Black History

Section One: Denial Versus Design When Donald Trump says we do not live in a racist society, that claim collapses under even light scrutiny. Racism today does not always announce itself with slurs or signs; it often hides behind policy, standards, and so-called neutrality. One of the clearest examples is higher education and professional gatekeeping.

Section One: Where the Story Begins For many people, Kwanzaa is presented as a harmless cultural celebration rooted in African values. But for some Black elders who lived through the late 1960s, the origin story carries deep pain and unresolved anger. Kwanzaa was created in 1966 by Ron Karenga, who was also known earlier as

Section One: What They Told Us in the 80s In the 1980s, authority figures loved to lecture young Black kids about how to be “acceptable.” They told us that a baseball cap meant we’d never get a job, never be respected, never be taken seriously. They said if you wore it at all, it had

Section One: Who Is Remembered and How Abraham Lincoln is one of the most recognizable presidents in American history, yet it is remarkably difficult to find images of his dead body. John F. Kennedy was also assassinated, and while death-related images exist, they are not endlessly circulated or normalized. Contrast that with what happens when

Section One: Disagreement Is Not the Problem The idea that people can disagree and still love each other sounds reasonable, even noble, on the surface. In healthy relationships and societies, disagreement is normal and necessary. It sharpens thinking, exposes blind spots, and forces growth. But James Baldwin made it clear that not all disagreement lives

Section One: Cultural Authority Without Full Belonging Black people occupy a strange and exhausting position in American life. We are followed, studied, copied, and imitated, yet still resisted and devalued. Our taste sets the standard for what is cool, what sounds right, what moves people emotionally, and what becomes profitable. From music to fashion to

A Life That Began in Flight, Not Folklore Rose Fortune was not a myth, not a legend polished over time, but a documented Black woman whose life tells a deeper truth about power and survival. She was born in 1774, likely in the Philadelphia area, during a time when freedom for Black people was fragile

Who Alberta Spruill Was Before the Raid Alberta Spruill was not a criminal, not a suspect, and not a danger to anyone. She was a 57-year-old woman, deeply rooted in her church, her work, and her community in Harlem. For nearly three decades, she held steady employment with New York City’s Department of Administrative Citywide

The Woman Who Shaped a Revolutionary MindLouise Little was not simply the mother of a famous leader; she was a revolutionary in her own right. Before the world ever heard of Malcolm X, Louise was already teaching resistance, pride, and self-sufficiency. She was born to Grenadian parents who believed deeply in Black independence and dignity.