* Today in Black History - April 2 * 1855 - John Mercer Langston is elected clerk of Brownhelm, Ohio, township. He will be considered the first African American elected to public office. 1918 - Charles White is born in Chicago, Illinois. An artist who will work with traditional materials (pen, ink, oil on canvas and lithography), White will transform the image of African Americans and earn praise from critics and artists alike. White will receive dozens of awards and his work will be collected by museums on three continents and major corporations. 1932 - Bill Pickett, a well-known cowboy who was acclaimed by President Theodore Roosevelt as "one of the best trained ropers and riders the West has produced," dies. Pickett performed as a bulldogger in Europe, Mexico, and the United States, where he was often assisted by two relatively unknown white cowboys, Tom Mix and Will Rogers. 1939 - Marvin Gaye, Jr. is born in Washington, DC. He will sign with Motown in 1962 and begin a 22-year career that includes hits "Pride and Joy," duets with Mary Wells and Tammi Terrell, as well as best-selling albums exploring his social consciousness ("What's Going On") and sexuality ("Let's Get It On," "Midnight Love"). 1969 - The Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association signs Lew Alcindor for a reported $1,400,000 five-year contract. Alcindor soon changes his name to Kareem Abdul-Jabar and his team to the Los Angeles Lakers. 1977 - Stevie Wonder's tribute to Duke Ellington, "Sir Duke", is released. 1984 - Coach John Thompson of Georgetown University becomes the first African American coach to win the NCAA Division I basketball championship. The team, led by Patrick Ewing, wins over Houston 84-75. ******************************************************** 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.