*               Today in Black History - May 12         *

1896 - Juan Morel Campos joins the ancestors in Ponce, Puerto Rico. He
        was a musician and composer who was one of the first to integrate
        Afro-Caribbean styles and folk rhythms into the classical European
        musical model. He was considered the father of the "danza."

1898 - Louisiana adopts a new constitution with a "grandfather clause"
        designed to eliminate African American voters.

1902 - Joe Gans (born Joseph Gaines) becomes the first native-born African
        American to win a world boxing championship, when he defeats Frank
        Erne in one round for the World Lightweight Crown.  He will be
        elected to the Boxing Hall of Fame in 1954.

1910 - The Second NAACP conference opens in New York City.  The three day
        conference will create a permanent national structure for the
        organization.

1916 - Albert L. Murray is born in Nokomis, Alabama.  He will become an author
        of several works of nonfiction, among them the influential collection
        of essays, "The Omni Americans: New Perspectives on Black Experience
        and American Culture." His other works will include "South to a Very
        Old Place," "The Hero and The Blues," "Train Whistle Guitar," "The
        Spyglass Tree," "Stomping The Blues," "Good Morning Blues," and "The
        Blue Devils of Nada."

1926 - Paulette Poujol-Oriol is born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. She will become
        a well-known literary personality in Haiti. She will be best known for
        her innovative creative expression.  Her works will include "Prayers
        for Two Vanished Angels" and "The Crucible."

1926 - Mervyn Dymally is born in Cedros, Trinidad. He will become the first
        African American elected as lieutenant governor of California and
        will be elected to Congress in 1980, where he will serve for 12
        years.

1929 - Samuel Nujoma is born in Etunda, South West Africa (now Namibia). He
        will become a nationalist politician and the first president of
        Namibia. He will remain in exile for thirty years from 1959 to 1989
        when he will return to Namibia and win a seat in the National
        Assembly. He will vacate this seat in 1990 when he is elected
        president.

1933 - Henry Hugh Proctor joins the ancestors in Brooklyn, New York at the
        age of 64. He had been the pastor of Nazarene Congregational Church
        for thirteen years. Prior to coming to New York, he had been pastor
        of the First Congregational Church in Atlanta, Georgia for twenty
        four years, where he had been instrumental in working with local
        whites in order to reduce racial conflicts in the city.

1934 - Elechi Amadi is born in Aluu, Nigeria. He will become a novelist
        whose works will illustrate the tradition and inner feelings of
        traditional tribal life of his people. He will be known for his works
        "The Concubine," "Sunset in Biafra: A Civil War Diary," "The Great
        Ponds," "The Slave," "Estrangement," "Isiburu," "Peppersoup," "The
        Road to Ibadan," "Dancer of Johannesburg," and "Ethics in Nigerian
        Culture." His writings reflect his upbringing as a member of the Igbo
        ethnic group in Nigeria.

1951 - Former U.S. Congressman Oscar Stanton DePriest joins the ancestors at
        the age of 80 in Chicago, Illinois. He had been the first African
        American elected to the U.S. Congress since Reconstruction and the
        first-ever African American congressman from the North.

1955 - Samuel ("Toothpick Sam") Jones, of the Chicago Cubs, becomes the
        first African American to pitch a major league no-hitter, against
        the Pittsburgh Pirates.

1958 - At a summit meeting of national African American leaders, President
        Dwight D. Eisenhower is sharply criticized for a speech which, in
        effect, urges them to "be patient" in their demands for full civil
        and voting rights.

1967 - H. Rap Brown replaces Stokely Carmichael as chairman of the Student
        Non-Violent Coordinating Committee.

1969 - Kim Fields (later Freeman) is born in Los Angeles, California.  She
        will become an actress as a child, starring in the sit-com, "The
        Facts of Life" (1979-1988).  She will continue her television career
        on the "Living Single" show, which will premier in 1993.

1970 - Ernie Banks of the Chicago Cubs hits his 500th home run.

1970 - A racially motivated civil disturbance occurs in Augusta, Georgia.
        Six African Americans are killed.  Authorities say five of the
        victims were shot by police.

1976 - Wynona Carr joins the ancestors. She had been a gospel singer who was
        best known for her rendition of "The Ball Game." Her other recordings
        were "Each Day," "Lord Jesus," "Dragnet for Jesus," "Fifteen Rounds
        for Jesus," "Operator, Operator," "Should I Ever Love Again," and
        "Our Father."

1991 - Hampton University students stage a silent protest against President
        George Bush's commencement address to highlight their opposition to
        his civil rights policies.

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