*		Today in Black History - May 19			*

1881 - Blanche Kelso Bruce is appointed Register of the Treasury 
	by President Garfield.

1925 - Malcolm Little, later known as Malcolm X and El Hajj 
	Malik El-Shabazz, is born in Omaha, Nebraska.  In prison, 
	he is introduced to the Nation of Islam and begins 
	studies that will lead him to become one of the most 
	militant and electrifying black leaders of the 1950s and
	1960s.  On many occasions, he would indicate that he was 
	not for civil rights, but human rights. When asked about 
	the Nation of Islam undermining the efforts of 
	integrationists by preaching racial separation, Malcolm's 
	response was "It is not integration in America that 
	Negroes want, it is human dignity." Malcolm X regularly 
	criticized civil rights leaders for advocating the 
	integration of African Americans into white society. He 
	believed that African Americans should be building Black 
	institutions and businesses and defending themselves 
	against racist violence based opposition from both 
	conservative and liberals. Until he joined the ancestors, 
	Malcolm X was a staunch believer in Black Nationalism, 
	Black Self-determination and Black Self-organization. He 
	will begin to lobby with the newly independent African 
	nations to protest in the United Nations about the 
	American abuse of their Black citizens human rights, 
	when he was assassinated in 1965. His story will be 
	immortalized in the book "Autobiography of Malcolm X," 
	ghostwritten by Alex Haley.

1930 - Lorraine Hansberry is born in Chicago, Illinois. She will 
	become a noted playwright and will be best known for her 
	play, "A Raisin in the Sun." On March 11, 1959, when it 
	opened at the Ethel Barrymore Theater, it will become the 
	first Broadway play written by an African American woman.  
	Her other works will include "The Sign in Sidney 
	Brustein's Window," "To Be Young, Gifted and Black: 
	Lorraine Hansberry in Her Own Words," "Les Blancs," and 
	"The Movement: Documentary of a Struggle for Equality." 
	She will join the ancestors on January 12, 1965.

1952 - Grace Mendoza is born in Spanishtown, Jamaica. She will 
	move with her family to Syracuse, New York at the age of 
	12. She will become a performance artist known as Grace 
	Jones and a transatlantic model for the Ford and 
	Wilhemina agencies. She will later write music and 
	perform as a singer. Her releases will extend from 1977 
	through 1998. She also will succeed as a movie star 
	appearing in the movies "A View to a Kill," "Conan the
	Destroyer," and "Deadly Vengeance." 

1965 - Patricia Harris is named U.S. Ambassador to Luxembourg.  
	She is the first African American woman to become an 
	ambassador for the U.S. 

1968 - Piano stylist and vocalist, Bobby Short, gains national 
	attention as he presents a concert with Mabel Mercer at 
	New York's Town Hall. He will be the featured artist at 
	the intimate Hotel Carlisle for years. 

1969 - Coleman Randolph Hawkins joins the ancestors in New York 
	City at the age of 65. He was responsible for the coming 
	of age of the tenor saxophone in jazz ensembles and 
	called the "father of the tenor saxophone." 

1973 - Stevie Wonder moves to the number one position on the 
	"Billboard" pop music chart with "You Are the Sunshine 
	of My Life".  It is the third number one song for Wonder, 
	following earlier successes with "Fingertips, Part 2" in 
	1963 and "Superstition" in 1973.  He will have seven more 
	number one hits between 1973 and 1987: "You Haven't Done 
	Nothin'", "I Wish", "Sir Duke", "Ebony & Ivory" (with Paul 
	McCartney), "I Just Called to Say I Love You", "Part-Time 
	Lover" and "That's What Friends are for". 

1991 - Willy T. Ribbs becomes the first African American driver to 
	qualify for the Indianapolis 500.  During the race, which 
	occurs the following week, Ribbs will be forced to drop 
	out due to engine failure.

______________________________________________________________
           Munirah Chronicle is edited by Rene' A. Perry
              "The TRUTH shall make you free"

   E-mail:   <[log in to unmask]>
   Archives: http://listserv.icors.org/archives/Munirah.html
             http://blackagenda.com/cybercolonies/index.htm
   _____________________________________________________________
   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 1997 - 2010,
   All Rights Reserved by the Information Man in association with
   The Black Agenda.