Black History Month 2021 Recap
Throughout Black History Month 2021, we highlighted some of the lesser known influential Black figures in religion and social justice, as well as some Black voices of the future. Below you’ll find a compilation of the individuals we featured on social media.
W.E.B. Du Bois
“Scholar and activist W.E.B. Du Bois became the first African American to earn a Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1895. He wrote extensively and was the best-known spokesperson for African American rights during the first half of the 20th century. Du Bois co-founded the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) in 1909.”
Learn more about W.E.B. Du Bois here.
Carter G. Woodson
“Carter G. Woodson was the second African American to receive a doctorate from Harvard, after W.E.B. Du Bois. Known as the “Father of Black History,” Woodson dedicated his career to the field of African American history and lobbied extensively to establish Black History Month as a nationwide institution.”
Learn more about Carter G. Woodson here.
Amanda Gorman
“Amanda Gorman is the youngest inaugural poet in U.S. history, as well as an award-winning writer and cum laude graduate of Harvard University, where she studied Sociology. She has written for the New York Times and has three books forthcoming with Penguin Random House.”
Learn more about Amanda Gorman here.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from Washington D.C, United States, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Hiram R. Revels
“Hiram R. Revels was a minister who, in 1870, became the first African American United States senator, representing the state of Mississippi. He served for a year before leaving to become the president of a historically Black college.”
Learn more about Hiram R. Revels here.
Shirley Chisholm
“Shirley Chisholm became the first African American congresswoman in 1968. Four years later, she became the first major-party Black candidate to make a bid for the U.S. presidency.”
Learn more about Shirley Chisholm here.
Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett
“Immunologist [Dr.] Kizzmekia Corbett helped to design the Moderna vaccine. Now she volunteers her time talking about vaccine science with people of colour.”
Learn more about Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett and her work here.
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Fred Shuttlesworth
“Fred Shuttlesworth was a Baptist minister and one of the South’s most prominent Civil Rights leaders. He worked closely with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., co-founding the SCLC and organizing direct-action protests in Birmingham, refusing to waver even after multiple attacks.”
Learn more about Fred Shuttlesworth here.
“R. I. P. Fred Shuttlesworth (2)” by John Mathew Smith & www.celebrity-photos.com is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.
William Cooper Nell
“William Cooper Nell (December 16, 1816 – May 25, 1874) was an African-American abolitionist, journalist, publisher, author, and civil servant of Boston, Massachusetts, who worked for integration of schools and public facilities in the state. Writing for abolitionist newspapers The Liberator and The North Star, he helped publicize the anti-slavery cause.”
Learn more about William Cooper Nell here.
