Edmonia Lewis's

Edmonia Lewis's birth date has been listed as July 4, 1844. She was born in Greenbush, New York, which is now the city of Rensselaer.[2] Her father was an Afro-Haitian, while her mother was of Mississauga Ojibwe and African-American descent.[3] Lewis's mother was known as an excellent weaver and craftswoman, while her father was a gentleman's servant.[4][5] Her family background inspired Lewis in her later work.

By the time Lewis reached the age of nine, both of her parents had died. Her father died in 1847.[6] Her two maternal aunts adopted her and her older half-brother Samuel. Samuel was born in 1835 to Lewis's father and his first wife in Haiti. The family came to the United States when Samuel was a young child.[6] Samuel became a barber at age 12 when his father died.[6]

The children remained with their aunts near Niagara Falls for about four years. Lewis and her aunts sold Ojibwe baskets and other souvenirs, such as moccasins and blouses, to tourists visiting Niagara Falls, Toronto, and Buffalo. During this time, Lewis went by her Native American name, Wildfire, while her brother was called Sunshine.[7] In 1852, Samuel left for San Francisco, California, leaving Lewis in the care of a Captain S. R. Mills, although Samuel continually provided money for her board and education.

In 1856, Lewis enrolled at New York Central College, McGrawville, a Baptist abolitionist school.[8] During her summer term there in 1858, Lewis took classes in the Primary Department in order to prepare for courses she would take in collegiate programs. In a later interview, Lewis said that she left the school after three years, having been "declared to be wild."[9][a]

Education
In 1859, when Edmonia Lewis was about 15 years old, her brother Samuel and abolitionists sent her to Oberlin College, one of the first U.S. higher-learning institutions to admit women and people of differing ethnicities.[11] She changed her name to Mary Edmonia Lewis[5][9] and began to study art.[12] Lewis boarded with Reverend John Keep and his wife from 1859 until she left the college in 1863. Reverend Keep was white, a member of the board of trustees, an avid abolitionist, and a spokesperson for coeducation.[9] During the 1859-60 school year, Lewis enrolled in the Young Ladies' Preparatory Department, which was designed "to give Young Ladies facilities for the thorough mental discipline, and the special training which will qualify them for teaching and other duties of their sphere."[13]

During winter of 1862, several months after the start of the Civil War, Edmonia Lewis was attending Oberlin when an incident occurred between her and two classmates, Maria Miles and Christina Ennes. The three women, all boarding in Keep's home, planned to go sleigh riding with some young men later that day. Before the sleighing, Lewis served her friends a drink of spiced wine. Shortly after, Miles and Ennes fell severely ill. Doctors examined them and concluded that the two women had some sort of poison in their system, apparently cantharides, a reputed aphrodisiac. For a time it was not certain that they would survive. Days later, it became apparent that the two women would recover from the incident, and, because of their recovery, the authorities initially took no action.

News of the controversial incident rapidly spread throughout the town of Oberlin, whose populace did not generally hold the same progressive views of the college, and through Ohio. While she was walking home alone one night, she was dragged into an open field by unknown assailants and badly beaten.[14][15] After the attack, local authorities arrested Lewis, charging her with poisoning her friends. John Mercer Langston, an Oberlin College alumnus, and the only practicing African-American lawyer in Oberlin, represented Lewis during her trial. Although most witnesses spoke against her and she did not testify, the jury acquitted her of the charges.[14]

The remainder of Lewis' time at Oberlin was marked with isolation and prejudice. Also, about a year after the trial, Lewis was accused of stealing artists' materials from the college. She was acquitted due to lack of evidence, but not fully cleared. She was forbidden from registering for her last term by the principal of the Young Ladies' Course, Marianne Dascomb, which prevented Lewis from graduating.[16]

Kwame Nkrumah

Kwame Nkrumah PC (18 or 21 September, 1909 [a] – 27 April 1972) led Ghana to independence from Britain in 1957 and served as its first prime minister and president. Nkrumah first gained power as leader of the colonial Gold Coast, and held it until he was

deposed in 1966.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is a milestone document in the history of human rights. Drafted by representatives with different legal and cultural backgrounds from all regions of the world, the Declaration was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in Paris on 10 December 1948 (General Assembly resolution 217 A) as a common standard of achievements for all peoples and all nations. It sets out, for the first time, fundamental human rights to be universally protected and it has been translated into over 500 languages.Preamble
Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world,

Whereas disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people,

Whereas it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected by the rule of law,

Whereas it is essential to promote the development of friendly relations between nations,

Whereas the peoples of the United Nations have in the Charter reaffirmed their faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person and in the equal rights of men and women and have determined to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom,

Whereas Member States have pledged themselves to achieve, in co-operation with the United Nations, the promotion of universal respect for and observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms,

Whereas a common understanding of these rights and freedoms is of the greatest importance for the full realization of this pledge,

Now, Therefore THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY proclaims THIS UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS as a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations, to the end that every individual and every organ of society, keeping this Declaration constantly in mind, shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these rights and freedoms and by progressive measures, national and international, to secure their universal and effective recognition and observance, both among the peoples of Member States themselves and among the peoples of territories under their jurisdiction.

Article 1.

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

Article 2.

Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty.

Article 3.

Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.

Article 4.

No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms.

Article 5.

No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

Article 6.

Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law.

Article 7.

All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law. All are entitled to equal protection against any discrimination in violation of this Declaration and against any incitement to such discrimination.

Article 8.

Everyone has the right to an effective remedy by the competent national tribunals for acts violating the fundamental rights granted him by the constitution or by law.

Article 9.

No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.

Article 10.

Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the determination of his rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him.

Article 11.

(1) Everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law in a public trial at which he has had all the guarantees necessary for his defence.
(2) No one shall be held guilty of any penal offence on account of any act or omission which did not constitute a penal offence, under national or international law, at the time when it was committed. Nor shall a heavier penalty be imposed than the one that was applicable at the time the penal offence was committed.

Article 12.

No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honour and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.

Article 13.

(1) Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders of each state.
(2) Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his country.

Article 14.

(1) Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution.
(2) This right may not be invoked in the case of prosecutions genuinely arising from non-political crimes or from acts contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.

Article 15.

(1) Everyone has the right to a nationality.
(2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality nor denied the right to change his nationality.

Article 16.

(1) Men and women of full age, without any limitation due to race, nationality or religion, have the right to marry and to found a family. They are entitled to equal rights as to marriage, during marriage and at its dissolution.
(2) Marriage shall be entered into only with the free and full consent of the intending spouses.
(3) The family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and the State.

Article 17.

(1) Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others.
(2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.

Article 18.

Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.

Article 19.

Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.

Article 20.

(1) Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.
(2) No one may be compelled to belong to an association.

Article 21.

(1) Everyone has the right to take part in the government of his country, directly or through freely chosen representatives.
(2) Everyone has the right of equal access to public service in his country.
(3) The will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government; this will shall be expressed in periodic and genuine elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret vote or by equivalent free voting procedures.

Article 22.

Everyone, as a member of society, has the right to social security and is entitled to realization, through national effort and international co-operation and in accordance with the organization and resources of each State, of the economic, social and cultural rights indispensable for his dignity and the free development of his personality.

Article 23.

(1) Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.
(2) Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work.
(3) Everyone who works has the right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his family an existence worthy of human dignity, and supplemented, if necessary, by other means of social protection.
(4) Everyone has the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection of his interests.

Article 24.

Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of working hours and periodic holidays with pay.

Article 25.

(1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.
(2) Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance. All children, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection.

Article 26.

(1) Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory. Technical and professional education shall be made generally available and higher education shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of merit.
(2) Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups, and shall further the activities of the United Nations for the maintenance of peace.
(3) Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children.

Article 27.

(1) Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the community, to enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advancement and its benefits.
(2) Everyone has the right to the protection of the moral and material interests resulting from any scientific, literary or artistic production of which he is the author.

Article 28.

Everyone is entitled to a social and international order in which the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration can be fully realized.

Article 29.

(1) Everyone has duties to the community in which alone the free and full development of his personality is possible.
(2) In the exercise of his rights and freedoms, everyone shall be subject only to such limitations as are determined by law solely for the purpose of securing due recognition and respect for the rights and freedoms of others and of meeting the just requirements of morality, public order and the general welfare in a democratic society.
(3) These rights and freedoms may in no case be exercised contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.

Article 30.

Nothing in this Declaration may be interpreted as implying for any State, group or person any right to engage in any activity or to perform any act aimed at the destruction of any of the rights and freedoms set forth herein.

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In God We Trust

Queen of Sheba

Queen of Sheba, ruler of Ethiopia and Yemen (ruled 1005-955 BC)
One of the greatest women in world history:

In and around Axum, the old Ethiopian capital, there are over 50 obelisks, many of them undecorated. Some are believed to be very old, but firm dates have not been established. Near to some of these obelisks, one kilometre from Axum on the road to the city of Gondar, is a massive building containing a drainage system with “finely-mortared stone walls, deep foundations and an impressive throne room”. Ethiopian tradition establishes this building as the palace of Empress Makeda, the fabled Queen of Sheba (1005-955 BC). Tradition also establishes one of the obelisks, carved with four horizontal bands, each topped with a row of circles in relief, as the marker of the Queen’s grave. It was probably due to this evidence that J. A. Rogers, the famous Jamaican historian, declared that: “A few years ago her tomb, as well as the ruins of a great temple and twenty-two obelisks of her period, were excavated at Axum”.

The Queen of Sheba was one of the most powerful women in history. She is named as Makeda in the Ethiopian chronicle, the Kebra Negaste, or Bilqis, in the Koran. She presided over Ethiopia and Yemen (Saba or Sheba) and thus controlled the Red Sea, a great trade route. The evidence of the tomb and the obelisks indicate that the Queen of Sheba was an Ethiopian. There are also obelisks that seem to be intermediate in date and style between those of the Makeda period and those of the early Christian era.

African Americans endured

Although

African Americans endured abject racism and prejudice in the 18th Century, many businesses sprung forth in spite of the barriers ahead of them. With determined grit and sound practices, Black business leaders began to emerge and earned the right to engage in commerce like any other citizen. News One takes a look at 20 Black business owners between the time period of 1800 and 1900, highlighting their significant contributions to American society.

Joseph Randolph, President of the African Insurance Company

In 1810, the African Insurance Company was opened in Philadelphia. Helmed by President Joseph Randolph, the company was formed to help support African Americans who did not want to join the mutual aid Free African Society but needed assistance and other benefits. Historians note this is the first African-American insurance company.

William Leidesdorff, America’s first millionaire of African descent

William Leidesdorff was of mixed parentage but is largely identified as being of African descent. Raised in the Dutch West Indies, Leidesdorff was involved in the shipping trade initially. He was responsible for launching the first steamboat in the Bay Area of California and opened and operated San Francisco’s first hotel.  He also went on to become the city’s school board president. After amassing large plots of land, his worth at the time of his passing was nearly a million and a half dollars.

David Ruggles, owner of first African-American bookstore

Abolitionist and journalist David Ruggles was instrumental in the liberation of slaves as part of the famous Underground Railroad. After learning Latin from a tutor who attended Yale University, Ruggles would go on to publish works as a printer. A contributing journalist to popular papers of the time, Ruggles most-notable achievement was opening the first Black-owned bookstore in New York City.

Paul Cuffee, Quaker businessman

Paul Cuffee made his fortune in the shipping trade and went on to open Massachusetts’ first integrated school. After being born to a former slave and Native American mother, Cuffee tended to his father’s farm before taking to the seas. He was also an instrumental proponent in helping British efforts to give freed slaves a place to settle.

William Johnson, the “Barber Of Natchez”

Born in to slavery, William Johnson was freed as a young boy in 1820 and became a barber’s apprentice in Natchez, Miss. After his brother-in-law sold him a barber shop, Johnson would own and operate the business while teaching freed young Black boys the art of barbering.

William Whipper, abolitionist and lumber businessman

William Whipper’s path to success was rooted in a controversial idea known as “moral reform”; however, his contributions to antislavery are noteworthy as is his profitable lumber business with partner Stephen Smith in Pennsylvania.

James Forten, inventor and shipping businessman

James Forten, like many African-Americans in the North, made his fortune in the maritime industry.  He was also an active political figure and used his Quaker education to advance his life and others who wished to stamp out slavery. Forten invented a device for ship sails during his time in the industry.

Joseph Cassey, Philadelphia wig business owner

Joseph Cassey lived in the city of brotherly love after arriving from the French West Indies in the early 1800s. He struck gold with a wig, perfume, and barbershop business and was also involved in real estate with other partners in the city.



BLACK HISTORY

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In God We Trust

9 Interesting Facts About the Origins, Culture and People of the Gullah-Geechee

9 Interesting Facts About the Origins, Culture and People of the Gullah-Geechee

Many of the current inhabitants originated from the Windward Coast in Africa along the Atlantic. There has been decades of intense research, which has led historians to believe that many people are from the Gola, Kissi, Mende, Temne, Twi and Vai ethnic groups. Elders in the corridor believed that the terms “Gullah” and “Geechee” may have originated from the two cultural groups Golas and Gizzis. These two groups are near present-day Liberia. The current inhabitants have managed to keep their cultural West African roots for 300-plus years.
The term “Gullah” applies to the name of the islanders living in South Carolina, while “Geechee” refers to inhabitants on the islands along the coast of Georgia. Present-day historians and researchers say the region stretches from Sandy Island, South Carolina, to Amelia Island, Florida, as the Gullah Coast or the Gullah Corridor.
European slave owners captured and enslaved West African people in order to till their rice plantations along the eastern coast. The wealth acquired from this continuous rice cultivation brought millions to slave plantations operating in this region. While the enslaved west Africans brought their skills and were taken advantage of, they reaped no rewards. Now, the Gullah and Geechee fight for their land as tourism explodes.

Octavius V. Catto

Octavius V. Catto fought for a variety of causes related to desegregating public services and preventing discrimination against African Americans in politics and sports.