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Great American Marches in History

Welcome back to rememberinghistory.com where we are remembering history and we're making it every day! March is the month in which we focus on—surprise!—marching! Marching is one of the most common and I would say most effective ways to protest. And Americans have been protest marching since the country was founded.

Americans have marched for many reasons. American marched to protest the Stamp Tax—actually that march took place even before the United States officially existed. Americans have marched to protest wars like the War of 1812 and the Vietnam War. We have marched to protest racial inequality. We have marched to ensure the right to vote for women and people of color. We have marched to bring attention to and protest against police violence and gun "carry" laws. Americans have marched to show unity and solidarity with immigrants, refugees and other vulnerable and disenfranchised groups. Americans have been marching for almost 250 years and there is no reason to think that we will ever stop marching. In fact, I hope that we don't stop marching because it is the hallmark of a democracy that people can "speak out" against their government's action.

Of course, Americans aren't the only people who march. I'm reminded of Gandhi marching against British rule in India. I'm also reminded of Black South Africans who marched against the violent and racist regime of apartheid. I can't forget the suffragettes in England who marched to demand the vote for women AND for other social and economic rights for women. And, on a smaller but still important scale, I remember the students at Oxford in 1973 were marching and chanting: "What do we want? A student union! When do we want it? Now! What are we wearing? Dirty jerseys!" This was a major act of civil disobedience by Oxford students in violation of a strict and centuries-long dress code. And yes they DID get their student union. And India got independence from Britain. And apartheid was ended in South Africa. And English women got the right to vote. Marching works!

Yes, marching is a worldwide phenomenon to demand, to oppose, to protest and to bring attention to a problem and evoke emotion in people. Marching is effective. Marching is powerful. Marching makes history. So, this month (March), rememberinghistory.com salutes all of those brave, strong and committed people who get out and march. And just as people need marches, marches need people. And the people who brave the elements, the security forces, the wrath and power of the government, and the criticism of friends and family members to get out and march deserve our respect and our gratitude. So, this episode is dedicated to marchers and marches around the world.

In this first show about marching, we will look at some marches from the past. Some of the marches are VERY famous and iconic. Others are not-so-famous or widely-known. However, the common thing about all of these marches is that they were very effective in what they were trying to achieve. That takes us directly to our second podcast show this month which will discuss how to conduct a march effectively and how to participate in a march safely. Marches are often started by ordinary citizens just like you—individuals who CARE about an issue and want other people and their government to know about it and DO something about it. These were people who cared enough to get involved. And they made history. You can also make history and the next podcast show can help to you organize a march or participate in one.

One last bit of housekeeping then we'll get straight to learning about marches in history:

First, if you enjoy this show, you can get more information at the Wiki history podcast page on Facebook. You will find pictures, short videos and a community of history lovers. There is also a place for comments, which I hope that you will leave for me because I really appreciate them and I do respond. Also, if you enjoy this show, please let others know about it. They might like it and find it inspirational too. We can all remember history AND we can all make history!

Finally, I just want to remind you that in 2017, the Wiki History podcast show is dedicated to the National Museum of African American History & Culture in Washington DC. Museums are a great way to bring history to life and to keep it alive for future generations. Wiki History is honored to be a part of this important process. For every person that listens to this podcast show, rememberinghistory.com will donate $1 to the National Museum of African American History & Culture. I also donate personally and I hope that you will too.

That's enough for now. Let's get started with this great and groundbreaking Wiki history podcast show. Today's show is called "marches that made history."

When I was remembering or reading about important marches, I found myself torn between marches that were huge—100,000 people or more—and marches that were relatively small—some were less than 50 people. We will discuss a march that had only ONE person. Which marches had the most impact? Which marches got media attention? Which marches changed laws and society? Which marches are still remembered?

What I discovered was nothing short of remarkable. Size didn't matter! The number of people participating in the march was not as important as the organization, focus and determination of the marchers. Of course, participation is important—I really want to stress that—but I want to stress even more that the determination of the marchers was more important than any other factor. Their determination to affect change, to persist in the face of adversity, to be united in their cause, and to be committed to this form of nonviolent protest. With that said, let's begin our journey down the memory lane of marching!

We will open with a small march that left a mark on the city of Oakland and perhaps beyond: The Twelve-Man March

This march was organized to bring awareness to the reality and the dangers of racial profiling. This was a great march: here's what they did:

On July 19, 2013, twelve African American men marched to Oakland's city hall. All the men wore business attire: suit, tie, dress shoes, etc. All the African American men presented as businessmen. They peacefully marched to city hall holding signs condemning racial profiling and the negative portrayal of African American men in the media.

In speeches at Oakland's famous Ogawa Hall, the protesters cited the killing of Trayvon Martin in Florida and Alan Blueford in Oakland. Both were African American, young, and unarmed when they were killed. Alan Blueford killed by law enforcement. Trayvon Martin by a self-proclaimed neighborhood watch officer. No one was convicted in either killing. Racial profiling was the cause that identified (incorrectly and unjustly) these young men as dangerous criminals. Racial profiling had also been involved in other kinds of harassment of African Americans by law enforcement officers.

This was a small, but powerful and focused march that that brought awareness to racial profiling and presented a powerful vision of African American men that is rarely shown to the public.

Let's jump back in time for a moment—and for some of the most famous marches. We're going to the 1960s. This was a huge decade of social change and it witnessed LOTS of marches.

Of course, there was the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom held on August 28, 1963. Did you know that was the FULL name of the march? The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom where Dr. Martin Luther King gave his iconic "I have a dream speech." There were an estimated 250,000 people in attendance—people of all races, ethnicities, genders and religious backgrounds. The focus of the march was to encourage President Kennedy to sign a civil rights bill that prohibited discrimination in employment, housing, education and the use of public facilities.

Also in the 1960s, staying with the same theme were the Selma to Montgomery marches. These were a series of three marches to demand the passage of a voting rights act. The marchers walked along Route 80 from Selma, Alabama to the capitol in Montgomery. On March 7, 1965, as the marchers peacefully crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge, state troopers and county possemen attacked the unarmed marchers with billy clubs and tear gas after they passed over the county line. It was a violent and aggressive act by law enforcement that was witnessed by the entire country and even internationally. This event became known as Bloody Sunday.

The second march took place March 9. Troopers, police, and marchers confronted each other at the county end of the bridge, but when the troopers stepped aside to let them pass, King led the marchers back to the church. The third march started March 21. Protected by 1,900 members of the Alabama National Guard under federal command by President Johnson, and many FBI agents and Federal Marshals, the marchers averaged 10 miles (16 km) a day along the highway. The marchers arrived in Montgomery on March 24 and at the Alabama State Capitol on March 25.[11] With thousands having joined the campaign, 25,000 people entered the capital city that day in support of voting rights.

The route is memorialized as the "Selma To Montgomery Voting Rights Trail," and is designated as a U.S. National Historic Trail.

The Voting Rights Act was passed in that same year.

Another march that turned violent was an Anti-Vietnam War march, held on November 15, 1969. More than a half-million people marched on Washington, DC to protest the US sending troops to fight in Vietnam. This was just one of many marches opposing the Vietnam War—some were peaceful, some were not. But they all were impassioned and determined. (Just a separate note here: some people claimed that the Vietnam War was one of the first wars to ignite public protest and marches. Not true. The first major movement against an American war was to protest the War of 1812. These marches often did become violent, threatening President Madison and members of Congress.)

Leaving the 1960s, the Reagan presidency (1981 to 1989) ignited another wave of marches and protests.

One of the largest and most memorable (for its uniqueness) was the Solidarity Day march. Do you remember that march? I do even though I was a teenager at the time! On September 19, 1981, more than 260,000 people marched in Washington DC in support of the air traffic controllers. President Reagan had just summarily fired 12,000 air traffic controllers who had gone on strike for better wages and safer working conditions (for instance, to limit their working hours). But the larger goal of the march was to protest Reagan's budget cuts and tax policies. Labor unions—particularly the AFL-CIO—and civil rights organizations met at the Washington Monument to show solidarity against the president's policies.

The next year, 1982, witnessed one of the biggest marches in US history against the building and proliferation of nuclear weapons. Held on June 12, 1982, more than a million people marched in New York City to protest President Reagan's proposed budget that expanded the military budget to allow for the research and building of nuclear weapons—while cutting the budgets for health care and education. These marches remained peaceful—by both marchers and law enforcement—but tensions and passions ran very high during these events.

And who could ever forget the National March on Washington for Gay and Lesbian rights? Held on October 11, 1987—still during Reagan's presidency—the "Great March" as it was dubbed was attended by 200,000 people—of all orientations—demanding federal money for AIDS research and treatment and an end to discrimination against homosexuals. This march was held during the "AIDS epidemic" which was disproportionately affecting the gay and lesbian communities but the federal government had not responded with federal funds or legislation to protect this segment of American society.

The next major march on this issue was the March on Washington for LGBT rights and LIBERATION. Held on April 25, 1993 (just 6 years after the previous march on Washington for Gay and Lesbian rights), an estimated million people marched to demand a civil rights bill against discrimination, to demand more funding for AIDS research and for reproductive rights.

Two years later, Washington DC experienced its next million-person march called the Million Man march. Held on October 16, 1995, more than a million people marched in Washington DC. This march had a different goal than the others—it was not primarily making demands on the government (for legislation for example) or telling the government to stop something (like the Vietnam War or funding nuclear weapons). The million-man march—more accurately could be called the million black man march. It focused on bringing solidarity and unity to the African American community. It was a serious march and also a fun and festive black family day of picnics, music and fun.

The new millennium witnessed a new kind of marching. Single city marches expanded into multi-city, even multi-national marches--all coordinated on a single day or weekend. In other words: marching went global!

The invention of the Internet/World Wide Web and later social media helped to expand the reach and inclusion and coordination of marchers and protesters focused on a single goal.

One of the biggest of these modern marches was the march against the Iraq war. This march was held on February 15 and 16 in 2003 and occurred in cities across the United States (including New York, Seattle and Los Angeles). More than 10 million people attended. This march is known as the largest march in world history and it demanded that President Bush stop the invasion of Iraq.

Another large, multi-city march was held the following year on April 25, 2004 in cities across the United States. It was the march for women's lives and was the largest pro-choice march ever held in the United States--attended by 1.5 million people both women AND men.

Wow, so the marches got larger but more focused. More diverse, inclusive and sophisticated. This is activism at its finest and these marches all made a difference. And the marchers made history.

While the early marches (like the Vietnam War marches) might seem like they were unsophisticated and simple, that is simply untrue. People were focused and passionate. They coordinated their efforts and took to the streets—sometimes facing the wrath of law enforcement. The people on that fateful bridge in Selma* had very little protection from law enforcement or recourse for the violence taken by the police or military. These marchers put their lives on the line. (And lest one thinks that this cannot happen today, just look at the DAPL marchers* in North Dakota, facing private military forces and being deprived of basic necessities in their protest march for clean water and respect for their sacred lands.)

Without the Internet and social media back in the 1960s, people relied on phones, meetings and word of mouth. I remember in college that I would see posters that advertised marches about issues like the environment, rights of minority groups and health care. Marching has definitely evolved over the decades (actually centuries!) but they continue to be an essential tool to let our government know what we think and to make demands for our rights.

And marching continues to bring us together as a people. Think of January 21, 2017. The Women's march following the inauguration of Donald Trump as the 45th U.S. president took place in numerous cities and countries (including my resident city of Brussels, Belgium). And it brought us all together to remember that we are "ONE" people and that we must support each other during bad times and good. It was one of the most unifying events that I have ever witnessed, seeing women AND men and everyone else standing together as one. It reminded of that saying, "A people united can never be defeated."

I want to conclude this Wiki history podcast show by discussing one more march. It is a notable march though you probably won't read about it in many history books. It is not notable because it involved thousands of people because it didn't. It is not important because it involved multiple cities or countries. It isn't notable because so many famous people participated in it. But it IS important and it IS notable. This march definitely made history.

This march involved one man with an important cause. His name was William Lewis Moore. Moore was a white man, a former graduate student at Johns Hopkins and postal worker who became an activist supporting rights for mentally ill persons and later supporting civil rights for African Americans. (In fact, he became a member of CORE—the Congress of Racial Equality). William Moore participated in a series of one-man marches in support of civil rights. On his first march he walked to Annapolis, Maryland, the state capital. On his second march he walked to the White House. His third march started in Chattanooga, Tennessee and was headed to the state capitol in Jackson, Mississippi. He was carrying a letter that he planned to hand-deliver to Mississippi Governor Ross Barnett urging racial equality and an end to segregation. During his march, he wore a sandwich board sign that said "Equal rights for all and Mississippi or bust!" Moore said: "I intend to walk right up to the governor's mansion in Mississippi and ring his doorbell. Then I'll hand him my letter."

*****

Unfortunately, on April 21, 1963, 70 miles into his march to Mississippi, Moore was found dead by the roadside, having been shot twice in the head at close range. No one was ever convicted of his murder. In his bag, he had the letter that he had planned to deliver. In part, it said, "the white man cannot be truly free himself until all men have their rights." He asked Governor Barnett to "Be gracious and give more than is immediately demanded of you...." Moore was 36 years old at the time of his murder. You can find additional information about William Moore, including pictures, on the Wiki History podcast page on Facebook.

This might be a downer to end with but I do want it to have an impact. This was a march by one brave man who stood for racial equality and wanted to take his views directly to the governor of Alabama. That took courage! He deserves to be remembered for his bravery and activism. That's what rememberinghistory.com is all about!

So, that's all for today's podcast show. Marches are great! I hope that this trip down the memory lane of marches and marching has left you feeling as inspired as I am. From the biggest multi-city, multi-national marches to the 12-man march in Oakland and William Moore's one-man march in Alabama, individuals can have an impact and make a difference. And marching is one way to make a difference AND make history.

In the next podcast show, you will learn HOW to march and the elements of an effective protest march. Learning history IS important but MAKING history is essential. And you're gonna learn how to do JUST that in the next show. Remember to go to the Wiki History Podcast page for more information about great marches and great marchERS. And that for everyone who listens to these great and groundbreaking podcast show, rememberinghistory.com will make a contribution to the National Museum of African American History & Culture.

And let's all remember the words of William Moore, "Be gracious and give more than is immediately demanded of you."

See you next time at rememberinghistory.com where we are remembering history AND we're making it. Every day. Bye for now.

Do you recognize the names of Emmett Till, Melba Patillo, Gloria Ray, David Richmond or Ruby Bridges?

Perhaps you recognize some but not others. Perhaps none.

That's okay. They weren't seeking fame or fortune. They just wanted to get an education, vote or just eat at a cafeteria lunch counter. You might not know their names but they made a difference for all of us. In this podcast show, you're gonna here EXACTLY what they did.

Hi, I'm Robin Lofton, the Chief In-house Historian and host of this great and groundbreaking show that can inspire YOU and your FAMILY with true stories, real experiences, practical lessons, cultural traditions, and fun celebrations—all inspired by African American history. I find history to BE inspirational, instructional and entertaining. And African American history fits the bill in all of these ways. Personally, I hate boring stuff. So boring stuff is not allowed at rememberinghistory.com or at this Wiki history podcast show.

This was planned as the third and final podcast in our series on civil rights and the civil rights movement. But the rememberinghistory.com team decided that a change was necessary: This show about student activists has been divided into TWO parts. Why? Because this is a FASCINATING topic (you're gonna here some great stores) and we wanted to make it practical too. So we've added a section on ways that young people and students TODAY can also help to make changes and have an impact in their communities, the country and world. So, that's what we'll discuss in part II of the series.

In the previous podcast shows, we discussed lessons we can STILL learn from Martin Luther King. If you haven't heard that show, I really encourage you to do so because there were great lessons—yes, we can still learn from Dr. King and it stirred up a lot of interesting discussion. Spoiler alert: The first lesson was called "be maladjusted." People really had a lot to say about that and I'm sure that you will too. The other podcast show was about voting rights in America. Yes, there is still a lot of discrimination in voting—in deciding how districts will be formed, in the voter registration process, even directly at the polling stations. And we presented specific and doable ways to fight discrimination in voting.

The types of voter discrimination actions were shocking but it was also an empowering show. So be sure to listen so that you are ready to fight for your right to vote. And, of course, we made great animated videos to summarize the issues and entertain you as well. You can find them at rememberinghistory.com and on our YouTube channel. Remember, we don't "do boring" here so prepare to be entertained AND learn a little something useful.

Today's show refocuses on the people in history: a very special group of people who participated—and gave special momentum—to the civil rights movement. Young people and students. I planned to focus on college students. Yes, they did a lot. But as I thought about it more, I remembered that high school students and even elementary school students played an important part in the movement. So, we gonna include them in this discussion too. You see, even a CHIEF inhouse historian can change her mind and learn something new.

This is a particularly important show. Often, young people feel they can't make a difference that they can't have an impact and that decisions are being made only by the adults. This show will prove that this is simply not true. And I hope that it will convince young people and students that they do have a voice and an important role to play in protecting civil rights or in any cause that they're passionate about. That's important to remember. While these shows focus on civil rights, there are many causes that need and deserve attention and action. But protecting civil rights is an urgent focus right now—perhaps now more than in any time since the civil rights movement of the 1960s. And this show will suggest some ways in which they can get involved in protecting the civil rights—of people of color, of the economically disadvantaged, of refugees and immigrants and frankly of any group under attack or suffering injustice. Remember those famous words of Dr. Martin Luther King: "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere."

Well, let's get to the show, "The Youth and Students in the Civil Rights Movement"*

Is it strange of think of young people and students focused, committing and working for civil rights? If you find it hard to imagine that children were brave enough, that high school students were focused enough and that college students were concerned enough to work together for civil rights, then it's time to grab a chair and get comfortable. Perhaps even grab your kids to listen with you. This is history at its finest! This is the story of young people from elementary school—the youngest was only 7 years old!—through the college who showed commitment and courage under fire. And the "fires" that they faced were real and deadly—beatings, dog attacks, imprisonment, threats, and yes murder as well. Yet these young people stood up for their rights to equality and justice—and they stood up for your rights too. In one youth-led movement in 1963, Martin Luther King told the students who had been jailed (in Birmingham, Alabama) : "What you do this day will impact children who have not yet been born." Wow. Sooo true. And these kids DID forge a path for us. Stay tuned—remember in Part II, we will present ways that young people can continue to be involved in social activism and have an impact on kids that are not yet born.

*[Applause break here]

Many of the young people involved in the Civil Rights Movement actively joined and participated in the meetings, marches, demonstrations and other nonviolent activities to draw attention to their cause. Others became involuntary victims of the racist and oppressive culture of segregation. However, both groups—whether actively participating or involuntarily drawn in-- made an invaluable contribution to the cause.

We are gonna begin today's journey by discussing a name whom I hope is familiar. Very familiar. Sadly familiar. But don't worry if it's not because we're learning here together. The name: Emmett Till.

Personally, I don't remember the first time that I heard the name of Emmett Till. I must have been too young. But he was a name that was always deeply embedded in me—not the details of his horrific claim to fame. But the feeling his fate stirred up: sadness, anger, disbelief, fear. I'm sure that all of these feelings came from my parents and I picked them up as an impressionable child. But his name is a part of my life story. Why? Because ALL Black children could have been young Emmett. Actually, I know that there were other Emmetts but HIS terrible experience changed everything. I'm jumping ahead of myself. Let's hear the story.

In the summer of 1955, Emmett was just like any other 14-year old Black kid. Just finished the 7th grade at his Chicago school. High-spirited. Fun-loving. Growing into manhood. Polite. Looking forward to a great summer. Adored by his mother. Emmett was especially excited because he would spend the summer with his cousins in Mississippi. Emmett had never visited the segregated south so his mother counseled him about how to behave around white people.

The rest of the story has become a sad legend. Emmett enjoyed his first few days in Tallahatchie County, Mississippi. Worked in the cotton fields during the day and played with his cousins in the evening. On his third day there, he went to a grocery store with his cousins and that's when the trouble started. There is no clear account of what happened but Emmett might have whistled at the wife (who was white) who owned the store. A few nights later, her husband and brother-in-law went to house of Emmett's uncle in the dead of night mind you, snatched Emmett out of bed and drove off with him into the night. Three days later, Emmett's horribly mutilated body was discovered in a river. I won't go into details, but young Emmett had been tortured, beaten and shot in the head. Witnesses recounted hearing a young boy screaming and calling for help from a barn. He was mutilated beyond recognition.

His grieving but brave mother firmly decided on an open casket at his funeral in Chicago. Thousands of mourners filed past the casket. Jet Magazine and several other Black publications printed the graphic photos of Emmett's body. I have seen the horrific almost gruesome pictures and I will never forget them. Several of older friends actually went to Emmett's funeral and viewed his body. I can see the pain and sadness still in their eyes—from 1955.

The murderers of Emmett Till were quickly tried and acquitted. I think that it took only an hour. Is that scenario familiar today? One of the killers even gave an interview to LOOK Magazine detailing how they killed Emmett.

Many people say that the murder of Emmett Till sparked the modern Civil Rights Movement. It brought light to the brutality and regularity of lynching in the south, the effects of segregation and the vulnerability of Black lives. Emmett Till could have been any Black man, woman or child in the Jim Crow south. African Americans demanded justice for Emmett. And young Black children and students were especially outraged and fearful because Emmett was only 14 years old so they connected with this movement perhaps feeling that their lives hung in the balance. The Civil Rights Movement was on—and young people were a committed and focused part of it. Emmett was not a voluntary student-activist but his name will be remembered as someone who started a movement.

The first real student-involved movement (that we'll discuss) took place in 1957, just two years after the lynching of Emmett Till.

It involved 9 brave African Americans kids attempting to attend a white high school in Little Rock, Arkansas. These kids became known as the Little Rock Nine. Let's back up just a bit to 1954.

The United States was in chaos. (More was to come, of course, but most people didn't know that.) Interesting thing about history—it's not the story of people living in the present. It's the story of people living in the present, THEIR present. So, in 1954, many people didn't know or didn't accept that change prompted by the civil rights movement was looming in their future. Hmm…gotta think about that one. Anyway, in 1954, the landmark case of Brown v. Board of Education had just been decided by the Supreme Court. The decision that desegregated public schools.

Remember that's where we got the "separate but equal is inherently unequal" quote and that THIS violated the 14th Amendment. So, segregated schools were declared illegal and ordered to integrate "with all deliberate speed." (another great quote). But many school districts especially in the southern states refused to accept this decision. They fought back. Some just ignored the decision and dared the federal government to try to enforce it. Others closed down schools rather than integrate them. Let's jump from the immediate aftermath of the Brown case back to the summer of 1957, Little Rock Arkansas.

The NAACP (Arkansas Branch) was determined to integrate the high schools, beginning in Little Rock, the state's capital. Daisy Bates, president of the Arkansas Branch of the NAACP recruited nine high school students whom she believed possessed the strength and determination to face the RESISTANCE to integration. During that summer, the students participated in intensive counseling sessions on what to expect and how to respond to the reaction from the white community--students AND parents.

Just before school opened in September, Arkansas Governor Oval Faubus ordered the National Guard to bar the African American students from entering the state's schools. He claimed that it was for "their own protection" (quote. Don't we hear that one a lot today?) The next day, a federal court judge issued a counter-ruling that desegregation would proceed.

As the nine Black students attempted to enter the school, a huge crowd of angry white students and adults as well as the Arkansas National Guard (ordered by the Governor) barred the students' from entering. White protesters threatened the students, screamed racial slurs and spit on them. They were not able to enter the school that day.

Days later, the students tried to enter the school again with a police escort. However, more than a thousand white protesters appeared and again blocked the students' from entering the building. President Eisenhower finally sent federal troops to enforce the integration order. Army troops actually had to escort the students to their first day of class.

But that wasn't the end of the story. Protests against integration continued. The 101st Airborne Division stayed at the school to protect the students for an entire year. The nine kids faced verbal and physical abuse. One student had acid thrown in her face. Another was pushed down the stairs. The threats were constant and real. Both teachers AND students were hostile. But the kids survived and even thrived at their high school. All graduated and held distinguished careers. However, they only stayed at Little Rock Central High School for a year. The school board voted by 3 to 1 to close the school rather than officially integrate (of course, they cited budget cuts as the reason for the school closure.) But the brave high school students had stood up for their rights in a hostile and dangerous situation. Just imagine having to be escorted to school by federal guards. Imagine parents shouting ugly remarks at you. Imagine being spat upon, pushed around or down stairs, ignored by teachers and facing a large hostile crowd in the school cafeteria. This was definitely courage under fire and these kids deserve to be recognized and respected for their great achievement. And I want to say their names because they should become a familiar part of African American history:

Elizabeth Eckford

Ernest Green

Thelma Mothershed

Melba Patillo

Minnijean Brown

Gloria Ray

Terrence Roberts

Jefferson Thomas

Carlotta Walls

[Break for applause.]

By the way, during this podcast, you have heard and will continue to hear about people, places, events and issues. You will HEAR about them, but I completely understand if you want to actually SEE them, too. We got that covered on the Wiki History Podcast Page on Facebook. You will find pictures, animated videos and a community of history lovers. There is also a place for comments, which I hope that you will leave for us because we really appreciate them AND we do respond. Of course, we welcome all questions too.

Moving on…1960 was a BIG year for student activism. It's really hard to know where to begin.

But I'll adopt a "ladies first" position here—especially for this little lady named Ruby Bridges.

Ruby wanted to attend William Frantz Elementary School, which was an all-white school based in New Orleans. (I know what you're thinking: you can't have an all-white school because the Brown v. Board of Education case declared them illegal. Well, just like in Little Rock, the school boards were NOT going to give up their segregated lifestyle and institutions willingly. So the fight continued.) And little Ruby Bridges wanted to attend this school in her neighborhood school and for which she had passed a rigorous entry test. (This test had ACTUALLY been designed to screen out Black students and had been successful until Ruby.) So, she was excited to attend the kindergarten. Yes, that's right little Miss Ruby Bridges was seven years old. She had to be escorted to school every day by 4 U.S. Marshals. She spent her first day in the principal's office and watched as white parents removed their kids from school. A compromise was reached in which white students would return to school and Ruby would be isolated in a classroom on a floor separated from the other students. Only one teacher (Barbara Henry who was from Boston) agreed to teach her. For the remainder of the year, Mrs. Henry and Ruby would sit side-by-side going over lessons in the classroom. At recess, Ruby would stay in the classroom and play games or do calisthenics. At lunch, Ruby would eat alone in the classroom. Outside the school, the parents continued to protest against Ruby. One woman threatened to poison her every day. Another put a black baby doll in a coffin and left it at the school. Ruby said that scared her more than anything! Her father lost his job. Her mother was banned from shopping at the local grocery store.

This behavior seriously affected Ruby—as it would affect any 7-year old child. She began having nightmares. Stopped eating and started to have crying fits. She received counseling and gradually settled into a normal routine with the help of her teacher, Mrs. Henry. By the second year, Ruby started making friends and attending classes with the other students. Ruby attended integrated schools all the way through high school and went on to business school. (Interestingly, Ruby was reunited with Mrs. Henry on the Oprah Winfrey show.) That must have been an emotional reunion! Teachers really do make a difference. But it was Ruby's strength and determination that helped her to succeed. Still--no one does it alone.

Remember to look for the pictures of Ruby Bridges and Barbara Henry on the Wiki History Podcast page on Face book. I'm really moved by two pictures of 7-year old Ruby marching into school escorted by 4 US Marshals. One is a real-life picture. The second is what has become an iconic portrait made by Norman Rockwell called "The Problem we all live with."

We're still in 1960 and now we have the Greensboro Four and their protest is marked as the beginning of student activism during the civil rights movement.

The group known as the Greensboro four was attending the North Carolina A & T State University. They were dedicated students who were fans of Mahatma Gandhi, believed in nonviolence and spent their evening studying and discussing current events. Like many other young people, they had been and still were deeply affected by the murder of Emmett Till 5 years earlier. They had also been very impressed and moved by the Freedom Rides in the Deep South led by the Congress of Racial Equality (or CORE). They acknowledged some progress but also recognized and refused to be distracted into thinking that this progress was good enough. Most businesses were privately owned and therefore not subject to federal law that banned segregation. They decided to take action.

On February 1, 1960 at 4:30pm, all four students walked into a Woolworth in Greensboro, North Carolina. Wearing their Sunday best, they sat at the whites-only lunch counter and requested service. They were denied. They continued to request service in a polite way but they were continuously denied by store manager. They were told to leave but they refused. Police were called but they didn't arrest the students because they had not been violent or disorderly. Media arrived. Crowds developed. The students stayed at the lunch counter for the entire day until the store closed. Woolworth issued a statement to the press that it would continue to "abide by local custom", meaning that it would continue to practice segregation.

The Greensboro Four went back the next day. More students joined the sit-in, this time from the Bennett College, which was an all-women's college in Greensboro. Each day more students joined the protest—and it spread to other southern cities like Richmond and Nashville. By February 5th, hundreds of students joined in the lunch counter sit-ins. It paralyzed all business at the counter. The student protesters were verbally abused and threatened by white customers. THIS sit-in launched a nationwide movement at segregated lunch counters across the country. It also sparked a movement on college campuses that brought ATTENTION to the civil rights situation in the United States. The sit-in protests in Greensboro and other cities received lots of attention from the media and eventually the government. By the end of the year, many restaurants, lunch counters and privately-owned business had desegregated their facilities without any court action or marshals. And, yes, Woolworth in Greensboro also desegregated its lunch counters. Sit-ins were one of the most effective kinds of protests during the Civil Rights Movement. And it started with four intelligent, ambitious and civic-minded African American students and grew to more than 70,000 people protesting throughout the country. The protest ended on March 25th—lasting 5 months, 3 weeks and 3 days.

I absolutely love this story; it is SO inspirational on many different levels. The close friendship among the students. Their motivation, discipline and courage. Their education and reliance on a philosophy of non-violence and civil disobedience. The quick growth of the protests among college students who seemed ripe and ready to show their discontent and ability to fight for their rights. I could go on and on about this but I think that you see the same picture.* And because these students deserve our respect and have earned their place in history, I want to mention their names:

Ezell Blair, Jr.

David Richmond

Franklin McCain

Joseph McNeil

*[Applause track here]

This story shows how a small but determined group can create a big and lasting change. As a follow up, although their protests were successful and many people praised them, both Black and White, all of the Greensboro Four had to leave the city because of harassment and death threats. They had been labeled as troublemakers so the local white population made life difficult and dangerous for the men to continue living there. Today there are several statues and remembrances of the protests initiated by the Greensboro Four. The February One statue of the four student-activists is located on the campus of North Carolina A & T State University. It is really moving. And you can find the original four lunch counter seats at the International Civil Rights Center and Museum in Greensboro. I also have pictures on the Wiki History Podcast Facebook page. I strongly encourage you to see them. I'm sure that you'll be moved too.

Our last group of student-activists (in Part I) took the fight for civil rights to another level—the international level. They forged a CONNECTION with the civil rights movement in the United States and the anti-colonial movement that was sweeping across the continent of Africa. But I'm jumping ahead of myself; I'm just so excited to talk about this group. The group's name: The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (or SNCC). Let's start at the beginning.

Still--in 1960.

In April, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) sponsored a conference on student leadership and nonviolent resistance. This conference was partially initiated by the sit-ins in Greensboro and other cities. 300 students attended that conference. These students (who acted as delegates and observers) witnessed the formation of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. SNCC was born!

The members of SNCC joined the Freedom Riders that were sponsored by CORE (remember, Congress of Racial Equality). The Freedom Riders would take people all over the southern states to test the public facilities at the bus stations. However, the Freedom Riders started facing VERY intense attacks and violence. Buses were burned. People were assaulted with baseball bats, bombs and other weapons. Because of these attacks, in 1961, CORE suspended its Freedom Rides.

SNCC decided to start running its own Freedom Rides. A SNCC member said, "There was so much at stake, we could NOT allow the segregationists to stop us. We HAD to continue that Freedom Ride EVEN if we were killed in the process." So SNCC started making its own Freedom rides into the southern states.After numerous members of SNCC were beaten, tortured and imprisoned on false charges during the Freedom Rides, the government was forced to intervene and repeal the segregation laws that regulated interstate public transportation. SNCC had won—but at a great cost.

But the students wanted more. Their next campaign was for voting rights, which they started in 1963. Their slogan "one man, one vote" became the cornerstone of SNCC's programs. SNCC demanded universal suffrage in the United States, continuing to parallel the efforts in the U.S. with the efforts taking place within the anti-colonial struggle in Africa. These were some serious students!

SNCC continued its sit-in protests and also met with the Oginga Odinga, the president of the newly independent government of Kenya. The racist image of the United States that SNCC's work showed to the world was a sharp contrast to the picture of democracy painted by the politicians in Washington. And this became a problem.

In 1964, SNCC embarked on its most challenging effort with the Mississippi Summer Project. SNCC joined with other civil rights organizations in the state. (Like the SCLC and church organizations.) The coalition mobilized nearly a thousand volunteers from northern universities to travel to Mississippi to organize an independent Freedom Democratic Party and to register thousands of African Americans to vote. This was the famous Freedom Summer. The white protesters (including Klan members, law enforcement, policians and members of citizen's councils) responded to SNCC's civil rights activities with murder, beatings and imprisonment. If you're wondering, this WAS summer that Cheney, Goodman and Schwerner kidnapped and killed were killed by police and the ku klux klan. More young lives cut short for trying to register Black voters. Unfortunately, the Freedom Democratic Party was never seated at the National Democratic Convention in 1964 and universal suffrage wouldn't be guaranteed until the passage of the Voting Rights Act in 1965, but the work by SNCC brought many more people into the movement for political and economic equality.

Because SNCC had gained a high level of prominence from its consistent work and many successes, the student organization was invited to send a delegation to tour several independent countries in Africa during the fall of 1964. They visited the Republic of Guinea and received a special invitation to meet President Sekou Toure. One of SNCC's leading members, John Lewis also visited Kenya, Zambia and other African countries. After this important trip, SNCC created an international affairs section, which made a powerful presentation before the United Nations Committee on Decolonization. The role of SNCC during this period illustrated the interconnectedness of the African American struggle for equality and the struggle for independence by the colonized countries on the African continent. Independence, equality, and civil rights were now expanded beyond U.S. borders into an international movement on two continents! Wow. That is huge! Students took the struggle to a new level—as only young people can do!

But SNCC never lost sight of its commitment and work in the cities, small towns and rural areas of the south, working with farmers and young activists on a daily basis to fight for civil rights.

SNCC was a strong and sophisticated organization. It took political activism to a new level while always staying true to its vision. And its members bravely put themselves in harm's way to demand the right to vote and to demand equality in housing and education. They even faced the issue of police brutality together with its close ally, The Black Panthers. (Did you know that the Black Panthers' full name was the Black Panthers for Self-Defense?) I just have to give a big shout out to the Black Panthers (who were made up mostly of young people and students) for their efforts in the civil rights movement and for Black empowerment. Everyone had a role. But I want to mention just a few names from the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee:

Ella Baker

Marion Barry

John Lewis

Kwame Ture

Julian Bond

[Applause here.]*

Julian Bond, who was a former founding member of SNCC and eventually served in the Georgia Senate and House of Representatives, remarked, "a final SNCC legacy is the destruction of the psychological shackles which had kept black southerners in physical and mental servitude; SNCC helped break those chains forever. It demonstrated that ordinary women and men, young and old, could perform extraordinary tasks."

This wise statement applies to all of these student and youth activists. And we'll definitely see this in the next group of young people. Then in Part II, you will learn ways that YOU can make a positive difference in your own town, country or even the world. And, yes, it IS possible!

We're gonna go back in time and back down south to Birmingham, Alabama, 1963. There was no Civil Rights Act. No Voting Rights Act. Segregation was still the law in many states in the south and whites fiercely defended this way of life in Alabama. Dr. Martin Luther King, the SCLC, SNCC and other civil rights organizations and churches are DETERMINED to release the racist grip that the Ku Klux Klan, law enforcement, white politicians and citizens' councils hold on the city. In Dr. King's words, it was a true symbol of "hard-core resistance to integration." [pause]* May 1963. Birmingham, Alabama is "ground zero" in the fight for civil rights.

Civil rights leaders needed to take a stronger and more radical approach to their nonviolent protests. So, they decided to request the help and participation of students. They approached high school students and college students to volunteer in a march. And the students stepped up the plate. The students were trained in the tactics of non-violent resistance. Thus began the famous, never-to-be forgotten Children's Crusade.

On May 2, 1963, 800 Black students skipped school and gathered at the 16th street Baptist Church, awaiting for instructions. They marched 10 miles to downtown on a mission to meet with Birmingham Mayor about segregation. As the students approached city hall, singing songs of freedom, they were corralled by police and arrested. Hundreds were put into paddy wagons and taken to jail.

But that wasn't the end.

The march would eventually include 3,000 children.

The next day, May 3rd, the march resumed. But this time it was NOT met with a peaceful response. Police were waiting for them with clubs, water cannons and police dogs. The Birmingham Public Safety Commissioner—the infamous Bull Connor--ordered the men to immediately attack the students. They released the dogs and sprayed the students with the water cannons. The scene turned from a peaceful and quiet march of students singing along their way to city hall into a violent scene of terror with kids scattering and screaming as they were beaten and attacked by dogs.

The media captured the violent attack against the unarmed youngsters. Videos were shown around the country, actually the world. White-owned businesses and the white residents of Birmingham were criticized and ostracized by people across the country. On May 10, city leaders agreed to desegregate businesses and public facilities. It also captured the attention and sympathy of the President Kennedy who felt then compelled to public support federal Civil Rights legislation, leading to the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Oh, yeah, and Martin Luther King negotiated having Bull Connor removed from public office!

The Children's Crusade was an essential part of the Civil Rights Movement. Not just because it happened in what was called the "most racist city in the South." But also because the children were so determined and focused. They were prepared to face violence. Many of the adults didn't want to face arrest and imprisonment so they refused to participate. (Please understand that I'm not making any judgments about them.) But the kids were simply fed up and refused to back down. Many of them were arrested multiple times, had been beaten on numerous occasions and faced expulsion from school. Yet they kept coming back in greater and greater numbers.

Why would they do that? Here are the words of one of the high school student activists:

Jessie Shepherd, then 16, was soaking wet (from the fire hoses) when she was loaded up in a paddy wagon. "I was told not to participate," says Shepherd, now a retired clinical diet technician. "But I was tired of the injustice."

"I couldn't understand why there had to be a colored fountain and a white fountain," says Shepherd. "Why couldn't I drink out the fountain that other little kids drank out of? As I got older, I understood that's just the way it was, because my skin was black, and we were treated differently because of that." So she marched.

And that march changed the nation.

As we end Part I of this podcast show on student-activism in the civil rights movement, I would ask that if you participated as a student-activist in this march or any of the numerous other marches, sit-ins, Freedom Rides or any other protests, please contact rememberinghistory.com and tell your experience. We want to hear YOUR story. Please add your story and experiences on the comment page. Or you can send me a personal email message to [email protected]. And please tell your story to YOUR children, your nieces, nephews and other children that you. They NEED to know that young people and students CAN make a difference. That they HAVE power and influence. And knowing YOUR experience and knowing African American history (no matter about yours or the child's cultural background) shows proof of the power that young people hold in their hands.

On that high note, we will turn to present ways that YOU can get involved, ways that YOU can help. I hope you've seen that everyone can contribute. And that everyone has reserves of strength and courage that they probably never knew existed…until they are called to show it. That's exactly what the young people and students did during the Civil Rights movement. And the young people and students TODAY also have the strength and courage to make a positive impact in the lives of their families, communities, the country and even the world. And, as 2017 begins, it IS clear that strength and courage as well as integrity, passion and vision are going to be needed. As Dr. King remarked, what they do now will impact children who have not yet been born.

Please join us in Part II to start making an impact.

We have reached the end of this podcast show. Are you feeling inspired? I really am! And I hope that you too.

Please remember to look at the Wiki History Podcast page on Facebook so you can actually SEE these brave kids and for really candid scenes of their experiences. I have deliberately decided NOT to put the mutilated picture of Emmett Till on the page but you can find a picture of him as a promising and eager young man who was the apple of this mother's eye. You will also see other scenes from Money, Mississippi. And definitely don't miss the picture of Ruby Bridges being escorted into school surrounded by federal marshals. It's all there on the Wiki History Facebook page.

Also, if you enjoyed this show, please let others know about it. They might like it, find it inspirational too. We are growing a community of historians of all ages, backgrounds and interests. Everyone is welcome. Let's change the way people think about history—one good friend at a time.

And we have a special announcement and offer to make to all Wiki History podcast listeners in the next show. Especially for Black History month.

So,come back soon to Remembering History where we ARE remembering history and we're making it. Every day!

At the end of the show:

Finally, I just want to remind you that 2017, the Wiki History podcast show is dedicated to the National Museum of African American History & Culture. Located in Washington, DC, the National Museum of African American History & Culture opened in 2016. This kind of museum was long overdue but it finally happened and it is a place that everyone should visit and explore. Museums are a great way to bring history to life and to keep it alive for future generations. Wiki History is honored to be a part of this important process. For every person that listens to this podcast show, rememberinghistory.com will donate $1 to the National Museum of African American History & Culture.

And we have a special announcement and offer to make to all Wiki History podcast listeners.

Come back soon to Remembering History where we ARE remembering history and we're making it. Every day!

Bye for now!

************************************************************

But what TO do? How can YOU have a positive impact?

1. Recognize that there are major problems and challenges around the world. Some problems that existed and led to the Civil Rights Movement STILL exist. Problems like discrimination in voting, education, job and housing still exist. Police violence, poverty and cultural and religious intolerance STILL exist. There are more than * refugees around the world. The environment is under threat. I don't want to even try to list all the problems on a worldwide scale, but I just recognize that the world is a far from perfect place. There's a lot that you can do to have an impact. But awareness is the first step.

1. Get your education. Learn history. The rememberinghistory.com team is committed to keeping history alive and spreading the word so that we can avoid the mistakes of the past, learn the lessons of great people from the past. The world needs more people with education and insight. This doesn't only mean an "academic" education. Learn a trade. Develop a skill. Read a lot. Okay, these were 2 good ways to prepare yourself to save the world. Now, let's look at some specific things that you can do.

1. Do you have a cell phone? Well, you can use it to document racist behavior, threatening behavior or anything that is unacceptable. The camera on your phone can save a life. Remember, the world would never have known about the police beating of Rodney King. You can also use your phone to call for assistance from family, friends or the police. Trayvon Martin used his phone to report that he was being followed. Your phone can be a powerful tool.

After the first discussion:

Also, if you enjoy this show, please let others know about it. They might like it, find it inspirational too. Let's change the way people think about history—one good friend at a time.

At the end of the show:

Finally, I just want to remind you that 2017, the Wiki History podcast show is dedicated to the National Museum of African American History & Culture. Located in Washington, DC, the National Museum of African American History & Culture opened in 2016. This kind of museum was long overdue but it finally happened and it is a place that everyone should visit and explore. Museums are a great way to bring history to life and to keep it alive for future generations. Wiki History is honored to be a part of this important process. For every person that listens to this podcast show, rememberinghistory.com will donate $1 to the National Museum of African American History & Culture.

And we have a special announcement and offer to make to all Wiki History podcast listeners.

Come back soon to Remembering History where we ARE remembering history and we're making it. Every day!

Bye for now!

Can you vote? Do you want to vote? Do you even have a vote?

Great questions!

You might have a quick answer that "of course" you can vote. Or you WILL vote after you turn 18. That's excellent if you do!

Now what if someone told you that YOU couldn't vote?

You might answer: No, that's wrong. I meet the age requirement. I'm over 18.

But then you are asked:

Do you know the US Constitution?

Of course! I know about it, you say.

Then the registrar says: Great. Now recite the entire Constitution.

Do you mean that I should read it to you?

Can you read?

Yes, again, of course.

No, she says, just recite the entire Constitution from memory.

But I don't KNOW it from memory!

So, the registrar says, "Then you can't vote. Your application to register to vote is denied!"

Or the scenario could go this way:

You might be asked: Did you pay the $1,000 poll tax?

No, but I can pay it. I can write you a check right now.

Then the registrar says: No, you have paid it for 10 years. You owe $10,000 plus fines. Can you pay it now? Your answer: No. Then you cannot register to vote!

Or you might have been asked: Was your granddaddy registered to vote before the Civil War? Or explain what "Full faith and credit" means or what "ex post facto laws" are. Or I noticed that your name has a hyphen on the registry but not on your ID.

Denied. Denied. Denied.

I think that you get the picture: You are not going to be allowed to vote. Not today.

This was the situation faced by most African Americans in the after they received their freedom. They were regularly denied the right to vote.

And that is not the whole story. Many African Americans were threatened with losing their jobs, they were beaten, had their house burned down or even killed if they tried to register to vote. This was happening primarily—but not exclusively—in the southern states. And this was what African Americans, former enslaved persons, their children and grandchildren faced until the 1965.

So, when I asked: can you vote, do you want to vote and do you have a vote, I hope that you answered a resounding "yes!" to those questions. Because African Americans (and others) fought for the right to vote for a very long time. And the fight continues today—we'll get to that a bit later.

First, I want to welcome you to Rememberinghistory.com where we are remembering history and we're making it.

Hi, I'm Robin Lofton, the In-house Historian and host of this great and groundbreaking show that inspires YOU and your FAMILY with true stories, real experiences, practical lessons, cultural traditions, and fun celebrations—all inspired by African American history. I find history to be inspirational, instructional and entertaining. And African American history fits the bill in all of these ways. Personally, I hate boring stuff. So boring stuff is not allowed at rememberinghistory.com or at this Wiki history podcast show. So, if you're looking for boring, sorry you might have to turn to the other media. (I won't mention any names.)

In the previous podcast show, I mentioned how my history of jazz course in college has inspired a lifelong love of jazz. Some of you sent me your stories about how a history class and even a history teacher inspired you to read more, learn African history, to teach and even to go to law school. History really does have it all—the mystery, the drama, the suspense, the personalities, the victories and yes even the crushing defeats. My favorite historian—yes, I have a favorite historian-- David McCullough, said, "For almost anyone with the normal human allotment of curiosity and an interest in people, history is a field day!" He continues on to say, "Why would anyone wish to be provincial in time any more than being tied down to one place through life, when the whole reach of the human drama is there to experience in some of the greatest books ever written?" And this applies to all kinds of history—not just western civilization, American or European history. But also to African history (remembering the great Oyo and Ashanti Empires, the Kingdom of Kush, the amazing empires of Benin, Wolof and Kanem-Bornu—which flourished for a thousand years and there were so many others), and of course African American history (including but definitely not limited to slavery) and evolving as an integral part of American history. The saga continues. Like I said, you won't ever find boring stuff here. Okay, let's get back to the show!

Every month, the Wiki history podcast show focuses on a theme. The theme for January is: civil rights. And an essential part of civil rights is…voting rights. That's what we'll discuss in this show.

The previous show in January (for the new listeners) was a fun and innovative podcast called Lessons from a King. (Martin Luther King, that is.) His birthday is celebrated in January so the rememberinghistory.com team thought that this was a good opportunity to discuss Dr. King. We discussed 3 lessons—and they weren't what you might have expected. I don't want to spoil the surprise and ruin the fun so I'll just encourage you to listen to the previous podcast: Lesson from a King. Get ready to be surprised. And inspired.

The next and last show in January on civil rights won't focus on the law or rights but instead on the modern civil rights movement in the 1950s and 60s. The show will focus on a group that is often neglected though they had a huge impact: college students. College students were often on the front lines of civil rights activities. These student-activists were marching, engaging in sit-ins, writing articles and making speeches, registering people to vote and so many other activities. They were often threatened, beaten and sometimes worse. But their impact is undeniable. Stay tuned for this important show. Students can make a difference. So that's where we're going in the next podcast show.

We will get started with today's show in just a moment. Just a bit of information first.

During this podcast, you will hear about people, places, events and issues. You will HEAR about them, but I completely understand if you want to actually SEE them, too. We got that covered on the Wiki History Podcast Page on Facebook. You will find pictures, animated videos and a community of history lovers. There is also a place for comments, which I hope that you will leave for me because I really appreciate them and I do respond. Also, if you enjoy this show, please let others know about it. They might like it and find it inspirational too. Let's change the way that we think of history—one friend at a time.

I have one more item of interest, it's about our podcast dedication for 2017—but I'll save it for AFTER the show.

That's enough for now. Let's get started with this great and groundbreaking Wiki history podcast show called "The Fight for the Right: Voting Rights in America."

Let's think back to the opening of this podcast to the scenario where you were submitting your application to register to vote and the voting registrar asked crazy questions, made crazy demands and basically set up insurmountable barriers to voting (like requiring you to recite the entire 4500-word Constitution). In the end, you were not allowed to vote. And this was the situation faced by many African Americans for almost a hundred years—until 1965 with the passage of the Voting Rights Act. Yes, that's right, this discriminatory voting system started around 1870 (shortly after the end of slavery) and continued until 1965. In some ways, it continues today but we'll get to that a bit later.

You might say but wait, what about the 15th Amendment to the Constitution?!

Great question and it's a great place to start with our discussion about voting rights in the United States.

The 15th Amendment (passed in 1869) was short. It said,

"The right of citizens to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude."

That should resolve the question right there. Race, color or previous condition of servitude (namely enslavement) should not prevent a person from voting.

The immediate effect of the 15th Amendment was that more African Americans started voting and more African Americans were elected to public office. This didn't last long, however.

This short and vague amendment merely forbade the denial of the vote based on race, color and previous enslavement (weird thing to say). But it (very conspicuously) ignored more detailed issues such as the use of indirect methods to block the vote—like the poll tax and literacy test in the opening scenario of this podcast. Did you notice that they never asked or commented on your race in the opening scenario? And these "INDIRECT methods of disenfranchisement" were directly responsible for keeping African Americans out of the voting booths for nearly 100 years.

During that period, there was systematic disenfranchisement of African Americans led by conservative southern Democrats (yes, Democrats).

They used:

Literacy tests—first used in South Carolina. (Most former slaves couldn't read.)

Understanding tests—the potential voter had to demonstrate an understanding of certain clauses in the Constitution.

Poll taxes—large sums were required to register to vote, sometimes cumulative back taxes were required. This eliminated most African Americans and poor whites from registering.

Grandfather clauses—your grandfather must have been eligible to vote before the Civil War. Of course, most enslaved persons and their children would not qualify to vote under the grandfather clauses. Fortunately, the Supreme Court invalidated these grandfather clauses in a case against Oklahoma in 1915.

Residency requirements—you had to have resided in a specific area to vote.

Long-term residency requirements

Constant re-residency requirements—changing the reqs without notice

Election fraud was rampant. There was ballot box stuffing, throwing out votes by African Americans, and the refusal to count votes for Black candidates (this was discovered in Kentucky) but happened throughout the southern United States in the early 1900s.

And violence was actually the principal means used to disenfranchise African Americans and to keep them from voting or running for elected office. The Ku Klux Klan (founded in Kentucky in 1866) was formed with the purpose of terrorizing African Americans who acquired economic and/or political power, particularly focusing on Blacks who tried to vote. But "citizens councils" and other groups used violence to disenfranchise African Americans.

This period of black disenfranchisement (1870 to 1965) demonstrates that it was not caused solely by the actions of Southern states and individual people using violence and terror. It was also a failure of the PRESIDENT to uphold and exercise federal power to ensure that Blacks could participate in the electoral system. CONGRESS also failed to use its powers under the 14th and 15th amendments. And the SUPREME COURT actively undermined federal executive powers to protect black voting rights, refused to acknowledge racial discrimination even when it was obvious, and it accepted blatant constitutional violations. Lots of cases about that but too many to mention now. We'll examine one case soon though.

Let's move from THAT bleak picture to the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

The Voting Rights Act prohibits racial discrimination in voting. Notice the difference from the 15th Amendment? No focus on merely race or color or previous enslavement. The focus of the Voting Rights Act is on prohibiting ANY kind of action that in purpose or effect discriminates against racial minorities. That's big. Much bigger than the deliberately watered-down language of the 15th Amendment.

The DOJ said it best: the Voting Rights Act is the most effective piece of civil rights legislation ever enacted in the country.

It was signed by President Lyndon Johnson and has been amended at least 5 times to expand its scope.

The immediate and lasting effect of the Voting Rights Act was to SUSPEND literacy tests, poll taxes, understanding tests, grandfather clauses and all the other obstacles placed before African Americans applying to vote. But it did even more than that. It assigned federal examiners to oversee elections and assigned observers to help people register to vote. And most importantly it required states that had a history of racial discrimination in voting to apply to the U.S. Attorney General WHENEVER the state or local government wanted to create new laws, rules or codes that might result in racial discrimination in voting. Again, that's another "wow!"

The Voting Rights Act contains numerous provisions that regulate election administration. The Act's "general provisions" provide nationwide protections for voting rights.

The Act also contains "special provisions" that apply ONLY TO CERTAIN JURISDICTIONS. A core special provision is the Section 5 preclearance requirement, which prohibits certain jurisdictions from implementing any change affecting voting without receiving preapproval from the U.S. Attorney General that the change doesn't discriminate against protected minorities.

Remember this special preclearance requirement (where they had to get approval from the Attorney General) only applies to certain jurisdictions. I'm sure that you can guess which, but I'll tell you anyway.

Alabama

Georgia

Louisiana

Mississippi

South Carolina

Virginia

Alaska, Arizona and Texas were added in 1975.

And a few counties in California, Florida, New York, North Carolina (actually 40 counties in NC) and South Dakota.

Just look at the immediate effect. In 1964, a year before the Voting Rights Act was passed, 29 percent of African Americans were registered to vote. (That's a nationwide percentage—the figures in the southern states were definitely lower.) But just 2 years AFTER the Voting Rights Act was passed, 52 percent of African Americans were registered to vote. From 29 percent to 52 percent in just 3 years. The Voting Rights Act was POWERFUL. No wonder that it was a prime objective of Dr. Martin Luther King to pass this law!

If you're still not impressed, let me give you some real numbers. Going beyond registered voters. Here's one figure. In 1964 (the year before the Voting Rights Act), 6 percent of African Americans were registered to vote in Mississippi. By 1969, 59 percent of African Americans were registered! That's impressive!

But I'm sorry to say that problems continue for African Americans and other racial, ethnic and language minorities in the American voting system.

In one of its worst blows to civil rights, the Supreme Court invalidated important sections of the Voting Rights Act. The case was called County of Shelby v. Holder, decided in 2013. In a 5-4 decision, the Court admitted that voting discrimination continues to exist but said the Voting Rights Act exceeded Congress's power to enforce the 15th Amendment and was punishing states for past behavior that might not be relevant today.

The Shelby County v. Holder case was an unfortunate step backwards in the long struggle to end discrimination in voting. The reality is that discrimination in voting REMAINS a real and immediate problem. Violations still occur. And any violation (even if it seems small) often impacts thousands, tens of thousands and sometimes hundreds of thousands of voters. (Recent presidential elections have been decided by these kinds of numbers!)

I have official reports that list serious violations in practically every state in the country. The violations are numerous. The reports are detailed. And they show unequivocally that discrimination in voting remains a serious problem. I won't list all the violations here—there are just too many of them—but they are important so maybe I'll make a different podcast discussing them. But the most common violations can be grouped under the category of vote dilution. Attempts to dilute the voting power of individuals or groups of minorities.

Vote dilution is the practice of reducing he potential effectiveness of a group's voting strength by limiting the group's chances to translate voting strength into voting power. In the United States, this occurs when a traditional white majority precludes a minority group's choices from having any bearing or significant meaning in an election on par with the white voters in the same election. (I know that's vague so I'll try to get more specific.)

The usual device for diluting the minority vote is manipulation of district lines either by fragmenting the minority voters into several districts where a bloc-voting majority can routinely outvote them or "packing" minority voters into a small number of districts to minimize their influence in adjacent districts. This kind of re-districting is common, effective and insidious in disenfranchising African Americans and other minority groups. And it is happening right now.

I do want to mention other modern ways of disenfranchising voters.

1. Requiring state ID for voters. This was done in Georgia, Kansas and Alabama.
2. Excessively long waiting lines in some areas (for example, Maricopa County in Arizona had ONLY one polling station for every 21,000 residents while the rest of the state had one for every 11,000 residents.) People waited for hours to vote and sometimes the voting station closed before everyone in line could vote.
3. Closing polling stations in exchange for mail-only polling station. This was done in San Juan County, Utah. This opens the door to voter fraud and rejecting ballots from voters in certain areas (identified by the zip code).
4. Rejecting people whose names don't match EXACTLY the driver's license or social security cards. People were rejected for a missing accent or hyphen on the card. This particularly affected women, Latinos and African Americans.
5. Prohibiting people with a felony conviction from voting. That means more nearly 6 million Americans, including 1 in 13 African Americans are forever barred from voting.

These are pretty sneaky but effective ways of prohibiting large groups of people from voting. And it definitely has an effect in elections.

But don't despair. All is not lost. The Voting Rights Act is not dead. In 2014, Congress introduced the Voting Rights Amendment Act (with bipartisan support!) directly in response to the Supreme Court case. The VRAA includes NEW methods of federal action, NEW tools to identify and stop voting discrimination BEFORE it occurs and it works to ensure that election changes are transparent. So, the fight against voting discrimination continues in the Congress.

That brings me to the final section that examines what YOU can do to fight voting discrimination. Everyone has a role to play and, as you can see from the history, people from all backgrounds, races, genders and ethnicities have been working hard to ensure the right to vote and that the vote has an impact.

So, what can YOU do?

1. Be sure to register to vote. Check your registration status periodically to ensure that you have not been removed from the voter registry. (This happens A LOT!) But don't just focus on federal elections. Vote in state, county and local elections. Most voter discrimination happens at the local level.
2. Keep abreast of changes to the voting rules in your district. Again, remember to watch the local elections too—where most voter discrimination occurs. Watch everything from federal elections down to the local school board election. It all matters!
3. Speak out and challenge any rules that negatively affect your ability to vote. Get to know your local representative and contact them whenever changes are made.
4. Encourage others to speak out against discriminatory voting laws and rules.
5. Help others register to vote and assist people in getting to the polls.
6. At the voting polls, be observant. Report harassment, excessively long lines, intimidation of ANY kind or hints of voter suppression. Definitely report it.
7. Volunteer at voter registration events. The NAACP and other organizations regularly host these events.
8. Sign up for the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights at www.civilrights.org. They will send notifications whenever changes are proposed to the voting laws in your district. Then, take action!

So, you see? There is a lot that you (and I) can do to fight discrimination in voting. And we HAVE to do it if we want to ensure voter access and equality. We've come too far to drop the ballot now! Voter discrimination remains, "an insidious and pervasive evil" (that's a direct quote from the Voting Rights Act).

That wraps up this Wiki history podcast called "The Fight for the Right: Voting Rights in America." I hope that you enjoyed it, learned a little something and felt inspired and moved to do what you can to protect the right to vote. More people need to know about this continuing struggle. And it definitely IS continuing.

I realize that I mentioned names of laws and other information that you might want more information about. The rememberinghistory.com team has you covered. You can get more information, read the "What You Can Do" list, see great pictures and even find good a book list at the Wiki History podcast page on Facebook. You will also find a link to a short animated video about voting rights. It's only 2 minutes and I think that you'll find interesting and fun. And it's great for kids of all ages.

Finally, I just want to remind you that 2017, the Wiki History podcast show is dedicated to the National Museum of African American History & Culture. Located in Washington, DC, the National Museum of African American History & Culture opened in 2016. This kind of museum was long overdue but it finally happened and it is a place that everyone should visit and explore. Museums are a great way to bring history to life and to keep it alive for future generations. Wiki History is honored to be a part of this important process. For every person that listens to this podcast show, rememberinghistory.com will donate $1 to the National Museum of African American History & Culture.

The next show is about the role and impact of students in the civil rights movement. These student-activists were bold, brave and didn't back down. You definitely don't wanna miss that show! After that we're heading into Black History Month, which is always an exciting month at rememberinghistory.com. And we have a special announcement and offer to make to all Wiki History podcast listeners.

Come back soon to Remembering History where we ARE remembering history and we're making it. Every day!

Bye for now!

Rememberinghistory.com Podcast Show

January 2017

Hello and welcome back to rememberinghistory.com where we are remembering history and we're making it. I'm Robin Lofton, the host of this great and groundbreaking show that inspires YOU and YOUR family with stories, experiences, lessons, traditions, and celebrations—all from African American history. That's right—it's inspirational. History—in all its forms--can be inspirational. American history, ancient history, European history, music history, history of medicine, history of technology, history of law, women's history. All kinds of history can be inspirational, instructional and entertaining. And African American history fits the bill in all of these ways. I remember taking a course on the history of jazz when I was in college. Confession time, I took the class because I heard that it was easy and that I would easily get a good grade. What do you think that I discovered when I actually took the class? It WAS easy and I DID get a good grade. But it was easy because it was so interesting. I listened to and learned about great jazz musicians like Muddy Waters, Louie Armstrong, Count Basie, Chet Baker, Miles Davis and so many others. I learned about how and why jazz (and the blues) developed, how it changed over time and heard amazing true stories about the people who created this form of "folk music". Yes, history of jazz was easy for me because it was absolutely fascinating. And I've been something of a jazz maniac ever since, going to jazz festivals throughout the United States and Europe. One class—one history class—changed me forever. That's what history can do. I hate "boring stuff". So you won't ever find boring stuff here. Okay, let's get back to the show!

Every month, the rememberinghistory.com podcast show (which is actually called Wiki History) focuses on a theme. The theme for January is: civil rights. I know that you've heard of them but what are "civil rights"? Broadly, civil rights (as defined by Wikipedia—and a big shout out to them for their work) is a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. That's pretty general but it's accurate. So, this month, the Wiki History podcast show will have two shows on civil rights.

The first show on civil rights is about the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The Voting Rights Act prohibited discrimination in voting based on race, gender, religion and other characteristics. I think that this is a particularly important time to discuss the Voting Rights Act because the right and ability to vote are (in my humble but educated opinion) at the very heart of democracy. If there is no voter equality then there is really isn't a functioning or legitimate democracy. So, this will be discussed in the podcast coming later this month.

The second show on civil rights will not focus on the law but on the modern civil rights movement in the 1950s and 60s. The show will focus on a group that is often neglected though they had an enormous impact: college students. College students were often on the front lines of civil rights activities. These student-activists were marching, engaging in sit-ins, writing articles and making speeches, registering people to vote and so many other activities. They were often threatened, beaten and sometimes worse. But their impact is undeniable. Stay tuned for this important show. Students can make a difference.

But today's show is a slightly different—only slightly—because it is about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He fought hard for civil rights; we all know that. But his birthday is also in January—January 15th to be exact—so I felt that it was important to have a show that gives a "shout out" to him and remembers his birthday, which is celebrated as a federal holiday in the United States on the third Monday of January. Today's Wiki history show about Dr. King won't focus so much on what he did—though that will be discussed—but rather on how he can continue to inspire us, long after his early death in 1968. This show and every Wiki history podcast show is history at its finest. We'll go beyond the names, dates and death counts of your high school history classes. (Remember, there is no "boring stuff" allowed here!) Instead, we'll use history as a stepping stone to greater heights of wisdom and inspiration. We're gonna get to it after just a bit of important information that you might find helpful.

First, if you enjoy this show, you can get more information at the Remembering history podcast page on Facebook. You will find pictures, short videos and a community of history lovers. There is also a place for comments, which I hope that you will leave for me because I really appreciate them and I do respond. Also, if you enjoy this show, please let others know about it. They might like it and find it inspirational too. Let's change the way that we think of history—one friend at a time. By the way, you also find a short animated video of this podcast on the Remembering history Podcast Page (again on Facebook.)

Finally, I just want to remind you that 2017, the Wiki History podcast show is dedicated to the National Museum of African American History & Culture. Located in Washington, DC as part of the Smithsonian, the National Museum of African American History & Culture opened in 2016. This kind of museum was long overdue but it finally happened and it is a place that everyone should visit and explore. Museums are a great way to bring history to life and to keep it alive for future generations. Wiki History is honored to be a part of this important process. For every person that listens to this podcast show, rememberinghistory.com will donate $1 to the National Museum of African American History & Culture. I also donate personally and I hope that you will too.

That's enough for now. Let's get started with this great and groundbreaking Wiki history podcast show. Today's show is called "Lessons from a King."

"I have a dream" (speech excerpt) Play excerpt

August 28, 1963. I think that we all recognize this speech by Dr. Martin Luther King—one of the most famous speeches ever—given at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. It's also one of the most important glimpses into the heart and mind of Dr. King. The strength to dream, to envision a better world. The depth to let his spiritual side lead and encourage him to new heights. The audacity to challenge everyone to dream and work towards a world where equality, justice and peace are the norm.

And this speech is so inspirational that people want to wake up from their dreams to stand up and cheer. I certainly wanted to while I was listening to this recording.

We gonna hear more quotes from Dr. King throughout this podcast—he was one of the most quotable people on the planet—and his speeches inspired a generation. And continues to inspire people. There is so much that we can still learn from Martin Luther King and that is the focus of today's podcast. We are gonna focus on the lessons learned from and inspirations acquired from Dr. King. His legacy will never die.

By the way, this is one of the joys of history. We can be inspired by people who are no longer here. We can continue to learn from their lives, the mistakes and their victories. Their stories never die. They become part of the never-ending human drama.

So, what lessons can we get from Dr. Martin Luther King? How can he inspire us?

So many ways but we will focus on just three.

Lesson #1: Be Maladjusted.

Lesson #2: Work together.

Lesson #3: Take action.

He spoke about these lessons. But, more importantly, he lived these lessons. And they inspired the world!

Let's talk first about lesson #1. Be maladjusted.

That doesn't sound right, does it? Why should we be maladjusted? Maladjusted means "failing to cope with one's social environment or norms." Did Dr. King really encourage us to be maladjusted? In a word, "yes!"

In a speech to the YMCA on June 4, 1957, Dr. King spoke to a group of students. He said,--and I gotta apologize that I'm not have a lot of audio recordings of Dr. King's speeches. Instead, I will read an excerpt. Hope that's okay. He said, "There are some things within our societal order to which I am proud to be maladjusted and to which I call upon you to be maladjusted. I never intend to adjust myself to segregation and discrimination. I never intend to adjust myself to mob rule. I never intend to adjust myself to the tragic effects of the methods of physical violence and to tragic militarism. I call upon you to be maladjusted to such things." Later, speaking a Western Michigan University in 1963, he further said, "I never intend to become adjusted to religious bigotry. I never intend to adjust myself to economic conditions that will take necessities from the many to give luxuries to the few. I am proud to be maladjusted."

Wow! Here is Dr. King encouraging you to question societal norms that are inconsistent with your values and rights. Of course, things that Dr. King was fighting like segregation and discrimination are no longer legal but there are certainly other things happening and accepted today that you might not want to accept as normal, even if society does such as continued racial discrimination, LGTBQ discrimination, police violence, religious intolerance, economic inequality to name just a few.

Being maladjusted takes courage and conviction. It means going against an impassioned and fearful majority and deciding right and wrong on your own terms. This can be difficult but, as Dr. King said, "Our lives begin to end the day that we become silent about things that matter." Being maladjusted means not being silent. It means speaking out. It means taking a stand. It means doing something. It can even be dangerous if others who disagree with you feel threatened and become violent. But it is definitely the "high road." Creative maladjustment does not ask "is it safe?" "is it expedient?" "is it popular?" or "is it efficient?" Creative maladjustment simply asks "is it right?" Only your conscience can answer that question. And, as Dr. King said, "The time is always right to do the right thing."

Being maladjusted can be expressed in so many ways that can improve your life. It can encourage you to go to college or start a business when others are telling to get a low-paying, dead-end job. It can encourage you to travel and meet new people when others are telling you that it's better just to stay home. It can encourage you to follow your dreams to be a writer, musician or any other career ambition when others are telling to remain in your comfort zone or take something safe and steady. Being maladjusted can help you to live YOUR life rather than limiting yourself to what other's say is possible for you.

What an inspirational and courageous concept! With all the difficulties that we face today—things can be quite confusing!—we can all follow the enduring legacy of Dr. King and remain true to our values and let our conscience to our guide.

"There comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe nor politic nor popular, but he must take it because his conscience tells him it is right."

Let's move on to the next lesson. Lesson #2 is to work together.

At the commencement speech at Oberlin College in 1965, Dr. King while discussing the importance of unity said, "We must live together as brothers or perish together as fools."

When many people talk about the civil rights movement, they focus on the work of Martin Luther King. There's no doubt that he was at the center of the movement. But he was not alone. There were many organizations and people of all races, ethnicities, genders and backgrounds involved in the civil rights movement. And each person and organization played an important role.

Dr. King was not just a single person leading the movement. He was a founding member and the first president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, formed in 1957* following the successful 381-day Montgomery bus boycott. The Southern Christian Leadership Conference (or SCLC) was a group of Baptist ministers who recruited members from churches to participate in civil rights demonstrations.

There was the NAACP—working nationally and locally to ensure economic, social and political equality, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (or SNCC)—you will hear more about them in a podcast on students in the civil rights movement later this month, there was the Nation of Islam whose most famous member was Malcolm X who focused on Black nationalism, CORE—the Congress of Racial Equality who were instrumental in the freedom rights to register Blacks to vote in the southern states, NAACP Legal Defense Fund led by William Hastie and Thurgood Marshall working hard to document disparate education between schools for Blacks and whites and to abolish the federal and state segregation laws. There were many other organizations involved and thousands of people working at the national and grassroots levels during the civil rights movement. I'm reluctant to mention any names because I can't say them all and I don't want to imply that any one was more important than another. But I can't resist mentioning the "mother of the civil rights movement" Rosa Parks had worked to document and report incidents of white men engaging in systematic and unprosecuted sexual assaults against Black women. She had been involved in this risky work even before she refused to give up her seat on the Montgomery bus on December 1, 1955. There was Harry T. Moore* working in Florida to desegregate schools and demand equal pay for Black teachers. He and his wife were unfortunately killed in a bomb attack by the KKK. His story is amazing but often neglected. There was Viola Davis, a white housewife killed for transporting people during the March on Washington. (Remembering history has made an interesting but sad podcast about people killed fighting for civil rights. You can find it on the Facebook page.) And, of course, there were thousands of people who participated in the marches, sit-ins, freedom rides, boycotts and demonstrations. So many people. All working together.

Of course, there were conflicts and disagreements. Organizations had different approaches to achieving civil rights. Individuals had different motives and visions. But everyone ultimately wanted the same thing: freedom, justice and equality. I think that Dr. King: "We may have all come on different ships, but we're in the same boat now." They had to learn to work together.

No, Dr. King did not act alone. The lesson here is that we must work together towards our common goal. Whether that goal is the cause of justice and equality, fighting for the environment, helping the poor or displaced persons, passing a law, stopping violence or raising a family, nobody walks alone. We must work together. It takes a village!

The lesson is clear: Look for ways to live and work together. Or else everyone loses. Everyone will be defeated. There really is strength in numbers.

Now, let's turn to the third lesson (and arguably the most important and inspirational lesson of all). Lesson #3 is that you MUST take action.

Martin Luther King was a philosophical man, an educated man, a thinking man and a deeply spiritual man. But he was also a man of action. He was at the forefront of the modern civil rights movement from the beginning. Sometimes, we like to think of him as a man with dreams—and he certainly had dreams and visions of a better world. But he was absolutely committed to working—and I mean working hard—for change in the United States and around the world. And he always encouraged others to take action.

He once said, "Everybody can be great…because anybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace and a soul generated by love."

Is there any doubt that Dr. King was a man of action?

He organized and participated in numerous marches, sometimes in the front of the line. He also organized and participated in demonstrations and boycotts, gave speeches, wrote letters and sometimes just made an appearance to give people hope.

Dr. King was acutely aware that the work also had to occur in the political arena. He met with U.S. presidents Kennedy and Johnson, and Bobby Kennedy (who was attorney general under President Kennedy) constantly pressuring them for legislation on civil rights and voting rights, pressuring them to use federal troops to protect peaceful demonstrators and to enforce the desegregation orders in public schools.

He faced attack dogs, fire hoses and billy clubs in demonstrations. No, he wasn't present at the Bloody Sunday march from Selma to Montgomery in which the police and local citizens brutalized the nonviolent demonstrators. Afterwards, Dr. King stated, "If I had any idea that the state troopers would use the kind of brutality they did, I would have felt compelled to give up my church duties altogether to lead the line." He was arrested numerous times, risking getting beaten or killed in jail. Even when he was imprisoned, he wrote his famous Letter from a Birmingham Jail in which he stated firmly that Blacks can't be patient and wait for change. Change had to happen NOW.

This podcast is just too short to list all of Martin Luther King's work for civil rights. I just mention a few activities to reinforce the lesson that you must act to make things happen. Whether it is working for a cause, building a business, attending school, looking for a job or anything that is important to you, you must take action to make it happen. Sure, dream about it, envision it, plan it out. But also get to work to make it happen! And remember the words of Dr. King, "If you can't fly then run. If you can't run then walk. If you can walk then crawl. But whatever you do you have to keep moving forward."

So, you have the 3 lessons from Dr. Martin Luther King.

To recap:

1. Be maladjusted—don't accept the norm if it conflicts with your values. Dare to be different.
2. Work together—the more, the merrier and the more powerful. You don't need to do it alone,
3. Take action—work, work and keep working to achieve your goals.

That wraps up this Wiki history podcast. I hope that you enjoyed it, learned a little something and felt inspired. If you did like it, I would be grateful if you would tell others about this podcast and about the Wiki history show.

I realize that I mentioned a lot of quotations, names of people and organizations who were instrumental in the civil rights movement. You can get more information, see iconic pictures, find the quotations and even good a book list at the remembering history podcast page on Facebook. You will also find a link to a short animated video about "Lessons from a King". It's only 2 minutes and I think that you'll find interesting and fun. And it's great for kids of all ages.

The next show is about the Voting Rights Act. Dr. King was absolutely committed to the passage of this important law. You'll learn about it and how effective it remains today. (Spoiler alert: The Supreme Court has not reigned supreme in protecting voting rights!)

And the final show for January is about the role of student-activists during the civil rights movement. They were bold, brave and didn't back down. You definitely don't wanna miss that show!

Come back soon to Remembering History where we ARE remembering history and we're making it. Every day!

Bye for now!

Quick and Easy Guide to Celebrating Kwanzaa!

Habari gani!

That's a traditional greeting in Swahili.

Welcome to rememberinghistory.com where we are remembering history and we're making it.

Today we are talking about Kwanzaa! Tis the season!

Kwanzaa is a wonderful week-long celebration of African culture and heritage. It was designed to help African Americans remember the history, richness and rituals of African culture, particularly the African mindset of showing gratitude for the harvest, honoring the ancestors and remembering the family unit. Kwanzaa celebrates all of this.

Kwanzaa was founded in 1966 by Dr. Ron Karenga who was an active part of the Black nationalist movements of the 1960s and 1970s. He designed it as one of the first specifically African American holidays. During the 1960s and 70s, there was a movement by African Americans to reconnect with African culture and history.—things that were stripped away during slavery and then diminished and disregarded for years. So, Kwanzaa is a cultural celebration. It is not political. It is not religious. It is not related to Christmas. It is strictly cultural. Today, Kwanzaa is celebrated by about 30 million people worldwide in Canada, several countries in Europe and the Caribbean as well as the United States.

Kwanzaa (which means "first fruits") begins on December 26th and ends on January 1st (New Years Day).

So, let's take a day-by-day look at celebrating the 7 days of Kwanzaa. And, at the end, I will give you information about where you can find more places to learn about Kwanzaa and more ways to celebrate it. Spoiler alert: we're gonna get a bit of help from Maya Angelou!

It's important to remember that Kwanzaa is a celebration of African heritage. So, start with decorating your home, making your home beautiful with pictures, posters, art, statues or anything else that uplifts your spirit and beautifies your home. Place African crafts, baskets, cloth patterns, sculptures, banners and pictures throughout your home. Focus on the Kwanzaa colors of black (which represents the African people), red (which represents the blood or struggle of the African people) and green (which represents the land and future of the African people). Most important thing: create a space in a prominent area for the Kwanzaa table or altar. You will use that every day throughout Kwanzaa.

What will you need?

Kwanzaa mat (mkeka)—the mat is symbolic of foundational history and culture around which everything else is built. The mkeka can be a straw mat, a red, green or black table cloth or Kwanzaa flag or the Pan-African flag that is laid flat on a table or altar. Just be sure that it is in a central place for everyone to stand around.

Candle holder (kinara)—the kinara has 7 candles that represent the Kwanzaa principles. 1 black candle in the middle, 3 red candles on the left and 3 green candles on the right. The candles will be lit every day. Who lights the candles? Traditionally, this honor is given to the youngest member. But it can instead be given to the eldest member. You decide.

Unity cup (kikumba cha umoja)—this cup is symbolic of the foundational principle of unity which makes everything else possible. Fill it with juice and have it ready to pass around every day.

Let's get started with the traditional way to begin each Kwanzaa day.

Day 1. Harbari gani! Umoja!

On the first day of Kwanzaa, we recognize Umoja or the concept of Unity.

Dr. Karenga (remember he founded Kwanzaa) thought of Umoja (Unity)—working for and maintaining harmony and togetherness in the family, the community, the nation and the world.

The first day of Kwanzaa is celebrated on December 26. It begins with lighting the Black candle at the center of the Kinara (or the candleholder by the youngest or eldest member present. Lighting the Black candle marks the beginning of the festive Kwanzaa season. Someone will then make a statement, tell a story or even say a poem about the concept of Unity. This part is very flexible. You can sing a song, play an instrument, perform a dance or do anything that illustrates the concept of unity. Afterwards, the unity cup is filled with juice. Then it is passed around the table. Everyone takes a sip from the unity cup. After the sharing of the cup, the Black candle is blown out and the ceremony for the day is ended.

(Day 2): Habari gani! Kujichagulia!

December 27 is the second day of Kwanzaa. On Day 2, we celebrate Kujichagulia or self-determination.

Dr. Karenga thought of self-determination as defining who we are, creating who we are, and acting and speaking for ourselves.

On this second day of Kwanzaa, first the black candle is lit then the red candle (farthest to the left) is lit. Then someone will make a statement or tell a story about the principle of self-determination in his or her own life. Again, this part is very flexible. You can be as creative as you like. Afterwards, the unity cup is filled with juice. Then it is passed around the table. Everyone takes a sip from the unity cup. After the sharing of the cup, the Black and Red candles are blown out and the ceremony for the day is ended.

(Day 3): Habari gani! Ujima!

December 28 marks the third day of Kwanzaa. On Day 3, we celebrate Ujima or collective work and responsibility.

Dr. Karenga thought of Ujima as building and maintaining our community together, sharing our joys and problems and solving our problems together.

Next we light the candles in the following order:

1. Black candle (in the middle) is lit
2. Red candle to the far left is lit
3. Green candle to the far right is lit

Then someone present will then make a statement, tell a story or discuss about the principle of collective work and responsibility. Afterwards, the unity cup is filled. Then it is passed around the table. Everyone takes a sip from the unity cup. After the sharing of the cup, the candles are extinguished and the ceremony for the day is ended.

(Day 4): Hari gani! Ujamaa!

December 29 marks the fourth day of Kwanzaa. On day 4, we celebrate Ujamaa or cooperative economics.

Dr. Karenga thought of the concept of Ujamaa as building and maintaining our own businesses, and supporting the businesses of others and growing and profiting from them together.

On the fourth day of Kwanzaa, you will light another red candle. So the order is:

1. Black candle (in the middle) is lit first.
2. Red candle to the far left is lit
3. Green candle to the far right is lit
4. Then another red candle is lit.

Then someone will make a statement, tell a story or discuss about the principle of cooperative economics in their life or as it affects others. Afterwards, the unity cup is filled then it is passed around the table. Everyone takes a sip from the unity cup. After the sharing of the cup, the candles are extinguished and the ceremony for the day is ended

(Day 5): Habari gani! Nia!

December 30 marks the fifth day of Kwanzaa. On day 5, we celebrate the principle of Nia or purpose.

Dr. Karenga thought of nia as focusing on building our communities together, maintaining them, and restoring them to greatness.

On the fifth day of Kwanzaa, you will light another green candle. So the order is:

1. Black candle (in the middle) is lit first.
2. Red candle to the far left is lit
3. Green candle to the far right is lit
4. Then another red candle is lit.
5. Then another green candle is lit.

Then someone will make a statement, tell a story or discuss about the principle of purpose. Afterwards, the unity cup is filled with juice. Then it is passed around the table. Everyone takes a sip from the unity cup. After the sharing of the cup, the candles are extinguished and the ceremony for the day is ended.

(Day 6): Habari gani! Kuumba!

December 31st marks the 6th day of Kwanzaa and it is a very special day! On the 6th day, we celebrate the principle of Kuumba or creativity. As it is New Year's Eve, the day is an especially festive day because it marks the end of the calendar year.

Dr. Karenga thought of kuumba as working hard to make our communities more beautiful and functional for today and for future generations.

It begins as usual with the lighting of the candles:

1. First, the Black candle (in the middle) is lit.
2. Red candle to the far left is lit
3. Green candle to the far right is lit
4. Then another red candle is lit.
5. Then another green candle is lit.
6. Then final red candle is lit.

On this special final day of the year, the home is specially decorated with traditional Kwanzaa colors of black, red and green. Special dishes are made for the family and guests.

Plays are performed, family members read out passages and poems which are related to the seven principles of Kwanzaa. A story teller enjoys the center stage in the feast on this day. The focus of the day remains on Faith. But all seven of the principles are remembered and celebrated.

Then the unity cup is passed around. All members who are present should remember their ancestors while the Unity cup is shared.

(Day 7): Habari gani! Imani!

The last and final day of Kwanzaa falls on January 1st, New Year's Day.

The focus on the seventh day of Kwanzaa is on Imani or faith.

Dr. Karenga thought of Imani as believing in ourselves, our people, our parents and teachers and our leaders. Believing in the importance of our vision for a better community and for a better world.

Next the candles are lit:

Always begin with the Black candle in the center then alternate back and forth between the red and green candles until all are lit.

Then someone will make a statement, tell a story or discuss about the principle of creativity. Afterwards, the unity cup is filled with juice. Then it is passed around the table. Everyone takes a sip from the unity cup. After the sharing of the cup, the candles are extinguished and the ceremony for the day is ended.

Everyone concludes the ceremony saying "Harambee!" (which is a reminder to "let's pull together!") seven times—one time for each day of the Kwanzaa ceremony.

So, that is the celebration of Kwanzaa. You see that it can help to remember and feel the connection with your African roots, culture and heritage. There's lots more that you can do as part of this celebration. Do it YOUR way but don't be shy about expanding yourself and reaching for new experiences.

Here are a few final notes:

The daily ceremony is very simple but please remember that this is a sacred time for the family and other members present. Turn off cell phones. Focus on the rituals, the words or songs. Get into the mood. Show respect for the ceremony. It does not need to be somber. It is a joyful time but it is also a sacred time. Put all of your thought, energy and focus into these moments with your family. And remember: you can celebrate Kwanzaa and remember your cultural heritage, history and ancestors every day of the year.

And, as I promised in the beginning, you can get more information about Kwanzaa from Maya Angelou. She and award-winning filmmaker, MK Asante made a movie about Kwanzaa called The Black Candle. It is the first movie ever made about Kwanzaa and was filmed in the United States, Africa, Europe and the Caribbean. The film discusses Kwanzaa's growth during the Black Power movement through the modern day experience as a global pan-African movement. This is an excellent film for all ages and can help to understand the context, meaning and importance of Kwanzaa to families and communities.

By the way, if you have any questions about Kwanzaa or want to share your stories of how you celebrate Kwanzaa, please contact me at [email protected].

On that high note, A very joyous Kwanzaa from everyone at rememberinghistory.com where we are remembering history and we're making it!

Welcome back to rememberinghistory.com where we are remembering history and we’re making it. We’re here for another Wiki history lecture featuring the great and groundbreaking podcast series on African Americans in the United States military.

November is the month that Americans remember and honor its veterans—the brave men and women who fought for freedom and liberty both within the country and around the world. Did you know that there are nearly 20 million veterans living in the United States. Of that number, more than 2 million veterans are African American.

African Americans have fought in every U.S. war beginning with the Revolutionary War.

Civil War: 200,000 African Americans served, mostly but not all for the Union war effort. Did you know that Harriet Tubman served as a nurse and spy for the Union Army?

World War I: 375,000 African Americans served, mostly as labor: cooking, cleaning and building roads. There was also the Harlem Hellfighters—if you haven’t heard about these incredible guys, you can find their story on one of my podcasts.

World War II: 1 million African Americans who fought the Nazis. The Tuskegee Airmen were displayed their bravery and skill during this great war. Most roles for African Americans though were still limited to labor.

I won’t continue through all the wars but I’m sure that you send the trend! African Americans distinguished themselves and served with honor in every U.S. war.

Indeed, the African American presence in the military was always strong and is continuing to grow stronger. There were difficulties, particularly racial discrimination, there were victories and triumphs, there have been heroes (lots of heroes!) and yes, there have been defeats. The history is long and varied so I think that we should get started discussing this fascinating but often forgotten history, this forgotten contribution made by African Americans.

This is African American history at its finest! But you might be asking yourself: what can I learn from it?

Great question.

Here’s the answer: Courage. Determination. Honor.

Great qualities! Everyone can benefit from these qualities—whether military or civilian, male or female, rich or poor, Black or white. These are great qualities for everyone.

And these stories about African Americans in the military--their courage to face obstacles like racism, their determination to fight for their country and their freedom, their courage under fire whether it came from Nazis in 1944, from the Vietcong in 1969 or from other Americans, their honor in saving lives in their country and around the world—these stories will inspire you to transcend any hardships that might be in your own life.

Since this is a wiki history lecture, we will not discuss the African American presence every U.S. war—that would take a very long time—so we will focus on discussing a few special people who distinguished themselves in the military. Remember that my belief—and the approach that we take at rememberinghistory.com—is that history is made by individuals.

History is the story of how people lived, how they contributed to their world, what they dreamed of, what they fought for and what they died for. History is made by individuals. So I am absolutely going to tell the stories of a few special individuals who have served their country with honor and distinction. These people have not only helped to serve and protect us, they have also given us a path to follow. Just like the great explorers that we discussed in last month’s podcast series, these people are also role models that we can learn from. Some have distinguished themselves in combat, some by their mere presence in the military, others in unique and controversial ways. All are important. All have contributed to our freedom. And at rememberinghistory.com, we thank them all.

We will discuss two such heroes in the first episode of this series on Blacks in the military. In the second podcast show in the series, we will examine the stories of Blacks in the military as shown on the big screen. That’s right, we’ll discuss movies that show various aspects of the African American experience in the military. I love movies and I’ll mention some of my favorites. If you have favorites, I would love to hear about them. So please leave comments at the rememberinghistory.com website or at the Remembering History Facebook page. If we have time, and I know that we’re bumping up against Thanksgiving (if you are in the United States), we will have one final show that will take special note of the contributions of African Americans currently serving in the U.S. armed forces. You will definitely find this important and inspirational information on the website and Facebook page. And you might also find it on podcast. Send me a message and let me know what you would like.

Speaking about that, I hope that you remember the website and Facebook pages are places where you can find a great group of fun and friendly historians where you can participate in discussions, ask questions, make comments or just talk about anything that interests you. We’re open to all viewpoints and we welcome all interested people. Please also visit the Books & Stuff store where you can find books, DVDs (like the ones that I’ll mention in this podcast series) and lots of other educational and fun tools about African American history. Everything has been personally vetted by me so you can trust it all. Or you can send me your criticisms. I take full responsibility for everything on this website. Not many places where you can find personal responsibility but you can find it here.

Without further ado, let’s open our great and groundbreaking podcast show about Blacks in the Military with a unique and interesting person who was determined to serve her country. Yes, that’s right. We’re opening this great and groundbreaking show with a discussion about a woman who served in the armed forces. Women in the military is very common today, which is great. But her story began more than 100 years ago—and things were different then. Oh, but I’m jumping ahead (or rather jumping back) too much. Let me tell her story properly.

Cathay Williams might be a familiar name to you. But it’s not in many history books. And it’s not in the army enlistment registers either. However, in the army register, you might find the name William Cathay. In fact, I know that you will because I’ve seen it myself. William Cathay. 5 feet 9 inches in height, black eyes, black hair and a black complexion. But William Cathay did not exist. This is not a description for William Cathay enlisting in the armed forces. This is the description for Cathay William. That’s right. Cathay William. And this is her story.

This is the story of an African American woman who disguised herself as a man to enlist in the army, the Buffalo soldiers to be exact. And she is the first known African American woman to enlist in the United States army and the only African American woman documented to serve in the United States army in the 19th century.

Cathay William was born into slavery in 1844 in Independence, Missouri. When she was 17 years old, in 1861, she was captured and “freed” by Union troops (remember this was at the start of the Civil War). Although she was “freed”, captured slaves were considered contraband and were usually forced to work for the Union soldiers. Cathay William was no exception and she worked as a cook and laundress for the remainder of the war.

After the American Civil War ended in 1865, employment opportunities were scarce for African Americans. Cathay William always wanted to support herself. She was determined not to be a burden on any family members or friends. She applied for jobs but found nothing beyond cooking and sewing. Many African Americans looked to military service where they could have steady pay but also get an education, health care and a pension. But these positions were open only to men. A male cousin of Cathay William enlisted and received all these benefits. She decided that she would also enlist—as a man. She switched her first and last names (enter William Cathay), took the medical exam and enlisted. Yes, she actually passed a medical examination as a man! She was declared fit for duty on November 15, 1866 and was assigned to the 38th Infantry Unit. This was one of the six units known as the Buffalo Soldiers.

Cathay Williams was as strong as any man in the regiment and she was, in fact, the tallest of the unit. But her career in the military was short-lived. Unfortunately, she contracted smallpox shortly after enlisting the army in Missouri. Still, she marched 536 miles from Fort Harker in Kansas to Fort Cummings in New Mexico. Along the way, she had to be hospitalized 3 times. As a result of the smallpox, she suffered deafness and rheumatism. She also had 10 toes amputated because of diabetes, which caused her to use crutches to walk. In 1868 at the age of 47, she was discharged because of medical disability. No one (except her cousin and perhaps a few others in the regiment) ever knew that she was a woman.

After her discharge, she worked as a cook, laundress, seamstress and nurse in towns throughout Colorado. However, she could not continue to work because of the illnesses she contracted during her military service. So she applied for a military pension and this is when the problems began. Despite her disabilities, the army surgeon declared her to be in “overall good health” and “able to work.” During this time, it was discovered that she was a woman. (The exact means of discovery are not clear.) She was denied the pension. She had to continue working as a cook, laundress and seamstress to support herself. It is not entirely clear what year Cathay William died but it is estimated that it was as early as 1892 or as late as 1900. What is known is that the denial of her pension contributed to her death because she was forced to do physical labor despite her weakened condition.

Cathay Williams was a strong, brave and determined woman in an age when opportunities for women, particularly African American women, were limited.

She is quoted as saying, “The regiment I joined wore the Zouave uniform and only two persons, a cousin and particular friend, who were members of the regiment knew that I was a woman. They never ‘blowed’ on me. They were partly the cause of my joining the army. Another reason was I wanted to make my own living and not be dependent on relations or friends.”

She wanted to be independent. And she served her country with honor.

Courage. Determination. Honor.

Just a note that many women posed as men to enlist in the American Civil War. Some report list hundreds of women posing as men to serve in the army. Some were discovered because of hospital treatments. Others were not discovered during their service but only “confessed” afterwards. Cathay William is one of the few women (and the only Black woman) whose service is documented. She just wanted to make a living. But she was also making history!

Wow, what an amazing woman! Too bad that she contracted smallpox so early in her career. Still she tried to persist through the debilitating symptoms. Remember she did complete that 500-mile walk. Also, it was too bad that the military did not support her after she could no longer serve. But still she was a strong woman (physically and mentally) and she remained independent throughout her life.

She’s an example and role model to us all!

If you want to learn more about Cathay William—and I really hope that you do—I recommend a great book called Cathay William: From Slave to Buffalo Soldier by Phillip Thomas Tucker. You’ll learn a lot more about this amazing woman and yes there is much more to learn about her. The story will inspire you. Guaranteed!

Now let’s turn to another African American (this time a man) who is also great role model. In fact, he is such a great role model and a true officer and gentleman that the Military Academy at West Point gives an award EVERY YEAR in his name. Do you know his name? I hope so. But I’m gonna tell you anyway.

He is Lieutenant Henry Ossian Flipper and he has an amazing story.

Born into slavery in 1856, Henry Flipper was the eldest of 5 brothers. He was born and lived until his freedom in Thomasville, Georgia. At great risk to everyone, another slave on the plantation taught Henry to read and this would, as expected, play an important role throughout his life.

When the American Civil War ended in 1865, Henry (because he could read and write) attended Atlanta University. He displayed a strong aptitude for math and engineering so he was sent to the Military Academy at West Point. He was not the first African American to attend the academy. In fact, there were 6 other Black men already studying there. They all experienced racial discrimination as well as physical and mental abuse. At the time, there was 1 Black cadet who had been savagely attacked by several white cadets. The cadet (not Henry Flipper) survived the attack but was later expelled for making false charges against the white cadets who had attacked him. Now this did not happen to Henry but it shows the environment in which he was suddenly cast.

And Henry did experience a lot of racism and abuse from the white officers and cadets at the academy. Henry Flipper graduated from West Point in 1877. Although he wasn’t the first African American to attend the academy, he did become the first African American cadet to graduate (or be commissioned) from it.

He was then appointed as a second lieutenant in the army cavalry. His first commission was to lead the 10th army cavalry regiment. Perhaps you know them as the Buffalo Soldiers. Lieutenant Henry Flipper became the first nonwhite officer to lead the Buffalo Soldiers!

His first assignment was to Fort Sill in Oklahoma where he showed his skills as a master engineer. He began with engineering a ditch to drain the malaria-infested swamp. That ditch is still known today as “Flipper’s Ditch.” He also supervised the construction of roads and telegraph lines. From there, he was moved to Fort Concho in west Texas and two years later to Fort Davis, also in Texas. Unfortunately, Fort Davis is where Lieutenant Flipper would encounter the racism that would ultimately end his military career. This would be initiated by First Lieutenant William Shafter—Lieutenant Flipper’s commanding officer.

Lieutenant Shafter was brought to Fort Davis, Texas to command the 24th infantry, another Buffalo Soldiers unit. While Lieutenant Shafter accepted Black troops as soldiers, he was absolutely opposed to them as officers. This placed him in direct conflict with Lieutenant Flipper. Lieutenant Shafter (later known as Pecos Bill) brought charges of embezzling government funds (based on falsified evidence) against Lieutenant Flipper, which led to court martial proceedings. It was the ultimate frame up. Fortunately, the court martial found Lieutenant Flipper innocent of the embezzlement charge. However, he was found guilty of “conduct unbecoming of an officer and gentleman”.

This was based on Lieutenant Flipper’s relationship with the white daughter of a former commanding officer. (In fact, they used the letters between the Lieutenant Flipper and the C/O’s daughter as evidence against him.) Lieutenant Flipper was received a dishonorable discharge in 1882. He would spend the remainder of his life fighting the conviction and attempting to regain his commission. (By the way, Lieutenant Shafter would later be promoted and awarded the Medal of Honor.) But Lieutenant Flipper’s story is not over yet.

Henry Flipper returned to El Paso, Texas where he worked as a civil engineer. He also worked in Mexico and returned to the United States to work as an advisor on revolutionary politics for Senator Albert Fall. In 1923, Henry Flipper moved to Venezuela to work as a civil engineer in the petroleum industry. In 1931, he retired in Atlanta, Georgia where he died in 1940. But, no, the story still is not over.

In 1976, Henry Flipper’s descendants and supporters applied to the Army Board for the Correction of Military Records to overturn Flipper’s conviction and sentence. The board, after stating it did not have the authority to overturn his court-martial conviction, concluded the conviction and punishment were "unduly harsh and unjust" and recommended that Flipper's dismissal be changed to a good conduct discharge. In 1999, President Bill Clinton issued a full pardon to Lieutenant Henry Flipper.

After his discharge was changed, a bust of Lieutenant Flipper was unveiled at West Point. Since then, an annual Henry O. Flipper Award has been granted to graduating cadets at the academy who exhibit "leadership, self-discipline, and perseverance in the face of unusual difficulties.” This is the award that I mentioned earlier and no one is more deserving of such an honor as Lieutenant Henry Flipper.

Throughout his life, Henry Flipper was a prolific author, writing about scientific topics, the history of the Southwest, and his own experiences. In his book, The Colored Cadet at West Point (1878) he describes his experiences at the military academy. In the posthumously published book, Negro Frontiersman: The Western Memoirs of Henry O. Flipper (1963), he describes his life in Texas and Arizona after his discharge from the Army. You can find these books and others in the store on the rememberinghistory.com website. I also like the DVD called Held in Trust about Lieutenant Flipper. But I admit that nothing beats a book that is written by the person who has actually faced the situations. So, remember that you can find all these great resources on the website. You can decide which is best for you.

Courage. Determination. Honor.

Lieutenant Henry O. Flipper.

So, this concludes the two stories of African American women and men who served the country with honor and distinction. You might have noticed that I chose people who had been born into slavery. People who, upon gaining their freedom when slavery ended, chose to serve their country in the armed forces. Both Cathay William and Lieutenant Henry Flipper had different stories but also similar experiences of racism, discrimination and hardship. But they also had stories of courage, determination and honor. Their stories need to be told because we all can learn from them. We can aim for these high qualities.

Courage. Determination. Honor.

I hope that you noticed that both of today’s history makers also had a connection with the Buffalo Soldiers. If you want more information about the Buffalo Soldiers, I have a fantastic podcast about them (which also includes a discussion about the Harlem Hellfighters) that you can find on the website. I won’t go into detail about either legendary group right now, but I really encourage you to listen to my podcast about them. They were great history makers and they deserve recognition for their service.

In the next podcast show, we will examine a few of the best movies about African Americans in the military.

Let’s remember our veterans this month and every month. Let’s never forget their commitment and sacrifices so that we all could be free and safe. Not all were heroes. Not all were patriots. And not all came home. But their memory endures.

Because of my appreciation for their great service, I am dedicating these wiki history podcasts about Blacks in the military to a Black veterans organization called the National Association of Black Veterans or nabvets. They are an excellent resource for Black veterans and their families. They provide assistance with filing claims, have lots of information for veterans, and provide chaplain services. They have offices around the United States. Or you can visit their website at www.nabvets.org. For every person who listens to this (or any of my November wiki history podcasts), I will donate $1 to the National Association of Black Veterans Association. It is an honor and privilege to support this organization and I hope that you will too. They also have incredible volunteer opportunities so there’s another way to contribute. Remember www.nabvets.org.

Remember our veterans: Honor. Courage. Determination. Great goals for us all. And please visit rememberinghistory.com. Leave your questions or comments. And I would love to hear from our veterans or women and men who are currently serving in the military. You are a great inspiration. And thank you for your service.

Honor. Courage. Determination.

See you next time at rememberinghistory.com where are remembering history and we’re making it. Bye for now!

Hello and welcome to rememberinghistory.com where we are remembering history and we’re making it. I’m Robin, the founder and host of this great and groundbreaking podcast show. I would also say that this is an historic show—yes, I know it’s about history—but it is historic because we are discussing, learning and being inspired by people who have been forgotten by history. In this series, we’re focusing on Black explorers.

Remember in the first show of this series, we discussed William Sheppard who was born a poor boy in the southern United States but became one of the greatest explorers in the Congo, learned the Kuba language, gained the respect of the Bakuba people and became one of the world’s first human rights activists. He alerted the world to the horrible treatment and atrocities (remember the severed hands?) suffered by the Congolese resulting from the Belgian rubber trade. William Sheppard also became one of the first collectors of African art. In the second podcast show, we discussed Black women explorers and met Barbara Hillary who skied to both the North and South poles—oh, did I forget to mention that she did these amazing feats when she was in her 70s?! And we cannot forget Saray Khumalo who has already summited Mount Kilimanjaro (the highest peak in Africa) and Mount Elbrus in Russia. She has her sights set on Mount Everest but was stopped twice by natural disasters, both of which she was lucky to survive. But she so wisely noted that “We all have our everests.” And that’s why this podcast series is so important. We all do have our own everests to face. What is your Everest?

The explorers in today’s podcast also had their everests—though it wasn’t going high in the sky, it was going deep into the earth. But, of course, I know that you that Everest is not high or low, near or far. It’s within us. Within each an every one of us.

Still, today’s show is slightly different in the explorer series. Okay, I admit that each show is unique. We will still focus on Black explorers but in this podcast show, we will focus on Black explorers and guides at one place: Mammoth Caves in Kentucky. Why am I making this change? Why am I focusing only on Mammoth caves?

There are good reasons for this. I promise.

1. The Mammoth Caves are a very special place on this planet. The Mammoth caves are the longest known cave system in the world. There are more than 400 miles of vast chambers and complex passages. And it is twice as long as the second longest cave system, which is found in Mexico. New discoveries and connections add several miles to the cave system every year. The Mammoth Caves in the Mammoth Cave National Park are a World Heritage Site and an international Biosphere Reserve. You will see that much of the discoveries there are due to the work of the courageous and determined Black explorers and guides in the caves , which were described by Stephen Bishop (whom we’ll meet very soon) as a “grand, gloomy and peculiar” place.

1. The Mammoth Caves are important for another, perhaps surprising reason. The stories of the African Americans (both enslaved and free) who came to live and work at the Mammoth Caves showed a lot about the society and times in which they lived. It showed the difficulties, the struggles and the discrimination. But it also showed the triumphs, the courage and the great skills of both the enslaved and free people at the Caves. You’ll get more details about this, and get the heartwarming stories and the frustrating stories at the Mammoth caves throughout this podcast. The caves really were a microcosm of the society and racial conditions at the time.

So, I would like to get started with this third and final show this month about Black explorers, this time in the Mammoth Caves in Kentucky.

Of course, though, we have a bit of housekeeping to do. I’ll make it quick so we can get straight to the show. At the end of the show, I’ll tell you about the exciting and inspirational podcast shows for next month.

I’ll just remind you that you can get additional information about the explorers in this podcast series at the Remembering History Podcast page on Facebook. You’ll find a fun and friendly group of historians who love to be inspired and who love to discuss history. So, join the conversation. And feel free to discuss whatever interests you. This is an open forum for discussion and everyone is welcome. Also, you can find great books, DVDs and other educational resources about these great explorers at rememberinghistory.com website, at the Books & Stuff store. I have personally vetted all these resources so you can trust them. Or you can complain directly to me. I believe in accountability. You can’t find it in many places on the Internet, but you can find it here. I’m gonna stop here because I’m anxious to get to the real deal of this final podcast show on Black explorers. Remember that there is important information at the end of the show about next month’s wiki history podcast series.

Without further ado…

Let’s begin with arguably the greatest explorer of the Mammoth Caves: Stephen Bishop! Because of his great work, skill, and dedication, Stephen Bishop is without question one of the greatest explorers of the grand, gloomy and peculiar Mammoth Caves. And you’re gonna see why!

Bishop came to the Mammoth caves in 1838. He was African American, 17 years old and enslaved. Slavery was still legal in Kentucky and many other states. Remember slavery wasn’t abolished until 1865, some 27 years later. Yet because of his great exploration and guiding skills, he did enjoy some freedoms and privileges in the Mammoth caves—and avoided the grueling physical work and suffering endured by other slaves. In fact, he was first introduced to the Mammoth caves by a white explorer. This developed Bishop’s love of exploration—and he spent the next two decades exploring the Mammoth caves.

Although he was introduced to the caves by other explorers, Stephen Bishop went far beyond those explored and toured areas. Bishop discovered miles of new routes that no human eye had ever seen. And he opened the gateway for modern exploration of these vast and incredible caves.

Yes, he made history: Stephen Bishop was the first to cross the “Bottomless Pit” which was a series of deep vertical shafts. Other explorers had stopped at the Bottomless Pit, refusing to cross over that dangerous abyss. Quite understandable but Bishop was not scared or stopped. He continued past the Bottomless Pit and into areas that had been completely unexplored. And he later safely guided others over the Bottomless Pit and into new regions of the caves. Bishop also explored and guided others into areas of the Mammoth Caves called Fat Man’s Misery (I can only guess why it was given that name!), Cleveland Avenue and the Mammoth Domes. Those are some of the most famous areas of the caves, made famous and popular by Stephen Bishop.

He absolutely loved the Mammoth caves and had a real drive for exploration. Still it was hard work and he crawled through tight winding passageways, discovered an underground river, scaled huge rocks, and dared to walk on a rickety nature-made ladder across the "Bottomless Pit."

In 1856, Stephen Bishop received his freedom but unfortunately died the following year at the young age of 37. He left behind his wife, Charlotte, and son, Thomas. His cause of death remains a mystery but he is buried in the Old Guides’ Cemetery at Mammoth Caves National Park. Personally, I love visiting cemeteries because there is so much history and so many personal stories found there. So, if you visit the Mammoth caves, I think that visiting the Old Guides’ Cemetery would be an interesting and moving “exploration” and a great way to honor this great explorer.

And, by the way, I do want to mention that Stephen Bishop had many other talents that enhanced his abilities as an explorer and guide. He was also widely known as a great speaker, an excellent orator, a gifted singer and a natural showman. He brought his love of the caves to each visitor and brought the caves to life for everyone who dared to enter them.

Stephen Bishop might have been born into slavery, but he was never a slave. He was an explorer! And today he is a legend!

Another Black explorer who came to the Mammoth caves in 1838 was Nick Bransford. However, Bransford didn’t become a full-time explorer for nearly 20 years after moving to the caves. He started full-time guiding in 1857, after the death of Stephen Bishop.

Nick Bransford was an enslaved person (born during the period of slavery). Like Bishop, he was leased out and sent to the Mammoth caves to work. And interestingly there were records showing that he was valued at $800, which was substantially more than for other enslaved persons. This was most likely because of his skills as an explorer and guide.

Nick Bransford was a different kind of guide and explorer than Stephen Bishop. And he was also highly respected and trusted to lead people into the deep and dark caverns and the areas explored by Bishop. One visitor to the Mammoth Caves described him by saying, “He seemed thoroughly imbued with the spirit of the place in which he had spent the greater portion of his time for 17 years. He was as grave and taciturn as some cave-keeping hermit. During our inward progress, he had carefully pointed out every place and object of interest. If I paused or made a misstep, he instantly looked around.”

Bransford later purchased his freedom by selling eyeless fish from the caves. Yes, there were fish in the underground rivers who didn’t have eyes. And visitors were keen to buy them. Bransford was also known as a caring and giving man. He donated the land for the Mammoth Cave School where many Black children (including his grandchildren) learned to read and write. And he was one of the first deacons of the Pleasant Union Baptist church, which was located in the park.

Nick Bransford continued to work as an explorer and guide at the Mammoth caves until his death in 1895. He had devoted more than 50 years of his life to guiding and exploring. Unfortunately, his exact gravesite remains unknown today.

Many of slaves or former slaves came to Mammoth caves for similar reasons and had similar experiences. Yet everyone also had a unique experience.

Take Ed Bishop for example. No relation to Stephen Bishop. He came to the Mammoth caves in 1886. The slave period was over so he was free, he had not been leased to the cave owners like Nick Bransford and Stephen Bishop. But he quickly became a well-known and respected explorer as well as an integral part of the guiding force.

Among his greatest achievements was to guide the German cartographer, Max Kamper, into the Mammoth Caves. For 8 months, he and Kamper remained at the cave, visiting all the known sections. But Ed Bishop also discovered new sections that he presented to Max Kamper. One such newly discovered point (located on the Violet City Lantern route) was named Bishop’s Pit in 1908, in honor of Ed Bishop. Together Bishop and Kamper produced a map representing more than 35 miles of passages in the cave. Ed Bishop was widely recognized for his knowledge of the cave and as a teacher for the guides. Someone wrote: “The real guide was Ed Bishop. He instructed Hunt how to reach the New Discovery from the Cathedral Dome route and Hunt instructed Bob Lively. But during 1916 and 1917, it was always necessary to wait for Bishop to make the trip.”

Ed Bishop and his wife, Josie, later moved to Indiana where he died. Today, Ed and Josie Bishop (as well as their baby girl Chancey) are buried beneath a large cedar tree near the cave. Yes, there is a headstone (which was donated recently by cave guides). It would be wonderful to locate this headstone and see where this great guide and explorer was finally laid to rest.

Another explorer and guide who came to the caves after slavery was Ed Hawkins. No, not Ed Bishop whom we just discussed but Ed Hawkins. And he has a unique and interesting story too.

Although he was an explorer and guide, he didn’t take on this role exclusively like many of the others. Ed Hawkins also worked as a laborer on the privately owned Mammoth cave estates. In addition to exploring and guiding, he also did structural repairs, chopping wood and plucking chickens. But guiding and exploring were definitely his first loves and his greatest skills. Unfortunately, those skills were not valued by the owners of the caves.

Yes, slavery had been abolished but African Americans were still in a difficult position and treated as lower class citizens. Jobs and other opportunities were quite limited for Black people, particularly in the southern U.S. states like Kentucky. In those states, Blacks could have jobs as porters or waiters. In contrast, whites could have higher paying and more prestigious jobs like clerks or managers. And this severely limited Ed Hawkins’s opportunities at the Mammoth caves.

There was a story that Ed Hawkins had arranged and organized an exploration for himself and as a guide for a group. However, the manager at the cave forced him to cancel and abandon the exploration because he needed Hawkins stay at work and peel potatoes that day! One can only imagine how Ed Hawkins felt, how devastated that must have been for him.

Despite the difficulties, Ed Hawkins discovered a monumental series of vertical shafts. The passage leading up to these incredible shafts was later named Hawkins Pass. A great honor to this great explorer. And, yes, visitors can still see these shafts. Just take the Wild Caves Tour!

Ed Hawkins died in 1936. He is buried at Western State Hospital cemetery in Kentucky. Unfortunately, he was buried in an unmarked grave. But anyone who wants to show honor and respect for Ed Hawkins can visit the Mammoth caves and take the Wild Caves tour to see Hawkins Pass.

I just want to mention one unique characteristic of Ed Hawkins, which is actually more personal. He was known always to secure his clothes with large blanket pins. They actually look like giant clothespins. And they make Ed Hawkins very distinguishable in pictures. You can find a picture of him on the Remembering History Podcast Page. Please go there and take a look to see this great explorer!

Another Black explorer and guide at the Mammoth caves was also a multi-skilled, multi-talented person. Before coming to the Mammoth caves, Will Garvin was a private in the army, serving in a Colored Troop during the Civil War. Will Garvin was never an enslaved person. Following the war, he began exploring and guiding in Mammoth caves where he made his mark for discovering an area later call the Corkscrew. This was actually a maze through collapsed rubble that linked the upper levels of the cave system to the lower levels near the water table. This area also provided an exit from the cave so visitors wouldn’t have to retrace their steps.

Some people say that Will Garvin also discovered the Colossal Caverns. This area was so treacherous that it even wasn’t opened to the public until 1972 (some 70 years after its discovery). It is one of the caves still protected within Mammoth Cave National Park.

But Will Garvin also made another important discovery—or had an important experience. This is really interesting.

He was the first person to experience the optical illusion called the Statue of Martha Washington. As he was exiting the cave, he saw a spectral silhouette of a woman who looked just like Martha Washington! I know strange things can be seen in the caves but this was one of the strangest! And it is still occasionally seen on certain tours in the historic section!

Will Garvin died in the early 1900s, survived by his wife Hannah. The place of his burial remains unknown.

Stay tuned for more information on this optical illusion.

Finally, we come to Matt Bransford, who was neither an explorer nor a guide into the Mammoth caves. But he was an exceptional businessman who filled a niche that supported the work of the black explorers and guides. His work and vision puts him right up there with those history makers; he was truly a legend and an important part of the guiding and exploration work. And his story gives us more insight into the life and experiences of Blacks in the southern United States.

You might remember from Ed Hawkins’ experience, segregation in jobs and housing existed after the abolition of slavery. (Of course, we know that it continued until the 1950s and 1960s.) However, among guides, segregation wasn’t practiced. But outside the caves, black visitors did face segregation. Blacks were not allowed to be on the same tours with whites or stay in the same hotels as white visitors. Matt Bransford (who was the grandson of one of the original guides and explorers, Materson Bransford, who was an enslaved person) had travelled around the country, encouraging Blacks to visit the world famous Mammoth caves. But when Black visitors did come to the caves, they were faced with the problem of segregation.

What did Matt Bransford do?

He started special tours for African Americans into the Mammoth caves. Matt and his wife, Zemmie provided lodging and meals at their home for Black visitors. They later started a hotel called the Bransford Resort. It was the first place and time in Mammoth cave history that the African American community could experience the same comforts and fascination of the cave that white visitors had experienced for more than a century!

The Black community started visiting and enjoying Mammoth caves in large numbers. And they heard and kept alive stories of the Black explorers and guides like Stephen Bishop, Nick Bransford, Ed Hawkins and many others. These explorers became legends around the world!

So, Matts Bransford was not an explorer but his vision and contribution were essential to the African American experience and discoveries at the Mammoth caves.

This really shows that everyone has something to contribute. Everyone can make a difference. Whether it is by exploring the caves, providing tours in the caves or providing housing and food for people at the caves—everyone can make a difference!

So, this wraps up our great and groundbreaking podcast series on Black explorers. I hope that you have enjoyed it as much as I have. And I also hope that you have also felt inspired by their courage, their determination and their never-give-up attitude. They faced their everests—sometimes with fear, sometimes without it—but they faced their inner Everest and emerged victorious. They emerged as legends.

Are you ready to face your Everest?

By the way, the optical illusion experienced by * (and still experienced by visitors to the cave) was actually caused by the reflection of light from an approaching tour casting its lights upon the bends of the cave avenue.

As promised, I’ll give you a sneak peek into the next podcast series. Remember that we actually have two podcast series going right now. In our long-term podcast series, we focus on the Black educators. In the next podcast show, we will focus exclusively on Black educators who are men. I decided that it was time to show that women are not the only great educators, but that men have been and still are serving as teachers, mentors, coaches and role models for children of all backgrounds. They should be recognized and they will be in the next podcast show on Black educators. Stay tuned. In the second podcast show, we will honor and recognize African Americans in the military. The Black men and women who have served their country and are continuing to serve their country are often overlooked, even forgotten. But we will recognize them and I know that their stories will inspire us all. Stay tuned for that show. Both are coming soon.

Lot’s of great stuff coming so I look forward to seeing you at rememberinghistory.com where we are remembering history and we’re making it.

Bye for now.

Black Explorers Podcast Number 2

Hello History friends!

Welcome back to rememberinghistory.com where we are remembering history and we’re making it.

I’m Robin and I’m the host of this great and groundbreaking podcast series about Black explorers. In the first podcast of this series, we discussed William Sheppard who was one of the first black missionaries in Africa. He explored the Congo River region, established relationships with the local people like the Bakuba, learned the Kuba language and learned their techniques in hunting, music, growing crops and ancestral worship. Sheppard also established one of the first humanitarian organizations in the world and brought international attention to the human rights abuses (like slavery and torture) being committed against the local people as part of the Belgian rubber industry. He did so much on both sides of the Atlantic and his legacy as an explorer, human rights activist and African art collector continues to grow and spread. If you have not heard the previous podcast about William Sheppard, I hope that you will do so. It is fascinating and so inspirational.

That’s what I love about the explorers in this podcast series; they are courageous and visionary, yes, but they are also real humanitarians and activists. They wanted to (and yes they did) leave a positive legacy in their travels that has inspired and continue to inspire people today.

The explorers—the history makers—in today’s podcast show are no exception. In this podcast show, we will take a special focus. Our great black explorers are women. Many times, when we think of explorers, we are thinking only of men. Yes, there were lots of men who are explorers. And traditionally men had the means and more opportunity to make explorations. But that didn’t stop many women—past and present—from following their dream to explore strange new worlds, seek out new life or new civilizations or boldly go where most people have not gone before. (Ok, yes, I borrowed that from Star Trek but this description definitely applies here!) These women explorers in today’s podcast show went far and wide in search of adventure…and they definitely found it. So, I hope that you will enjoy this show and their stories. And I really hope to show that we all can achieve our dreams if we are committed, determined and focused--just like the explorers in this great and groundbreaking podcast series.

Okay, before we get started, just a bit of housekeeping.

Please remember that you can find additional information about the people in this podcast series, you can listen to other interesting podcasts and read the bodacious blog on the rememberinghistory.com website and the Remembering History Facebook page. There is also a special Facebook page called the Remembering History Podcast page that focuses specifically on information in the Wiki history podcasts. But the website and both of the Facebook pages, you will find a great community of fun and friendly historians who welcome everyone into the fold. Start a new discussion. Ask a question. Make a criticism. Or just enjoy the banter. Just come and have a good time.

Also remember that there will be one final part to the black explorers podcast series in which we discuss the Black explorers of Mammoth mountain. Most of these explorers were former slaves and they were actually guides that went into the Mammoth caves, way down deep where most people would not venture to tread. But they did. And their stories are amazing. So, please stay tuned for part 3 of this podcast series.

So, that’s all the details for now. Without further ado, let’s get started discussing our two history makers, Black women explorers.

Our first great explorer challenged not only race and gender barriers but also an age barrier.

Her name is Barbara Hillary and she made history! She was the first African American woman to reach both the North Pole AND the South Pole! And she made these incredible accomplishments in her 70s.

But let me back up and tell her story properly; I am so excited to tell her accomplishments but I also want to tell her STORY because that is also amazing.

Barbara Hillary was born in New York in 1931. Her father died when she was a year old so her mother moved her and her sister to South Carolina where they would have a better chance to receive an education. Barbara Hillary later moved back to New York to attend New York University where she received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees. She then worked in nursing with a focus on training staff to care for aging patients and developing service delivery systems in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities. She had a long a distinguished career in the nursing industry.

Upon her retirement, Barbara Hillary developed an interest in Arctic travel and exploration. She began with photographing polar bears in Canada but this only whet her appetite to go deeper into the Arctic regions. She set her sights on the North Pole. She worked hard and raised $25,000 for her excursion. And she actually reached the North Pole on April 23, 2007—at the age of 75! Do you think that she stopped there? I mean, it was a difficult trip –-that she accomplished on skis--and she had already made history as the first African American woman to reach the North Pole. And she was certainly one of the oldest people ever to have reached the North Pole.

But no she didn’t stop there. No, she set her sights downwards. To the South Pole! And on January 6, 2011, she reached the South Pole at the age of 79! At one point along the trip, she was the only expeditioner left along the trip-the others had dropped out because of time, money or hardship. But not Barbara!

She skied to the very top of the world and the very bottom of the world within 5 years and in her 70s! (Yes, I said that she skied there!) She has absolutely made history! More importantly, she has made her dreams come true and she has shown that age, gender, class (she wasn’t a rich woman!) and race do not have to act as barriers to achieving dreams.

But I have told only part of Barbara Hillary’s story. She had already faced other obstacles—but those still didn’t stop her. Before even making her explorations, she had faced and survived lung cancer—at the age of 67. But her treatment had caused her to lose 25 percent of her lung capacity. And this was not her first bout with cancer; she had been diagnosed with breast cancer in her 20s. But she survived it. Then 40 years later, she survived lung cancer.

Then she faced the North and South Poles!

What an incredible lady. She also committed her infinite energy to community activism, being an advocate for senior and minority health and founding a magazine called The Peninsula.

But Barbara Hillary is not done yet. She has her sights on new horizons but, like the amazing lady that she is, she is keeping her secrets to herself—and will reveal them when she is ready.

Stay tuned! I’m sure that she will continue to amaze us all.

You can get more information about Barbara Hillary on the Remembering History Podcast page where you can find pictures, updates and even a short audio made by the Barbara Hillary herself about her explorations. There is also an interesting bio with links about her at Blackpast.org. (I haven’t mentioned that website before but it is an incredible resource on Black history so I highly recommend checking it. It has many contibutors, including myself, that are committed to keeping Black history alive. Remember Blackpast.org.) And Barbara Hillary has a website called barbarahillary.com where you can see more pictures and even make a donation to her next expedition. Barbarahillary.com.

Let’s move on discuss our next great explorer, our next history maker!

This story is a bit different from the others—you’ll see why in just a moment—but the story is still inspirational and even provides a lesson for us all. One might even call this story a fable but I’ll let you decide what you think of Saray Khumalo and her incredible determination.

She was determined to climb seven of the world’s highest summits—and she’s almost there. 43-year old Zambian born mother of two Saray Khumalo has already scaled Mount Kilimanjaro (Africa’s highest peak) and Mount Elbrus in Russia. Then she set her sights on the mother of all mountains: Mount Everest.

Not surprisingly, this has been a monumental task but for different reasons that you might think.

In 2014, Khumalo made her first attempt at climbing Mount Everest. And, yes, this would have made her the first black African woman to do it. (Of course, we remember that Sophie Danenberg was the first African American woman to climb Everest in 2006. Great story that you can find on last year’s wiki history podcast series on Great Explorers.) And Saray Khumalo was ready for the climb. She had prepared: She spent two weeks climbing in the Alps, she trained in the gym 5 days a week, and she went hiking, rock climbing and camping every weekend. She was ready. She had even raised 1 million rand for Lunchbox fund, an organization that provides lunches to school children in South Africa where she had moved after her marriage. She was ready physically, mentally and emotionally.

But sometimes events happen that change our plans. Events over which we have no control.

In 2014, Mount Everest experienced one of the worst avalanches in recorded history. Climbers were killed or missing. Guides were killed or went missing. Saray Khumalo, who was climbing at the time, was lucky: she lived and was unhurt. But the climb was cancelled and she had to leave the mountain.

But she was not deterred. In fact, Khumalo was determined to return to Mount Everest in the following year (2015) and reach her goal of scaling the world’s highest peak.

Again, Khumalo went through intensive training and preparation. And she raised funds for an organization called Multiply, which would build libraries for children in South Africa. She was ready and determined.

Another event occurred. This time, Nepal experienced a 7.8 magnitude earthquake. Thousands (estimates of 7, 500 people) were killed or went missing. Nepal itself was devastated.

Khumalo was climbing on the mountain when the devastating earthquake occurred. She was stranded for days on the mountain, often without any shelter. Helicopters were damaged or were searching for survivors on the mountain or below in Nepal so Khumalo had to use her training, wits and faith to survive until she could be rescued and returned to safety. And, fortunately, she did return to safety.

And, her climb was over. But she lived and was unharmed for which Saray Khumalo is grateful and happy. “I was able to return safely to my family,” she says. “Being the first black African woman to climb Everest would be fantastic,” she says, “but I don’t want to lose focus. I want to come back to my family. I want to come back alive.”

So thwarted by two devastating natural disasters—first the avalanche then the earthquake—Khumalo has not yet fulfilled her dream of scaling Mount Everest. But she definitely still has her sights set on the mountain. She has not given up her dream.

This passionate explorer notes that we all have our own little Everests.”

“I believe ordinary people like me can reach extraordinary heights and if I can inspire a little child to say: ‘This homework is my own little Everest and I can also do it,’ then I would have done my job.”

Wow, that’s definitely the goal of this podcast series on great explorers: to inspire us to reach for greater heights, more distant shores, or whatever our dreams may be. Or as I always return to: to boldly go where no one has gone before. In short, as Saray Khumalo wisely said it, “to face our own everests.”

So, Saray Khumalo has not yet scaled Mount Everest (although remember that she has already scaled Kilimanjaro and Elbrus!) but she is still pursuing her dream. So, do you see how her story is slightly different than the others? But I also hope that you see how her story is so incredibly inspirational and so incredibly uplifting. Her story is not over so stay tuned for more amazing adventures and feats by this great woman explorer.

And remember her wise words: “We all have our everests.”

What is your Everest?

Saray Khumalo is so right about that. What is your Everest? How will you face it, scale it, conquer it?

I know it can be scary, even frightening, but remember the determination of today’s great explorers like Saray Khumalo and Barbara Hillary (who went to the North and South poles), and the courage of William Sheppard (whose explorations in the Congo that we learned about in the previous podcast show). They were ordinary people who followed the dreams and faced their everests. And you can too. We all can.

On this high note, I think that it’s a good time to close this podcast show about great explorers, who were also great black women. This is a group that does not get a lot of attention so I felt it was important to devote an entire podcast show to their accomplishments.

In the next show, we will focus on former slaves who explored the caves in Mammoth Mountain. They did extraordinary feats under very difficult circumstances and guess what? They emerged victorious. Their stories are often neglected but not in this great and groundbreaking podcast series. They will get their due—it’s their time. That podcast will be the finale of the black explorers podcast series. I hope that you will listen to all three shows in the series; you will definitely find them inspirational. Perhaps you will get a few ideas of your own. I hope so. And if you do, please share them on the rememberinghistory.com website or facebook page. I would love to hear them!

I hope that you will remember to visit the rememberinghistory.com website for additional information and discussion or the Remembering History Podcast page for more information and pictures of these great people. I really do believe that a picture speaks a thousand words and it just makes it all feel so real when you can actually see these great explorers. Take a look. You will also find a great group of fun and friendly historians who love to meet new people and have great discussions.

I will end this podcast show by asking again: what is your Everest?

And I look forward to seeing you next time at rememberinghistory.com where we are remembering history and we’re making it.

And we’re remembering those who are making it.

Bye for now!

Podcast: African American Explorers 1

Hi and welcome to rememberinghistory.com where we are remembering history and we’re making it. Today we begin our great and groundbreaking podcast series about Black explorers! And we also have a very special guest who will introduce them: Frederick Lofton who is known as the Lawyer Explorer. Frederick has made many incredible explorations and today he is on the Big Island of Hawaii making even more discoveries. We are so lucky that he is taking the time to tell us about explorations made by other African Americans. You might not have heard of these great people—which is very sad—but hopefully they will one day become household names because there is so much that we can learn from them and their stories are so inspirational. Let’s do a bit of housekeeping then let’s hear from Frederick, the Lawyer Explorer.

As you may know, October 12, 2015 is Columbus Day in the United States. Columbus is celebrated for his explorations in the 15th century. Although he set out for a short route to India, he landed in present day Bahamas, convinced that it was India. Today, we know that he didn’t actually land in the East Indies but instead landed in the Americas. We don’t want to discuss what he did in the Americas, but there is no denying that Christopher Columbus was an explorer. Of course, there have been (and still are) many people who show the courage to leave their own shores in search of distant lands and adventure. We hear their stories of courage (and sometimes conquest) in history classes and on the Discovery Channel or PBS. But we don’t often learn about African American explorers or women explorers and their burning desire to discover strange new lands and go boldly where no one has gone before.

This month’s podcast series will introduce you to more African American explorers and show you that while the world is getting smaller and smaller, the adventures and explorations are getting bigger and bolder. The boundaries are endless. The only limit is your imagination, your courage, and your willingness to test your personal limits.

What is your limit? How far are you willing to go for glory?

These stories will show that exploration is not about finding gold or conquest (many explorers, including Columbus, forgot that golden rule.) Exploration is a test of your limits and transcending them. And that’s about more than finding new lands…it is about finding yourself. And this applies to any new endeavor like taking a new job or following a new career, getting an education or going back to school, learning a new language or studying a new subject, moving to a new city or country or, like some of our explorers, even searching for new planets!

The people in this podcast series on African American explorers challenged themselves in many ways. They went beyond their perceived limits and ultimately expanded their life, their worlds, and themselves. And this continued long after they “returned home” from their journeys.

You might remember that last October (2014), we began this podcast series by introducing Matthew Henson who was the first African American to reach the North Pole, some say he was the first person of any race to reach the North Pole. And we mentioned George Gibbs who was the first African American to reach the South Pole. We also discussed the many heroic and distinguished Black astronauts, like Ronald McNair and Mae Jemison. So impressive. And, of course, we can never forget Sophie Danenberg who, in 2004, became the first African American to climb Mount Everest. Her story is incredible and so inspirational. Actually, all of these stories are amazingly inspirational. You can find these podcasts at the rememberinghistory.com website or on Stitcher Radio. You will be impressed and inspired!

These history makers faced difficulties, obstacles and hurdles like the North Pole and Mount Everest and they kept going. They kept pushing. They kept digging deeper and aiming higher. And they reached their goals.

So, if you’re up to the challenge, let’s begin our next exploration into uncharted territory. Let’s begin our journey with an African American man who endured many obstacles and hardships to explore what used to be called “the dark continent” and, in doing so, save millions of people from modern day slavery!

Without further ado, let’s hear from Frederick Lofton, the Lawyer Explorer. Frederick, welcome to the show!

****

Thanks, Robin, I’m really happy to be here to present a great explorer and a great human rights activist. He is not so well known yet but he deserves a place right at the table with many of the greatest explorers and humanitarians.

So, who is this great explorer and activist? I’m glad that you asked. His name is William Henry Sheppard. His story is both inspirational and incredible so sit back and get ready to be impressed!

William Sheppard was born in Waynesboro, Virginia on March 6, 1865. Now many listeners might know that Virginia in March of 1865 was still part of the Confederacy. Virginia was still a slave-owning state—but only for a short while longer. On December 31, 1865, slavery was abolished by the 13th Amendment. Now I digressed away from William Sheppard for a moment to discuss this important development. You see, Sheppard was NOT born into slavery. His mother was a free woman of mixed race ancestry and his father was a barber and the sexton at a predominantly white Presbyterian church. Sheppard attended Waynesboro’s “colored” school and learned basic reading and technical skills. At the age of 12, Sheppard left home and worked as a servant for a dentist from the Presbyterian Church and improved his literary skills by reading books that had been discarded by the dentist’s children. At the age of 15, he attended Hampton University and attended classes by Booker T. Washington. After graduating from Hampton, Sheppard took classes at the Tuscaloosa Theological Institute (now called Stillman College) where he was ordained as a Presbyterian minister. Sheppard became pastor of Zion Presbyterian Church in Atlanta but had a burning desire to become a missionary in Africa. He submitted numerous applications but they were all rejected because church leaders were not comfortable with an African American pastor travelling to Africa, especially without the supervision of a white minister. However, Sheppard boarded a train and personally confronted the Church board to demand that a position as a missionary in Africa. In 1890, Sheppard’s application was accepted and he was allowed to travel to Africa under the supervision of a white pastor named Samuel Lapsley. And Sheppard’s real adventures began!

The following year, Sheppard and Lapsley arrived at the mouth of the Congo River in what is today called the Democratic Republic of Congo. They established a mission in a village called Luebo. The first Africans to meet Sheppard thought that he was a rubber trader but Sheppard explained that he was there to teach about God. Because of his work and partnership with Lapsley, Sheppard had a dubious position with the local population to whom he was known as a “Black white man.”

But William Sheppard was a true explorer. He got to know and learn about the Bakuba people. He studied their crops, textiles and music. He studied the way that the Bakuba people worshipped their ancestors. He learned to hunt and killed snakes and large game to help feed the villagers. He even killed a hippopotamus and learned to dry the meat to trade and share with the villagers.

Sheppard learned to speak the Kuba* language, which helped him to discover parts of the Congo region where no American or European had ever gone. Sheppard and his local Bakuba guide would go from village to village buying eggs at different markets. For three months, he would buy and eat eggs and preach the gospel at every village where he stopped. For years, he stayed and studied the culture and, because of his excellent language skills, he was welcomed into the villages by the local leaders.

In 1893 (after an extended trip to London where he met with Queen Victoria), Sheppard returned to the Congo where new challenges faced him from Belgium’s King Leopold II who was the Congo’s colonial ruler at the time. The colonial government of the Congo Free State was using Africans as slaves to harvest rubber and build railroads, setting one African group against another in order to find traders with whom they could deal in the traffic of human lives. The Presbyterian Church in the United States opposed these activities and especially the atrocities that were occurring against the local people. The Church aimed to bring international attention to this situation.

Sheppard visited villages and people whom he had met years before upon his arrival in the Congo region. He was dismayed to witness the enslavement of the people, destruction of villages and food sources and the torture and killings of African men, women and children by the Belgians and their African allies known as La Force Publique. He was determined to bring international attention to this terrible situation. One of the most common forms of punishment imposed on the Congolese and Belgians was to sever the hands of any person who failed to meet their daily quota of rubber. Sheppard painstakingly made an exact count of severed right hands, noting 81 of them in a report that was later presented to colonial authorities.

Sheppard, together with two other missionaries, formed the Congo Reform Association, which was one of the world’s first humanitarian organizations. Through the Congo Reform Association, Sheppard continued to document and report on the atrocities committed in the Congo.

Back in the United States once more, Sheppard began to publicize his findings and wrote articles about them for church magazines. His allegations gained international attention and Sheppard quickly became well known around the United States and Europe as a human rights activist. In 1908, Belgium’s state-owned rubber company (the Kasai Rubber Company) sued Sheppard for libel and slander but the suit was later dropped because of Sheppard’s international acclaim as an explorer and humanitarian.

In 1910, William Sheppard returned to the United States, to settle with his family in Kentucky. He worked as a writer, speaker and pastor at Grace Presbyterian Church. He brought the courage that he displayed in the Congo to his work in the racially segregated state of Kentucky where, for the next 17 years, he spoke about equality and human rights to audiences throughout the American South.

You know, many people refer to William Sheppard as the “Black Livingstone”. But I take exception to that. (Of course, you know that they are referring to the explorer, David Livingstone. Remember, “Dr. Livingstone, I presume?”) While David Livingstone did make many important explorations and discoveries in Africa, William Sheppard approached Africa and the Africans in a different way. He was a humanitarian, a man of God and an African American man (remember a “black white man”) who opened his mind and heart to learn and observe. He was an explorer in the truest sense of the word.

Sheppard’s story is filled with courage and determination. He used his experiences, opportunities and innate curiosity and drive to become one of the earliest Black missionaries in Africa, a respected and multi-lingual explorer, an avid collector of African art and a human rights activist. That’s a lot for anyone to accomplish but particularly an African American man in the American South during the Reconstruction era.

But he persisted and demanded. He fought crocodiles. He persisted through 22 bouts of malaria. He researched and wrote about the sufferings of the people. He spoke to kings in their languages. And he followed his dream of going to Africa. As a boy, he often said of Africa, “When I grow up, I shall go there.”

That’s exactly what he did. William Henry Sheppard “went there.”

Where do you want to go? What will you do to “go

there”?

That is what this Black explorers series is all about: having the courage to “go there”.

William Sheppard did it. And you can too!

So, that’s all for this first show in this great and groundbreaking podcast series. It’s a lot and there is more coming. I hope that you enjoyed this show and brief story of William Sheppard—explorer, humanitarian, activist, and art collector. I hope that you see that he followed his dreams, overcame terrible hardships and improved his life and the lives of many others. His legacy lives on.

Thanks so much, Frederick for that interesting and enlightening discussion of William Sheppard. There is so much that we can learn from his story and I hope that his story will be told in schools and other learning circles, great and small. He deserves it. And we all benefit from it.

In the next podcast, we will focus on Black women explorers who also “said that they “shall go there”. And they did! They had a dream and they followed it. I won’t ruin the surprise but I will just say that these women went in many directions in their explorations. They definitely “went there”. Spoiler alert: one of these women explorers “went there”--to the North Pole, that is--at the age of 75! You won’t want to miss her exciting story—or the other inspirational stories.

So, that is all for now. I do want to remind all the listeners that you can get additional information and pictures of the William Sheppard on the Remembering History Podcast Page on Facebook. There is a great community of fun and friendly historians there who love to discuss these great people and their even greater adventures. And I would love to hear your comments and thoughts about today’s podcast or really any history topic that you’re interested in. I really enjoy hearing from you!

Oh and I almost forgot to mention that rememberinghistory.com website has a great store where you will find books, DVDs, and lots of other fun and educational products, including two amazing books about William Sheppard.

So, thanks for listening to the first part in the great and groundbreaking podcast series on Black Explorers. I hope to “see” you at part II of the series where we will focus on Black women explorers. We are doing fantastic work here and I’m glad that you’ve joined us for this great adventure.

Again, a big thanks to Frederick, the Lawyer Explorer whose adventures you can follow at thelawyerexplorer.com. I encourage you to visit his exciting website and follow his great adventures. The lawyer Explorer goes to many uber-interesting places and collects, learns and shares fascinating facts, legends and stories of the people and places in his adventures.

See you next time at rememberinghistory.com where we are remembering history and we’re making it.

Bye for now.

Hello and welcome back to rememberinghistory.com where we are remembering history and we’re making it.

I’m Robin, the host of this podcast show and I’m so glad that you have joined me for the opening of this important podcast series. Our history makers in this series will make you stand up and cheer. Or perhaps they’ll make up sit down and grab a book. Why? Because in this series, we focus on a group of history makers that are often forgotten: The educators. Teachers, tutors, lecturers, writers. People from all disciplines who teach our children or learners of any age. This is such an inspirational group and I’m gonna tell you why I think so.

First, I strongly believe in education. I guess that’s not breaking news. Oh well, I just had to say it anyway. But here is some breaking news: many of the greatest Black educators hailed from very humble, even disadvantaged backgrounds. Some were former slaves. Some were children of former slaves. They were sharecroppers who worked the fields from a young age. Or they were kids who struggled academically, faced racism or sexism, were labelled learning disabled or unteachable, had disciplinary problems or were denied even the most basic education. But what did they do? Did they give up? Did they accept those labels or accept that education was unavailable to them? Never! The educators that I’ll present in this podcast series overcame their difficulties, focused on their goals and worked tirelessly to learn.

But they didn’t stop there. They continued and applied their focus, determination and faith to make sure that every child gets an education and develops the skills to work towards their dreams.

Wow, they improved their lives and the lives of countless others. These people made a difference. And if they made a difference, it shows that we all can make a difference and improve the lives of others and improve this world. That’s why I find history so inspirational. The real stories of real people making a real difference! And these great Black educators were champions.

I will start discussing them in just a moment but I want to mention a few details. First, the rememberinghistory.com website is a great place to get more information, more inspirational stories and more inspiration every day. So, please visit the website and get inspired. Second, while you’re there, feel free to leave your comments about, well, anything that’s on your mind. We are a group of fun and friendly historians and we welcome everyone into the fold. Also, take a look at the books & stuff store where you will find books, of course, but also articles, DVDs, audiobooks and other sources of inspiration and history. Remember all the resources that you will find are personally vetted by me so you can trust the quality and authenticity of whatever you purchase. And if you find a book or whatever that you don’t like, send me a comment at the website. I read all comments so I will definitely take your views seriously. At the Rememberinghistory, we believe in accountability. You won’t find that in many places on the Internet but you can definitely find it here. You can also find an inspirational t-shirts, bracelets, greeting and post cards and lot of other items to remember history and to be inspired. And, finally, look for (and “like”) us on Facebook under the Rememberinghistory page and the Rememberinghistory Podcast page. Great information and great discussions in both places. Lots of fun and lots of inspiration.

Without further ado, let’s get straight to discussing great Black educators and how they inspired their students and how they can inspire us.

Let’s begin with someone who might be a household name. Well, I hope that she’s a household name! Mary McLeod Bethune! She is absolutely one of the foremost educators in American history and she definitely is an inspiration to us all. But I’m jumping ahead of myself. Let’s hear her story. Get ready to stand up and cheer.

Born in 1875 to former slaves in Mayesville, South Carolina, Mary Jane McLeod was the 15th of 17 children in the sharecropping McLeod family. Her mother was a domestic worker and her father worked in the cotton and rice fields. Eventually, the family saved enough money to purchase a small piece of land and they became full-time farmers. Mary Jane MacLeod worked in the fields from the age of 5 but early on developed interest in education and reading. She attended a 1-room school for Black kids. Mary Jane was the only child who could attend school so she learned everything that she could during the school day then taught it to her siblings at night. She later received a scholarship to the Scotia School for Girls.

After completing her studies, she married and took the name (that we all know and love) of Mary MacLeod Bethune. She and her husband, Albertus, moved to Florida and opened a small missionary school for prisoners. In 1904, Mary MacLeod Bethune founded the Dayton Normal & Industrial Training School for Negro Girls. The school opened with 6 girl students and her son, Albert.

The school had a very rigorous schedule, beginning the day at 5:30 am for Bible study. They studied home economics and developed industrial skills like dress-making, cooking and, as she called it, “techniques of self-sufficiency”. Later the school taught science, business, math, English and foreign languages. The rigorous day ended at 9:00pm every night for the school’s 250 students. Yes, that’s right. The school grew from just 6 students to 250 students in just a few short years!

MMB was a master fundraiser, getting donations from prominent businessmen like James Gamble (of Proctor & Gamble) and Booker T. Washington. But MMB strongly believed in self-sufficiency so the students also made and sold sweet potato pies, ice cream and fried fish to raise money for operations and supplies. MMB always focused on developing the school and educating kids to be self-sufficient. In 1929, 25 years after the Dayton Normal & Industrial Training School for Girls opened its doors, the school merged with Cookman College to become a co-ed facility called the Bethune-Cookman College. The college remained open and operational through the Depression and exceeded the educational standards set by the state of Florida. In 1941, the Bethune-Cookman College became a fully accredited college in the state of Florida. And it is still open and operational with students from around the country and abroad. In fact, Bethune-Cookman UNIVERSITY celebrated its centennial anniversary in 2004. From its humble beginnings as the Dayton Normal & Industrial Training School for Girls through its merging with Cookman College and finally its accreditation, Bethune-Cookman University has been educating girls and boys, women and men for 100 years! Its motto is “Enter to Learn. Depart to Serve.” Go take a look at BCU on the RH Facebook page page, see its student body, look at its curriculum. You will definitely be impressed.

MMB is quoted as saying “I had faith in a loving God, faith in myself and an endless desire to serve.” And these qualities extended beyond the field of education. Dr. Bethune was active in the early civil rights movement serving as president of the Florida chapter of the National Association of Colored Women. During this time, she fought for voting rights for African Americans.

So, education and civil rights. What more could MMB be involved in? One a personal level, she was committed to economic independence so she invested in many businesses like a newspaper and several life insurance companies. She felt that all women should be independent economically. And she did teach these skills for many years beginning with her school for girls that she founded in Florida in 1904. She was a true visionary, well ahead of her time.

This dynamic woman had the ambitious goals of educating African Americans, securing economic self-sufficiency for African American women and men and ensuring civil rights and equal rights for African Americans. We have to stop here discussing MMB but, if you want more information, and I really hope that you do, you can find it in the Books & Stuff store at the rememberinghistory.com website. I want to highlight one resource that you might find particularly interesting. It is a DVD called Mary McLeod Bethune: The Spirit of a Champion. This DVD was made in 2008 and will give you lots more information about this great woman—yes, there is a lot more to say about her—and will inspire you to go beyond your limits. In fact, her story will help you to remember that there are no limits. MMB once said, “Without faith, nothing is possible. With faith, nothing is impossible.” Nothing is impossible. Yes, she coined this wise statement.

And it so true!

MMB: a great educator, activist, advisor and woman.

But we need to move on discuss another ambitious, Black educator. Her work was more recent than MMB but had no less of an impact. Here is a quote from her:

“Teachers need nothing more than books, a blackboard and a pair of legs that will last the day.” Do you know what great educator made this true and profound statement? Marva Collins. And she not only talked the talk but she also walked the walk. And she helped so many children to learn and excel in school and in life. Her story is a lesson in vision, determination and compassion. Without further ado, let’s tell her incredible story.

Marva Collins was born in Monroeville, Alabama in 1936. Her father was a merchant, a cattleman and an undertaker. Her mother was a homemaker. She was raised in a small town just outside of Mobile, Alabama. Young Marva attended a strict elementary school based in a 1-room schoolhouse. Now I mention these “minor” details because her experience in the tiny and strict elementary school would have a profound impact on her later in her life and career.

Marva Collins always believed in the value of education. However, she saw that many students, especially black students, were being labeled as learning disabled and even unteachable. Some showed disciplinary problems or difficulties. Many of these children were either kicked out of school or quit school at an early age. Marva Collins, who had worked as a full-time substitute teacher in Chicago for 14 years, decided that this was unacceptable. And she decided that she could fix this problem.

What did she do?

She used her $5,000 pension savings to open a school for kids who had been rejected by other schools. Her school was a low-cost private school dedicated to teaching low-income African American students, particularly those labeled (erroneously as she asserted) as having a learning disability or unteachable.

Her school was called Westside Preparatory School. Its doors opened in 1975, located in the basement of a local college. The school opened with 4 students, one of whom was her own daughter. Later, the school moved to the top floor of her brownstone home. Westside Prep focused on high academic standards and discipline in a nurturing environment. It used the Socratic method of teaching (modified for use in primary school), taught phonics and classical subjects. Soon the school grew to have more than 200 students ranging from nursery school to 8th grade.

Marva Collins developed a method of teaching that reached and educated all students, especially the students that had learning difficulties under other teaching methods and the students that showed behavior problems. Collins criticized the teachers and the teaching methods, not the students. Collins said she had the data to prove that these students were teachable and were able to overcome obstacles of learning using her teaching methods. These methods also focused on behavioral issues and allowed students to learn and flourish. Westside Preparatory School remained open for 30 years. It officially closed its doors in 2008.

But Marva Collins didn’t stop there. She also created Westside Preparatory Teacher Training Institute to teach these methods to other teachers. You know, they said that true genius is the ability to create other geniuses. Marva Collins definitely showed her genius to the world and to the people who didn’t believe in her methods. Many teachers are now using the Collins method in schools across the United States.

In 2004, when accepting the National Humanities Medal (one of many awards that she received for her teaching and dedication), Marva Collins noted that there were no dropouts and no substitute teachers. When teachers were absent, the students taught themselves.

“Kids don’t fail,” she once said. “Teachers fail, school systems fail. The people who fail to teach children or who label them as unteachable, they are failures — they are the problem.” She noted, “Our children are self-motivated, self-generating, self-propelled.”

Those are essential qualities for all children—in the classroom and in life. Marva Collins was a true educator!

Do you want to know more about Marva Collins? I really hope so because there is so much more to know about this amazing woman, this incredible and dedicated educator. Of course, there are several books in the Rememberinghistory.com books and stuff store, but I want to highlight a television docu-drama called The Marva Collins Story, made in 1981, and starring Cicely Tyson and Morgan Freeman. You can find this excellent film in the books and stuff store at rememberinghistory.com. This is a great movie for the whole family and will make you want to stand up and cheer!

Well, that’s all for this podcast! I know, it’s a lot. I think that there were some surprises and lots of inspiration. I wish that we had more time but I think that you get the picture and I hope that you want to learn more about these great educators. Also, I really hope that you will leave your comments at the rememberinghistory.com website or the Rememberinghistory Facebook page. We love to hear your comments and have an interesting exchange of ideas. Perhaps you are an educator. I would love to hear what motivates you and how you motivate your students. Perhaps you were one of Marva Collins’s students, attended her teaching teacher training school or you attended Bethune-Cookman University. We would love to hear your experiences there.

(Isn’t it fascinating to realize that their work is still having an impact today!) History does not happen in the past. It is being made today and every day.

So, I’m glad that you came and I hope to that you will join us for the next podcast about Black educators. The next podcast is going to focus on educators who were Black men. Yes, there were many and they also had an impact though this can sometimes be forgotten. Well, we won’t forget them here. Join us for that exciting and inspirational podcast; you’ll stand up and cheer! And just a sneak peek into the final podcast in the Black educators series; we’ll look at historically Black colleges and universities and their impact today. You’re gonna love that show; I promise! And remember: Without faith, nothing is possible. With faith, nothing is impossible!

So, I look forward to seeing you at rememberinghistory.com where we are remembering history and we’re making it.

Bye for now!