S. 227 (1940) Marshall and his team of lawyers persuaded the Supreme Court to overturn a criminal conviction based on a coerced confession. Smith v. Allwright , 321 U.S. 649 (1944) Marshall convinced the Court to strike down a Texas practice which excluded blacks from participating in primary elections. Morgan v. Virginia , 328 U.S. 373 (1946) Marshall convinced the Court to strike down segregation on buses on routes of interstate travel). Shelley v. Kraeme r, 334 U.S. 1 (1948) Marshall convinced the Court to overturn lower court rulings in favor of restrictive covenants which prohibited land from being sold to African Americans. Sipuel v. University of Oklahoma , 332 U.S. 631 (1948) and Sweatt v. Painter , 339 U.S. 629 (1950) Marshall persuaded the Court to require universities in Oklahoma and Texas to integrate their law schools. Marshall’s greatest triumph was in the landmark cases Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954), Marshall challenged the constitutionality of “separate but equal.”Marshall’s civil rights lawsuits aren’t the sum of his career. As an attorney and justice, he created new protections under law for women, children, prisoners, and the homeless. Read interviews and more information about Marshall’s career right here .
The artistry leaps off the stage as black legs, brown arms and high-yellow bodies soar through the air in dances such as “Revelations.” At an Alvin Ailey performance it’s not quite clear what’s more beautiful: the black people on stage, or the ones in the audience swelling with pride and awe as they see people who look like them performing ballet and modern dance. African Americans so rarely see themselves dancing majestically. Pop dances such as the “Fox Trot” and the “Charleston” have now been replaced by the “Dougie” and the a’Wobblea’. At an Alvin Ailey performance however, black men and women are the manifestation of hopes and dreams as well as pain and suffering. Watch this snippet of “Rock My Soul” “Ailey will rock your soul!” from AlvinAileyAmericanDanceTheater on Vimeo . Ailey, born during the Depression in Texas, grew up in the church and juke joints. The conflicting forces fueled his sense of black pride and influenced what would later become a world-renowned dance company. Ailey started his troupe after moving to New York in the late ’50s and being dissatisfied with the style of dances performed at company’s there. “Revelations” is his most notable work, but its precursor was “Blues Suite.” The piece was derived from blues songs and it conveyed the African Americans’ suffering. While “Blues Suite” focused on the pain of black folks, “Revelations” showcased the perseverance and tenacity. It is a work of celebration influenced by Ailey’s rural upbringing in Texas.
In the 47 years since the murder of Civil Rights leader and human rights activist Malcolm X on this date, much has been made of the legacy of one of the most effective orators of all time. Malcolm X’s resonant timbre of a voice coupled with impassioned pleas for African-American justice made him one of the most significant social figures of all time… Continue
Arguably the GOAT in the NBA, professional basketball player and entrepreneur, Michael Jordan was born February 17, 1963, in Brooklyn. Growing up in Wilmington, North Carolina, Jordan developed a competitive edge at an early age. His father James confirms this, “What he does have is a competition problem. He was born with that…The person he tries to outdo most of the time is himself.” Jordan made an impact early on scoring the final basket needed to defeat Georgetown University in the NCAA Division I championships in 1982. Jordan left college after his junior year to join the NBA. Drafted by the Chicago Bulls, he helped the team make it to the playoffs. For his efforts there, he received the NBA Rookie of the Year Award. With five regular-season MVPs and three All-Star MVPs, Jordan became the most decorated player in the NBA dominating the league from the mid-1980s to the late 1990s. Being one of the most marketed athletes in history, it was an easy transition for Jordan to become a leading entrepreneur. Major spokesman for such brands as Nike, Coca-Cola, Chevrolet, Gatorade, McDonald’s, Ball Park Franks, Rayovac, Wheaties, Hanes, and MCI, Jordan was ranked by Forbes Magazine as the 20th most powerful celebrity in the world in June 2010. Jordan still maintains primary owner of the Charlotte Bobcats. Contributing sources: biography.com Top 10 All Time Michael Jordan Dunks Michael Jordan’s Legacy – Career Highlights
Before Deion Sanders called himself “Primetime,” before T.O. had a reality show, there was Jim Brown. He was a stud on the football field, as a running back from the Cleveland Browns, and on screen as an action hero. He is considered the first black action star thanks to his roles in movies such as “Dirty Dozen” and “Ice Station Zebra.” His records included: • Most yards in a single-season (1,863 in 1963) • Career rushing (12,312 yards) • All-time leader in rushing touchdowns (106) • Total touchdowns (126) • All-purpose yards (15,549) In this interview, Jim Brown lashes out at today’s black athletes calling them buffoonish with their celebration dances and antics. He says today’s athletes are playing the “yessir boss slaves,” and don’t know the dignity of what it means to be a man. Newsone compiled a list of Heisman winners. Below are a select few, but you can see the entire list here .
Black history, our history, American history is a complicated matter riddled with facts that make us proud and others that make us cringe. It is a story of a nation built by men and women who sacrificed their lives to force America to live up to its promise. These men and women were also full of contradictions. Frederick Douglass was one of those contradictions. He is remembered as a writer, abolitionist and orator. He was a human rights activist before the label existed. Yet, he also vehemently opposed the Great Migration of blacks from the South to the North to escape the crippling shackles of Jim Crow. Read Douglass’ bio . Douglass was born in February in the early 1800s in Tuckahoe, MD. In his autobiography, “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave,” he wrote that he did not know his exact birthdate. Most references to Douglass focus on Douglass’ post-slavery life as an influential abolitionist and a human rights activist. Before he became the great statesman, and the first African American to be nominated for vice-president, Douglass was an educator. He secretly taught himself to read and write and then he taught fellow slaves. He was traded to several different slave owners in Maryland, including a brutal farmer known as a “slave breaker.” Douglass finally escaped to New York. It is ironic that Douglass — who so believed in equality and who himself escaped North — lamented the black exodus from the South in the late 1800s during the early years of Jim Crow. He urged blacks to tough it out. Below are a few quotes from Douglass, compiled by the Gilder Lehrman Center of the Study of Slavery, Resistance & Abolition , regarding the black exodus North. The Negro, long deemed to be too indolent and stupid to discover and adopt any rational measure to secure and defend his rights as a man…. He has, discovered and adopted a measure which may assist very materially in, the solution of some of the vital problems involved in his sudden elevation: from slavery to freedom, and from chattelhood to manhood, and citizenship . . . he has adopted a simple, lawful and peaceable measure. It is emigration—the quiet withdrawal of his valuable bones and muscles from a condition of things which he considers no longer tolerable. This exodus has revealed to southern men the humiliating fact that the prosperity and civilization of the South are at the mercy of the despised and hated Negro . . . . We have the story of the emigrants themselves, and if any can reveal the true cause of this Exodus they can . . . They tell us with great unanimity that they are very badly treated at the South . . . [As a strategy, however] it is a surrender, a premature, disheartening surrender, since it would make freedom and free institutions depend upon migration rather than protection; by flight, rather than right . . . It leaves the whole question of equal rights on the soil of the South open and still to be settled . . . it is a confession of the utter unpracticability of equal rights and equal protection in any State, where those rights may be struck down by violence . . .
Willard Christopher “Will” Smith, Jr. (born September 25, 1968), also known by his stage name The Fresh Prince, is an American actor, producer, and rapper. He has enjoyed success in television, film and music. In April 2007, Newsweek called him the most powerful actor in Hollywood.[2] Smith has been nominated for four Golden Globe Awards, two Academy Awards, and has won multiple Grammy Awards. Source MUSIC Will got his first taste of showbiz when he debuted in a rap duo “DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince” with a chart-topping and record-breaking single, ” Parents Just Don’t Understand” which garnered the first Grammy awarded in the Rap category in 1988. Who could forget the critically acclaimed “Summertime” performed by the duo? This song still gets heavily played during the summer season during family reunions, in your local barber and beauty shops, and on radio stations nationwide. TELEVISION AND FILM After nearly being bankrupt in 1990, NBC networks created a show around Will called ‘The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” which seen huge success and launched a thriving acting career for the rapper. He then set a goal to be the “biggest movie star in the world” and began studying hit movies trends and successes. His first movie was in 1993 titled, Six Degrees of Separation later starring alongside Martin Lawrence in Bad Boys two years later. Check out more of Will Smith’s top 10 films below courtesy of IMDB . Independence Day (1996) In the beginning of July, a strange spaceship is heading towards Earth. Humans received a strange signal, and this has turned into a global phenomenon. It was aliens. smaller spaceships began to cover entire cities around the world. Suddenly, the wonder turns into horror as the spaceships destroy the cities. Then, when the world counterattacked, the alien ships are invincible to normal weapon systems, then The President of the United States, decides to head to area 51, to formulate a plan to defeat the aliens. Now, the fate of the world rests on a handful of surviving humans. Written by John Wiggins Men In Black (1997) Men in Black follows the exploits of agents Kay (Jones) and Jay (Smith), members of a top-secret organization established to monitor and police alien activity on Earth. The two Men in Black find themselves in the middle of the deadly plot by an intergalactic terrorist who has arrived on Earth to assassinate two ambassadors from opposing galaxies. In order to prevent worlds from colliding, the MiB must track down the terrorist and prevent the destruction of Earth. Source Enemy of the State (1998) A successful lawyer (Smith) finds himself the target of a treacherous NSA official and his goons after receiving evidence to a politically motivated murder, the only man that can help him is a former government operative turned surveillance expert (Hackman). Written by mystic80 Ali (2001) Muhammad Ali from 1964 to 1974, told in three braided threads. The boxer: from becoming champion to regaining the championship. Religion and politics: Cassius Clay becomes a Black Muslim, truncates a friendship with Malcolm X, perhaps is Elijah Muhammad’s pawn, refuses induction into the US military, and faces a five year prison sentence while his case goes to the Supreme Court. Family: he marries twice and by 1974 marriage two is strained, defends his white trainer, has a brother in Bundini Brown, and is wily with Howard Cosell. Throughout, Ali keeps his own counsel: in the ring, at the induction center when he won’t step forward, and in friendship, love, and victory. Written by Men In Black II (2002) For Agent J, it is another day at the office, monitoring, licensing and policing all alien activity on Earth. One day, J receives a report of an unauthorized landing of an alien spacecraft near New York. It is an old enemy of MIB, a Kylothian named Surleena. Who is searching for a powerful artifact called The Light of Zartha. J investigates and quickly realizes he is going to need help. Unfortunately, the other MIB agents do not work up to par like J can. So, J decides to bring back K. J must bring back K’s memory as an MIB agent and try to stop Surleena, before she can succeed. Written by John Wiggins I, Robot (2004) This is the year 2035. Everybody in the world relies on a huge system of robots, which are programmed specifically to help humans and not harm them in any way. But one person does not think that robots are helpful. Chicago homicide detective Del Spooner. but one day, he received a call from the United States Robotics (USR) about a recent death of renowned robot scientist Dr. Alfred J. Laning. Spooner immediately blamed this incident on robots without justifiable reason or proof. Then, he begins his investigation on Lanning’s death, only to discover Sonny, a “unique” robot. What Spooner does not realize, is that something is about to happen. Something that is beyond even spooner’s wildest dreams. Written by John Wiggins Hitch (2005) Alex Hitchens is “The Date Doctor.” He helps men to land dates. Sara is a gossip columnist for a New York City tabloid. Both are very guarded around the opposite sex. Despite their natures, Alex and Sara begin a relationship. Complications ensue when Sara’s latest scoop happens to be one of Alex’s clients. Written by Ken Miller The Pursuit of Happyness (2006) Chris Gardner has big dreams for him and his family but it doesn’t seem to come together for him. Chris has an opportunity to be a stock broker but first he has to go through a grueling internship which means no pay. Chris decides to do it but when his wife leaves and he is evicted, he has to take care of his son on his own. So they find themselves sometimes living on the street and struggling to get by. But Chris is determined to make it. Written by rcs0411@yahoo.com I Am Legend (2007) It is the year 2012. In the ruins of New York city. Robert Neville who is a military scientist who is the lone survivor of a biochemical disease which was supposed to cure cancer 3 years previous. With only blood thirsty zombies as his neighbors and his trusty dog, Samantha, Robert is trying to discover a cure for this disease and to find out any other people who might have also survived. Written by John Wiggins FUN FACTS ABOUT WILL SMITH: He was originally casted as Neo in The Matrix movie, but turned it down to do the film, Wild Wild West . He enjoys playing chess. He was a millionaire by age 20. Will Smith speaks fluent Spanish. Will Smith is also an author, penning a children’s book called “Just The Two of Us”. SOURCE
BOSSIP recently caught up with Mike Bigga (aka Killer Mike) , and while talking about his new album PL3DGE ( in stores April 19 ), we got into an interesting conversation about Black History and the Hip-Hop generation. Asked what the significance of Black History is today, here’s what Mike had to offer: Black History is important because Black people in America have no culture. Prior to Desegregation, we had culture. We had our own communities, we had our own businesses, we had our own system within which we took care of ourselves. With the dissemination of segregation, we gave up our culture in exchange for being fully integrated. Black communities are not policed by Black officers. The Black people who live in these communities don’t shop at Black stores because there are none, hence the Black dollar leaving the community and never coming back. And without that strong economic base, you don’t have a strong foundation for families, politics, commerce or culture, period. What Black people have lost is a sense of culture. A lot of people think having a Black president is enough. But we still have a [Congressional] Black Caucus, meaning we don’t have enough Black members of Senate or Congress for us not to need a caucus. We don’t have enough representation in local politics. Most of us are happy to have a Black President as a hood ornament, but most of the decisions he makes don’t affect you on a daily basis. So we still have a long way to go. But then, what is Hip-Hop’s roll in Black History? Flip through to check out five Black History facts every Hip-Hop head should know, courtesy of Mike Bigga.
Questlove posted the menu from NBC’s Black History Month menu and I think shit looked pretty good, bu Questlove thought it was racist…NBC tries to celebrate a bullshit holiday the blacks were given to apologize for taking them out of their dung huts and turning them into cotton pickers, and the black employee turns on them…. All I know is that I hope this gets Questlove from the Roots fired from NBC for breaching a contract and when they take him and his fat ass off the air, I hope they bring Jimmy Fallon with him. I hate people who bitch about a little insignifican comedy at work
