The Sabathanites kept kids off the streets in a turbulent era The Twin Cities boasts some of the country’s top entertainers: Prince, The Time, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, and “Sounds of Blackness.” Every name is well known locally and worldwide. But there was another local group that, if you were raised in Minneapolis, was […]
Black History Month
“Early in life, I somehow got the feeling that I could succeed even if I were a member of a minority group… I knew that I would have to work hard and never give up. I would have to take many affronts, but if I kept my personal integrity, nothing could defeat me.” — Cecil E. Newman
In 1926, Carter G. Woodson founded Negro History Week in an effort to recognize African Americans in a history often void of their accomplishments. Surprisingly, this lack of recognition of African Americans and their contributions to society exists even now, almost a century after Woodson’s establishment of Negro History Week, now Black History Month.
Woodson recognized that if Blacks are unaware of their victories, they are more susceptible to give in to defeat under the weight of oppression. Our stories of triumph serve as a roadmap to future successes.
We hope you enjoy the stories of triumph offered in our Black History Month special section and in each and every week of the MSR.
Posted inBlack History Month
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 […]
Posted inNews
Hidden history: Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters
First of a three-part story Related story: Women helped build porters’ Brotherhood This is the first installment of a story about African Americans who fought for dignity and equal rights on the U.S. railways as railroad sleeping car porters and maids. Jim Crow prevented many of the porters from working in their trained professions as doctors, lawyers […]
Posted inPhoto Galleries
A Flashman flashback for Black History Month
In the accompanying photo, Dave Winfield, the Major League Baseball Hall-of-Famer who was born and raised in St. Paul, signs copies of two of his books donated to the Givens Collection at his alma mater under the watchful eyes of (l-r) Phebe Givens, widow of the late Archie Givens, Sr.; the late Arline Winfield, David’s […]
Posted inOpinion
Fueled by passion: George Washington Carver played an important role in today’s bioeconomy
Throughout the month of February, Americans celebrate Black History Month and remember the significant contributions historic figures, including Martin Luther King, Jr. and many more in the African American community, have provided our country. The impact of their legacies continues to resonate today, benefiting generation after generation. Many of these contributions are well-known, but many […]
Posted inBlack History Month, Special Editions
Gwendolyn Brooks: the first African American to win Pulitzer
A towering figure in the field of 20th-century poetry is the late Gwendolyn Brooks, who touched millions of all races with her eloquence. The first African American to win a Pulitzer Prize, she remains one of the most influential poets of modern times. Brooks (1917-2000) was born in Topeka, Kansas and moved with her family to […]
Posted inBlack History Month
The man who created an army of Black engineers
WASHINGTON — Most people have never heard of Eugene M. DeLoatch, but all over the world, they have seen the fruits of his labor, across the United States, in Puerto Rico, the Middle East, Japan, Germany, Korea, across Europe, Africa and South America. The people he trained have built buildings and other structures, molded rivers, solved […]
Posted inBlack History Month, Special Editions
Shirlee Callender is proof you can flourish at any age
Shirlee Callender has enjoyed a life of many good things, and she has many more to look forward to. Callender, a mother of three, grandmother of six, and great grandmother of two, was born and raised in Des Moines, IA, and came to Minnesota in 1951 right after high school. Things didn’t come easy at […]
Posted inBlack History Month
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 […]
Posted inBlack History Month
‘Hidden Figures’ author honored to shine light on untold Black history
Black history and U.S. history are synonymous, said best-selling author Margot Lee Shetterly. Her book, Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race, made the bestseller lists last year, and the movie of the same name released on Christmas Day has struck box […]
Posted inSpecial Editions
A Black History month special: Honoring the accomplishments of Minnesota’s Black medical community past and present
In celebration of Black History Month, a presentation giving honor to Minnesota’s Black medical community past and present will be held on Saturday February 18, 2017 from 11 am to 1:30 pm at the Hennepin County Library, downtown Minneapolis campus, in the Doty Board Room on the second floor. This presentation is free and open […]
Posted inSpecial Editions
2017 Black History Month Calendar (updated)
Find local events in celebration of Black History Month below sorted by date. Do you know of an event that we missed? Let us know by leaving information in the comment section or by emailing msrnewsonline@spokesman-recorder.com. Happy Black History Month! Thursday, February 2 Black Light: A Soulful Embrace of Love and Life, Penumbra Theatre, 270 N. Kent […]
Posted inBlack History Month
Author to children: Read Black history to find your purpose
Dr. Artika R. Tyner, attorney at law, is living proof that lawyers are people, too. In a spirit of altruistic activism, she has launched a drive to fund the creation and publication of Making A Difference: The Story of Miss Freedom Fighter, Esquire, a children’s book that indeed makes a difference. Its purpose is to […]
Posted inBlack History Month
Beverly Cottman educates and inspires through storytelling
“I want young people to learn and tell stories about themselves, about who they are and who they will become,” said Beverly Cottman, also known as “Auntie Beverly.”
Posted inNews
From slave ships to Black Lives Matter: Nation’s newest Smithsonian to tell story of African Americans
Anticipation builds as the museum, opening in September 2016, prepares to receive visitors from around the world.
Posted inBlack History Month, Sports
Maritza McClendon made history and still makes a difference
Maritza Correia later made history as the first Black female swimmer to break an American swim record, as well as the first Black woman to make the U.S. Olympic swim team.
Posted inNews
Riled by Glass Ceilings: Perseverance, skill credited for historic growth in Black female entrepreneurship
Given the pioneering success of Madam C. J. Walker, America’s first self-made Black woman millionaire, people wanted to know how she got started in business ownership only decades after the end of slavery in America.
Posted inBlack History Month, Opinion
Black History Month serves not only to educate, but to inspire
Carter G. Woodson was born in Virginia, 10 years after the fall of the Confederacy. Working as a sharecropper and a miner, he rarely had time to attend school until the age of 20. He would devote the rest of his life to study, becoming known as “The Father of African American History.”
Posted inNews
Donald J Patterson, a father to the neighborhood
Donald J. Patterson is proud to call the north side home. Born on November 26, 1948, to William Alonzo Patterson and Geraldine (Davis-Patterson) Reese, he was the third child of eight, with six brothers and one sister.
Posted inNews
Dr. Hallie Hendrieth Smith, a trailblazer in education
Being bypassed for a secretarial job at a local department store proved a blessing not only for Dr. Hallie Hendrieth Smith, but also the children of Minneapolis, especially those of color.