* Today in Black History - April 5 *
1839 - Robert Smalls is born into slavery in Beaufort, South Carolina.
He will become a Civil War hero by sailing an armed
Confederate steamer out of Charleston Harbor and presenting
it to the Union Navy. He will later become a three-term
congressman from his state.
1856 - Booker Taliaferro Washington is born a slave near Hale's Ford,
Virginia. He will become a world reknown educator, founder of
Tuskegee Institute. He will become one of the most famous
African American educators and leaders of the 19th century.
His message of acquiring practical skills and emphasizing
self-help over political rights will be popular among whites
and segments of the African American community. His 1901
autobiography, "Up From Slavery", which details his rise to
success despite numerous obstacles, will become a best-seller
and further enhances his public image as a self-made man. As
popular as he will be in some circles, Washington will be
aggressively opposed by critics such as W.E.B. Du Bois and
William Monroe Trotter. He will join the ancestors on
November 14, 1915. He will become the first African American
to be honored on a U.S. postage stamp.
1879 - Charles W. Follis is born in Cloverdale, Virginia. He is the
first African American to play professional football. He will
play halfback for the Blues of Shelby, Ohio in 1904. The
Blues were part of the American Professional Football League,
a forerunner of the National Football League.
1915 - Jess Willard defeats Jack Johnson for the heavyweight boxing
crown in twenty three rounds.
1934 - Stanley Turrentine is born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He
will become a jazz saxophonist and in 1953, will replace the
famed John Coltrane in the popular big band of Earl Bostic.
After a three-year army stint, which affords him his only
formal musical training, Turrentine comes to prominence on
the New York Jazz scene as a member of Max Roach's group
in 1959. Over the years, Turrentine's recordings will
combine musical energies with friends such as Ron Carter,
Roland Hanna, Ray Charles, Freddie Hubbard, Jon Hendricks,
George Benson, Cedar Walton, Herbie Hancock, Kenny Burrell,
Milt Jackson, Joe Sample, Shirley Scott, Jimmy Smith, Grady
Tate, and many others. He will be nominated for the Grammy
Award four times.
1937 - Colin Powell is born in New York City. He will become a highly
decorated Army officer, receiving the Bronze Star and Purple
Heart during the Vietnam War, and will be later promoted to
four-star general in 1988. He will become the first African
American to serve as the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff for the U.S. Armed Forces.
1956 - Booker T. Washington becomes the only African American
honored twice on a U.S. postage stamp. To commemorate the
centennial of his birth, the U.S. Postal Service issues a
stamp depicting the cabin where he was born.
1967 - Philadelphia '76er Wilt Chamberlain sets a NBA record of 41
rebounds in a single game.
1976 - FBI documents, released in response to a freedom of
information suit, reveal that the government mounted an
intensive campaign against civil rights organizations in the
sixties. In a letter dated August 25, 1967, the FBI said the
government operation, called COINTELPRO, was designed "to
expose, disrupt, misdirect, discredit or otherwise neutralize
the activities of Black nationalists, hate-type groups, their
leadership, spokesmen, membership and supporters, and to
counter their propensity for violence and civil disorders."
A later telegram specifically named the Student Nonviolent
Coordinating Committee and the Southern Christian
Leadership Conference as organizations having "radical and
violence prone leaders, members and followers."
1977 - Gertrude Downing receives a patent for the corner cleaner
attachment.
1984 - Kareem Abdul-Jabbar breaks Wilt Chamberlain's all-time career
scoring record of 31,419 points (31,421).
1990 - Seven African American journalists are inducted into the newly
created Hall of Fame of the National Association of Black
Journalists in Washington, DC. Dubbed "pioneers of
mainstream journalism," the inductees include Dorothy Butler
Gilliam of the Washington Post, Malvin R. Goode of ABC
News, Mal H. Johnson of Cox Broadcasting, Gordon Parks of
Life Magazine, Ted Poston of the New York Post, Norma
Quarles of Cable News Network, and Carl T. Rowan of King
Features Syndicate. Twelve Pulitzer Prize winners are also
honored at the awards ceremonies.
2000 - Ending a two-year investigation, an independent counsel clears
Labor Secretary Alexis Herman of allegations that she had
solicited $ 250,000 in illegal campaign contributions.
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