In honor of Black History Month, we salute the oft-invisible Black baseball players who found their place in history despite widespread racism and segregation.
MSR Legacy Archives
Black history unearthed in Mpls’ oldest cemetery
The oldest cemetery member is Morgan Jones, a former slave of a Virginia tobacco field who moved to Minnesota after gaining his freedom. Jones lived in Minnesota for 44 years as a free man. He died in 1906 at the age of 101.
Elder perseveres through creativity and crafts
As Black America recounts how far it’s come, there is pride in culture and in accomplishments. One can see how the contributions and sacrifices of America’s Black seniors are woven throughout every part of the country’s history. Black History Month formalizes that recognition. The MSR recently sat down with senior Arie Gipson in her home […]
Hidden history reveals Pullman porters’ link to Black Press
Conclusion of a four-part series In this final installment of our series about African Americans who fought for dignity and equal rights on the U.S. railways as railroad sleeping car porters and maids, we explore how the porters, traveling by rail across the country, were instrumental in spreading news about African American communities and starting […]
My parents’ pursuit of education has inspired me to succeed
Morgan Bettin-Coleman is a 2017 Cecil E. Newman Scholarship recipient. Her scholarship-winning essay appears below. Even when I was a little girl, I would often pass time sprawled on the floor, usually reading a book. Close by, both of my parents sat at desks, spending hours typing up documents or highlighting pages in long, seemingly boring […]
Pioneering local Black doctor tells of his long journey to medicine
Charles Edward Crutchfield, Sr. was born in a small semi-rural town in Jasper, Alabama, a town of 8,500 people, about 2,500 of whom were Black. But he was inspired to be a doctor at the early age of six and became a pioneering Minnesota physician. Unlike other parts of the U.S., the South did not […]
We must all do our part to pursue justice
By Charles E. Crutchfield III, MD Carleton B. Crutchfield, Esq. Christopher E. Crutchfield, Esq. In his famous April 4, 1967 speech opposing the war in Vietnam, Martin Luther King, Jr. said that “The arc of history is long, but it bends towards justice.” Today more than 50 years since his famous speech, our children are growing up […]
From the MSR Legacy Archives
One of the most delightful holiday affairs was the recent Eta Chapter Alpha Kappa Alpha formal at Coffman Memorial Union. A group photo of chapter members is shown above.
From the MSR Legacy Archives
As part of our celebration over the next several months of 80 years of continuous publication, the MSR will be republishing notable stories from our extensive archives of more than 4,000 weekly issues of African American news in Minnesota.
