ClaytoAli Posted February 18 Share Posted February 18 (edited) RUBEN RIVERS For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty: Staff Sergeant Rivers distinguished himself by extraordinary heroism in action during 16-19 November 1944, while serving with Company A, 761st Tank Battalion. On 16 November 1944, while advancing toward the town of Guebling, France, Staff Sergeant Rivers' tank hit a mine at a railroad crossing. Although severely wounded, his leg slashed to the bone, Staff Sergeant Rivers declined an injection of morphine, refused to be evacuated, took command of another tank, and advanced with his company into Guebling the next day. Repeatedly refusing evacuation, Staff Sergeant Rivers continued to direct his tank's fire at enemy positions beyond the town through the morning of 19 November 1944. At dawn that day, Company As' tanks advanced toward Bourgaltoff, their next objective, but were stopped by enemy fire. Captain David J. Williams, the Company Commander, ordered his tanks to withdraw and take cover. Staff Sergeant Rivers, however, radioed that he had spotted the German antitank positions: "I see 'em. We'll Fight'em!" Staff Sergeant Rivers, joined by another Company A tank, opened fire on enemy tanks, covering Company A as they withdrew. While doing so, Staff Sergeant Rivers' tank was hit, killing him and wounding the rest of the crew. Staff Sergeant Rivers' fighting spirit and daring leadership were an inspiration to his unit and exemplify the highest traditions of military service. https://www.cmohs.org/recipients/ruben-rivers Edited February 18 by ClaytoAli 6 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClaytoAli Posted February 18 Author Share Posted February 18 African Americans in Harlem volunteering to go to Ethiopia and fight to save Africa’s last uncolonized nation from fascist Italian dictator Mussolini. Almost all volunteers were blocked from leaving by the US government. Few managed to go to Ethiopia. Summer 1935 3 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClaytoAli Posted February 18 Author Share Posted February 18 Jackson Ward & Richmond's Pre-Eminent Black History By now, many people have heard Jackson Ward was also described as “Black Wall Street,” and the “cradle of Black capitalism; these monikers point to the community’s reputation as a hotbed of Black business in the late 19th century through the first half of the following century. Jackson Ward was home to more than 100 businesses owned by African Americans. The late 1950s would have a devastating effect on the unity of Jackson Ward. City and state officials designed the Richmond-Petersburg Turnpike (now part of I-95) to pass through Jackson Ward, bisecting the neighborhood and tearing down many structures. At the same time, desegregation and white flight were opening other neighborhoods to blacks, beginning a scattering that gradually left more and more of Jackson Ward in the possession of absentee landlords and real estate speculators. As buildings began to deteriorate, the area was further targeted for new development such as federal housing projects, the City Coliseum that opened in 1970, and the building of additional administrative buildings by the city, state, and VCU. A number of the buildings pictured here have been demolished in the thirty years since these photographs were taken. https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/jackson-ward-and-its-black-wall-street.htm 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spearfeather Posted February 18 Share Posted February 18 11 minutes ago, ClaytoAli said: By now, many people have heard Jackson Ward was also described as “Black Wall Street,”... Sitting about three miles from Jackson Ward as we speak. https://asalh.org/about-us/origins-of-black-history-month/#:~:text=Woodson chose February for reasons,12th and the 14th%2C respectively Quote The story of Black History Month begins in Chicago during the summer of 1915... " Quote Woodson chose February for reasons of tradition and reform. It is commonly said that Woodson selected February to encompass the birthdays of two great Americans who played a prominent role in shaping black history, namely Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass, whose birthdays are the 12th and the 14th, respectively." 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fergasun Posted February 18 Share Posted February 18 @ClaytoAli Am I wrong or did you originally have something inappropriate from Howard Stern originally? 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClaytoAli Posted February 18 Author Share Posted February 18 (edited) 1 hour ago, Fergasun said: @ClaytoAli Am I wrong or did you originally have something inappropriate from Howard Stern originally? I did and then @Jumbo came to mind. 😂 African American Roots and Influences in Country Music Country music’s earliest instruments were the fiddle and the banjo. Early immigrants brought the fiddle to America, while the banjo was brought by enslaved Africans. https://ket.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/african-american-roots-influences-video-gallery/ken-burns-country-music/ Edited February 18 by ClaytoAli 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cooked Crack Posted February 18 Share Posted February 18 This seems like a good enough thread for this Quote "The Boondocks" Unaired TV Pilot (2004) Produced by Sony Pictures Television and presented to Fox Broadcasting Company in 2004. This pilot was rejected by Fox, but. continued interest in the project led to the series being re-worked and picked up by Adult Swim. https://archive.org/details/boondockspilot 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PokerPacker Posted February 18 Share Posted February 18 I always appreciate a history lesson from Sabaton. They had a nice segment on Henry Johnson in the movie they released to museums back in November, too. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TradeTheBeal! Posted February 18 Share Posted February 18 The apex of human endeavor. Timeless and celestial. 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jumbo Posted February 18 Share Posted February 18 I saw this a week ago. Can only give a link to the piece. A lot of brilliant, moving, poignant, and just plain beautiful material. Thanks for starting the thread C2A. (One of my favorite es screen names btw). https://www.audible.com/blog/quotes-black-americans 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClaytoAli Posted February 19 Author Share Posted February 19 (edited) I know that some of you have been here. Florida Avenue Grill Billed as the oldest soul food restaurant in the world, Florida Avenue Grillopened its doors in 1944 and has been treating customers with kindness and lovingly prepared food ever since. Owned and managed by the Wilson family for years. http://www.floridaavenuegrill.com/history.html 1 hour ago, Jumbo said: I saw this a week ago. Can only give a link to the piece. A lot of brilliant, moving, poignant, and just plain beautiful material. Thanks for starting the thread C2A. (One of my favorite es screen names btw). https://www.audible.com/blog/quotes-black-americans Thanks….funny thing about so called black history is that if Americans just told the whole truth, we probably wouldn’t need black history. It is the story of all Americans. Edited February 19 by ClaytoAli 3 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClaytoAli Posted February 20 Author Share Posted February 20 (edited) How Elijah McCoy Invented ‘The Real McCoy’ The automatic engine lubricator invented by National Inventors Hall of Fame Inductee® (NIHF) Elijah McCoy, steam-powered trains no longer had to stop during travel in order to lubricate. McCoy patented his invention, known as an “oil-drip cup,” in 1872, and the device was an instant success. However, due to its ingeniously simple design, other railroads began creating similar versions. Historians believe that because McCoy’s version of the “oil-drip cup” was the most effective, engineers began asking for “the real McCoy.” https://www.invent.org/inductees/elijah-mccoy Edited February 20 by ClaytoAli 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClaytoAli Posted February 20 Author Share Posted February 20 Black Men Were Cowboys Before It Was Cool In 1830, 1840, the 1850s and '60s, there was nothing but Black cowboys," Callies says. "You wanna know why? In Texas, 'cowboy' was a slave name. The white man didn't want to work horses and work cows. He refused to be called a cowboy. He wanted to be a cowhand or a cow puncher. https://history.howstuffworks.com/american-history/black-cowboys.htm 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClaytoAli Posted February 20 Author Share Posted February 20 (edited) The plaque of FDR by Selma Burke on which the dime is based. The Roosevelt Dime President Roosevelt died in early 1945, about five months before Burke's sculpture was officially unveiled to the public. After his passing, the U.S. Mint proposed replacing the image of Lady Liberty on the dime with Roosevelt, who founded the March of Dimes in 1938 as a fundraiser for polio research. They assigned the task to John Sinnock, an assistant engraver at the Philadelphia mint, who said he worked from photographs of Roosevelt as well as two unknown relief sculptures. After these Roosevelt dimes began circulating, Burke and her supporters voiced their immediate criticism of Sinnock's design, claiming he plagiarized her sculpture and demanding an investigation. Instead, Burke found herself under investigation by the F.B.I. Sinnock vehemently denied the allegations, and few in government were inclined to look too deeply into a black woman's claims against a white man. Incidentally, Sinnock was later accused of stealing another artist's design for the Sesquicentennial of Independence half dollar, but his initials remain on the dime to this day while Burke's contributions often go overlooked. https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/selma-burke Edited February 20 by ClaytoAli 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClaytoAli Posted February 21 Author Share Posted February 21 (edited) African Americans in the Revolutionary War During the American Revolution African American men, both enslaved and free fought in the Continental Army. Black soldiers served in mostly integrated units at this time. The First Rhode Island Regiment is the most famous regiment that included African Americans during the American Revolution. In 1778 the Rhode Island Assembly voted to allow “every able-bodied negro, mulatto, or Indian man slave in this state to enlist into either of the Continental Battalions being raised. https://www.nps.gov/chyo/learn/historyculture/african-americans-in-the-revolutionary-war.htm Edited February 21 by ClaytoAli 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClaytoAli Posted February 21 Author Share Posted February 21 Fritz Pollard: the First Black Professional Football Quarterback and Coach If you think Marlin Briscoe, in 1968, as the first Black quarterback in the American Football League, think what it must have been like for Frederick Douglass “Fritz” Pollard. In 1920, he was one of only two Black players in the inaugural season of the American Professional Football Association (It became the NFL in 1922). He went on to become the league’s first Black coach and Black quarterback. https://www.communityvoiceks.com/2019/01/30/fritz-pollard-the-first-black-professional-football-quarterback-and-coach/ https://www.britannica.com/biography/Fritz-Pollard 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skins24 Posted February 21 Share Posted February 21 DC native and Tuskegee airman Mr. William Fauntroy Jr. unfortunately passed away late last year. Earlier in the year, I had the absolute privilege of hearing him speak. Man, he had stories for days 🙂 He was one of those, where you could just sit and listen to him all day! Found this video that provides a sample: https://youtu.be/FVK2QMEUtZ4?si=apMhP-ryJCX5RLVb Thank you Mr. Fauntroy. 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simmsy Posted February 24 Share Posted February 24 New mural honors the Richmond 34's place in civil rights history Quote This week marks 64 years since Black Virginia Union students protested a Broad Street store's "whites-only" lunch counter by taking up as many seats as possible. Why it matters: Their sit-in led to the desegregation of Richmond's restaurants and businesses. Driving the news: The Richmond Performing Arts Alliance unveiled a mural Thursday to honor "the Richmond 34," the name given to the 34 protesters arrested on trespassing charges for refusing to leave that day. The mural, done by Hamilton Glass and VUU alumna Germany Ray, is inside the Dominion Energy Center — the same site of the Thalhimers Department Store where the sit-in took place. RPAA plans to install a permanent art gallery with work from local artists, including students, inspired by the Richmond 34's place in civil rights history. Zoom in: The mural centers a rendering of an infamous photo of policemen walking out Richmond 34 members Joseph and Marise Ellison. It also marks major milestones following the protest, like the 2004 march in Richmond commemorating them and when the Flying Squirrels retired the #34 jersey in their honor in 2021. Catch up fast: More than 200 Virginia Union students marched toward Thalhimers on Feb. 22, 1960. The arrests of the Richmond 34 were the largest stemming from a civil rights protest at the time. Their records weren't expunged until February 2019, even though they had taken their case to the Supreme Court and won in 1963. The bottom line: "This is an example of what can happen when people come together for a unified cause," said Richmond 34 member Elizabeth Johnson Rice in a release. "Without love there can be no truth, there can be no justice. Truth marches on." My Aunt was one of the 34, she couldn't make it because she lives in MA, she told my brother and I about it, but it was too late. 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redskins Diehard Posted February 25 Share Posted February 25 On 2/21/2024 at 11:52 AM, Skins24 said: DC native and Tuskegee airman Mr. William Fauntroy Jr. unfortunately passed away late last year. Earlier in the year, I had the absolute privilege of hearing him speak. Man, he had stories for days 🙂 He was one of those, where you could just sit and listen to him all day! Found this video that provides a sample: https://youtu.be/FVK2QMEUtZ4?si=apMhP-ryJCX5RLVb Thank you Mr. Fauntroy. I heard Mr. Fauntroy speak about a year ago also. I agree 100 percent with you. I didn't know he passed... I'm glad I heard him when I did. Years ago I was fortunate to have lunch with Benjamin Davis. Another truly incredible story. When he was commissioned into the Army he was only the 2d black officer in the Army at the time. The other... his father. Eventually commanded the Tuskegee Airmen. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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