When a nation tells the truth about itself, it gives future generations the tools to do better. That is why the Smithsonian Institution and other museums that document the history and afterlives of slavery are not “out of control”—they are doing the hard, patriotic work of memory. Recent efforts by President Donald Trump to pressure the Smithsonian to deemphasize “how […]

In the summer of 1964, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) reached what the Pittsburgh Courier considered to be a “precedent-shattering ruling” regarding racial bias at the Hughes Tool Company, a manufacturer of drilling equipment in Houston, Texas. There, the Board found the collective bargaining contract between the company and the associated union to be in violation of federal fair […]

Waves of racial tension began to form at the port of Brownsville almost immediately after the erection of dock facilities in 1934. The International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) organized the piers by establishing the all-Black Local 1368 and the all-white Local 1367. In the port’s first six years of operations, shipping companies almost exclusively hired white dock workers. In 1940, the […]

In 1866, newly freed people in Selma, Alabama, came together for a prayer movement. For some time, they met in each other’s homes. During a meeting in the basement of the Hotel Albert, they formed an African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) and one year later, they were admitted into the A.M.E. Connection, making them an official congregation of the global network […]

On December 15, 1966, the United States Justice Department filed suit against Local 53 of the International Association of Heat and Frost Insulators and Asbestos Workers Union of New Orleans, Louisiana. The Justice Department charged that the all-white Local 53 was in violation of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. Title VII of the Act prohibits employment discrimination based on race, […]

Bob Dockery Jr. is a radio and television producer, playwright, and former advertising executive. He was born in Tuskegee, Alabama, and then moved with his parents and sister to Louisville, Kentucky. While the family lived in Alabama, Dockery’s father, Bob Dockery Sr., was a prominent physician who practiced family medicine at the Army Air Force Base. The family soon left […]

Braxton Fancourt Cann, M.D. (1900–1974) was a distinguished Bermudian physician, community leader, and advocate for civil rights. Born in Bermuda in 1900 as the eldest son of Dr. John W. Cann, he attended The Berkeley Institute and earned his Bachelor of Science from Wilberforce University in 192. He further pursued his education at McGill University for a year before entering […]

Robert Lewis Harris is a distinguished lawyer, activist, and business executive whose impactful career bridges law, civil rights, and corporate leadership. Born on March 4, 1944, in Arkadelphia, Arkansas, to Lucy and Benjamin Harris, he relocated with his family to California in 1960. After graduating from Oakland Technical High School in 1961, Harris pursued higher education at Merritt College, earning […]

James Otis Cole has spent the better part of his professional career as a “businessman” in many C-suite positions within organizations across America. He was an entrepreneur in the food service industry and a corporate attorney for Fortune 100 companies. He was born on February 6, 1941, in Florence, Alabama, and was raised by his father, Calloway Cole, and his […]

William Lee Lonesome was born on June 24, 1907, in Charleston, West Virginia, to Benjamin Lonesome and Helen Ella Thompson. He received his A.B. Degree from West Virginia State College in 1933 and a J.D. degree from Howard University in 1936. He was the recipient of many honorary degrees, including an honorary degree of doctor of laws from Wilberforce University, Edward […]