*                  Today in Black History - December 21              *

1872 - Robert Scott Duncanson joins the ancestors in Detroit, Michigan.
        He suffers a severe mental breakdown and ends his life in the
        Michigan State Retreat.  Duncanson avoided painting in an ethnic
        style, favoring still lifes and landscapes including "Mount
        Healthy," "Ohio," "Blue Hole," "Little Miami River," and "Falls
        of Minnehaha.  The Detroit Tribune, on December 26, 1872, refers
        to Duncanson as "an artist of rare accomplishments".

1911 - Joshua "Josh" Gibson is born in Buena Vista, Georgia.  He will
        become a professional baseball player in the Negro Leagues. Gibson
        will begin playing in the Negro leagues in 1930, at age 18. A
        catcher, he will play mostly for teams in and around Pittsburgh,
        Pennsylvania, including the Homestead Grays and the Pittsburgh
        Crawfords. He will also play winter baseball in Puerto Rico and the
        Dominican Republic. He will join the ancestors suddenly in early
        1947, the year that Jackie Robinson will become the first African
        American player in the major leagues. In recognition of his
        accomplishments, Gibson will be inducted into the Baseball Hall of
        Fame in 1972. He will be referred to as the "Negro Babe Ruth"
        hitting 800+ Home Runs.  Some say that Babe Ruth should have been
        referred to as the "white Josh Gibson."

1921 - P.B.S. Pinchback, a major Reconstruction politician, joins at
        the ancestors at the age of 84.

1959 - Delorez Florence Griffith is born in Los Angeles, California.
        As Florence Griffith Joyner, she will bring glamour to women's
        track and field.  A world-classrunner, "FloJo" will win three
        gold medals (in the 100-meter, 200-meter and 400-meter races)
        at the 1988 Summer Olympic Games in Seoul and a silver medal
        in the 1600-meter relay.

1959 - Citizens of Deerfield, Illinois block the building of interracial
        housing.

1969 - Diana Ross makes her final television appearance as a member of
        the Supremes on "The Ed Sullivan Show."

1976 - Patricia R. Harris is named Secretary of Housing and Urban
        Development.

1986 - While seeking a tow for his disabled car in Howard Beach(Queens),
        New York, Michael Griffith is struck by an automobile and
        killed as he attempts to escape from a mob of whites who were
        beating him.  The incident will spark a controversy that will
        further divide factions in New York City, already troubled by
        racially motivated violence.

1988 - Jesse Jackson, in a speech in Chicago, urges the use of the term
        "African American": "Every ethnic group in this country has
        reference to some land base, some historical cultural base.
        African Americans have hit that level of maturity."

______________________________________________________________
           Munirah Chronicle is edited by Brother Mosi Hoj
              "The TRUTH shall make you free"

   E-mail:   <[log in to unmask]>
   Archives: <http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/Munirah.html>
   _____________________________________________________________
   To SUBSCRIBE send E-mail to: <[log in to unmask]>
   In the E-mail body place:  Subscribe Munirah Your FULL Name
   ______________________________________________________________
   Munirah(TM) is a trademark of Information Man. Copyright 2003,
   All Rights Reserved by the Information Man in association with
   CODE One Communications.