* Today in Black History - April 14 * 1775 - The first U.S. abolitionist society, the Pennsylvania Society for the Abolition of Slavery, is formed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, by Quakers. Benjamin Franklin serves as its first president. 1868 - South Carolina voters approve a new constitution, 70,758 to 27,228, and elect state officers, including the first African American cabinet officer, Francis L. Cardozo, secretary of state. The new constitution requires integrated education and contains a strong bill of rights section: "Distinctions on account of race or color, in any case whatever, shall be prohibited, and all classes of citizens shall enjoy equally all common, public, legal and political privileges." 1873 - The U.S. Supreme Court decision in Slaughterhouse cases begins process of diluting the Fourteenth Amendment. The court says the Fourteenth Amendment protects federal civil rights, not "civil rights heretofore belonging exclusively to the states." 1906 - The Azusa Street Revival -- proto-mission out of which the modern Pentecostal movement will spread world-wide -- officially begins when the services led by African American evangelist William J. Seymour, 36, moves into the building at 312 Azusa Street in Los Angeles, California. 1915 - James Hutton Brew, "Pioneer of West African Journalism," dies. 1943 - Artist Howardena Pindell is born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. A student at Boston and Yale universities, she will receive several art fellowships and travel the world to create art that reflects a clear artistic vision and an intense commitment to issues of racial and social injustice. 1969 - The student Afro-American Society seizes the Columbia College admissions office and demands a special admissions board and staff. 1991 - A major retrospective of the late Romare Bearden's career and work opens at the Studio Museum of Harlem. Entitled Memory and Metaphor: The Art of Romare Bearden 1940-1987, the exhibit includes 140 oil and watercolor paintings as well as numerous collages that chronicle his exploration of abstract expressionism, social realism, and reinterpretation of classical themes in art and literature. ******************************************************** The source for these facts are "Encyclopedia Britannica, "InfoBeat," "I, Too, Sing America - The African American Book of Days," and independent research by the Information Man. ******************************************************** ______________________________________________________________ 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 1998, All Rights Reserved by the Information Man in association with CODE One Communications.