#African American History Month

[barbielore]

As February is Black History Month / African-American History Month (I'll be honest I don't know whether either of those terms are preferred - if someone could let me know, I would appreciate it), I thought I would make a post about how Mattel and the Barbie brand have intersected with this.

I have previously made some posts about this subject so just to collate some links:

A brief history of depictions of Black Barbies.

One of Mattel's first media tie-in dolls - Julia from the show Julia.

Alpha Kappa Alpha Barbie to commemorate America's first Black sorority.

Backstory on two of the dolls in the Barbie doll line depicted exclusively as Black women - Christie and Nikki.

The lore of Brooklyn and Malibu.

To expand on the above - I must shout out again Kitty Black Perkins by name even though I mentioned her in the history of Black Barbies post. Perkins is a now-retired Barbie designer credited with designing the first Barbie to be depicted as Black (that is to say, not a Francie or a Christie or another character - but Barbie), among other Barbies.

In addition to the first Black Barbie, Perkins is credited with design of four Holiday Barbies, as well as a number of other Barbies and friends of Barbie - apparently designing or having input into the design of hundreds of Barbies.

Without the influence of Perkins, it's very possible that we would not have modern doll releases featuring Brooklyn as a lead alongside Malibu.

Mattel have included a number of historical Black women in their Inspiring Women collection; this is not all of them by any means, but an example.

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Black History is American History - djG

@donnasmusicqkblr

[frostedmagnolias]

“Mary Wallace was the first woman bus driver with the Chicago Transit Authority in 1974. Her job applications were rejected for three years, but her persistence paid off. She was eventually hired under an affirmative action program. Wallace became one of the city’s most popular drivers over her thirty-three year career.”

Happy Black History Month!

[tammyquest-blog]

I made a miniature art gallery for African American Heritage Month at the Castro Valley Library. It was a fun class.

[k12academics]

The center focuses on the enrichment of all young people.

We currently send our qualified instructors out to many schools to teach youth African drumming, dance, history, language, culture, stilt-walking, & song. Simultaneously, our instructors infuse life-lessons in their courses.

Some of the more cognitive courses are conflict-resolution, public speaking, anger management, life-skills, and positivity in the community.

Some elective courses include sewing, crafting, jewelry making & costume-making.

Most of our programs culminate in a course ending ceremony (recital) where the participants are invited to showcase their talents and the children actually MC, and narrate the event (partially in a West African dialect).

[saydesole]

Our story is forever

Black is history

History is Black ✊🏿

[longliveblackness]

Congo is silently going through a silent genocide. Millions of people are being killed so that the western world can benefit from its natural resources.

More than 60% of the world's cobalt reserves are found in Congo, used in the production of smartphones.

Western countries are providing financial military aid to invade regions filled with reserves and in the process millions are getting killed and millions homeless.

Multinational mining companies are enslaving people especially children to mine.

•••

La República Democrática del Congo vive un genocidio silencioso. Millones de personas están siendo asesinadas para que la parte occidental del mundo pueda beneficiarse de sus recursos naturales.

Más del 60% de las reservas mundiales de cobalto se encuentran en el Congo, y se utiliza en la producción de teléfonos inteligentes.

Los países occidentales están proporcionando asistencia financiera militar para invadir regiones llenas de reservas y en el proceso millones de personas mueren y millones se quedan sin hogar.

Las empresas mineras multinacionales están esclavizando a la gente, especialmente a los niños, para trabajar en las minas.

Street Art and Photo by Artist Eduardo Relero

(https://eduardorelero.com)

[sbrown82]

Happy Black History Month! Shop some of my favorite Black women-owned beauty & wellness brands this year! 💁🏿‍♀️

Skincare

Topicals

Shani Darden Skin Care 

Eadem 

ROSE Ingleton MD

Epi.Logic Skin Care 

KNC Beauty

4.5.6. Skin

Hair Care

CÉCRED

Bread

Highbrow Hippie

Adwoa Beauty

Briogeo

Brown Butter Beauty

TGIN

Body Care

OUI the People 

Luv Scrub

Chatham Natural Skincare

Homebody

54 Thrones

Wellness 

HealHaus

Vanessa Marc Spa 

Black Girls Breathing

Grounded Plants

Therapy for Black Girls 

Peak & Valley

Black Girl in Om

Hike Clerb Inc.

[afriblaq]

Black Culture

"Let them talk, let them judge", Denzel Washington

[jstor]

Dorothy Porter is known as the "Dewey Decimal Decolonizer."

Dorothy Porter was an African American librarian who worked to challenge and decolonize library systems, including the Dewey Decimal System, which traditionally marginalized non-Western perspectives and cultures. She advocated for more inclusive classification systems that better represented diverse voices and histories.

Porter's work emphasized the importance of equity and representation within library collections, aiming to create spaces that reflect the richness and complexity of human experiences. Her efforts have contributed to ongoing discussions and actions toward decolonizing library practices worldwide.

Read more about Dorothy Porter here.

[lionofchaeronea]

Men of the 369th Infantry Regiment, informally dubbed the "Harlem Hellfighters," pose for a picture. The Hellfighters were initially part of the American Expeditionary Force sent to fight on the Western Front in WWI. In April 1918, due to racist attitudes among the American high command, they were separated from the AEF and assigned to the French 4th Army. Fighting under French command both in the trenches and in the open field, the Hellfighters distinguished themselves at the Battle of the Meuse-Argonne. Their continuous six-month deployment was the longest of any American unit. Following the armistice, the French government awarded the Croix de Guerre to 170 members of the Hellfighters, including all nine men pictured here, for courage in combat.

[lionheartapothecaryx]

A Historical Deep Dive into the Founders of Black Womanism & Modern Feminism

Six African American Suffragettes Mainstream History Tried to Forget

These amazing Black American women each advanced the principles of modern feminism and Black womanism by insisting on an intersectional approach to activism. They understood that the struggles of race and gender were intertwined, and that the liberation of Black women was essential. Their writings, speeches, and actions have continued to inspire movements addressing systemic inequities, while affirming the voices of marginalized women who have shaped society. Through their amazing work, they have expanded the scope of womanism and intersectional feminism to include racial justice, making it more inclusive and transformative.

Anna Julia Cooper (1858–1964)

Quote: “The cause of freedom is not the cause of a race or a sect, a party or a class—it is the cause of humankind, the very birthright of humanity.”

Contribution: Anna Julia Cooper was an educator, scholar, and advocate for Black women’s empowerment. Her book A Voice from the South by a Black Woman of the South (1892) is one of the earliest articulations of Black feminist thought. She emphasized the intellectual and cultural contributions of Black women and argued that their liberation was essential to societal progress. Cooper believed education was the key to uplifting African Americans and worked tirelessly to improve opportunities for women and girls, including founding organizations for Black women’s higher education. Her work challenged both racism and sexism, laying the intellectual foundation for modern Black womanism.

Frances Ellen Watkins Harper (1825–1911)

Quote: “We are all bound together in one great bundle of humanity, and society cannot trample on the weakest and feeblest of its members without receiving the curse in its own soul.”

Contribution: Frances Ellen Watkins Harper was a poet, author, and orator whose work intertwined abolitionism, suffrage, and temperance advocacy. A prominent member of the American Equal Rights Association, she fought for universal suffrage, arguing that Black women’s voices were crucial in shaping a just society. Her 1866 speech at the National Woman’s Rights Convention emphasized the need for solidarity among marginalized groups, highlighting the racial disparities within the feminist movement. Harper’s writings, including her novel Iola Leroy, offered early depictions of Black womanhood and resilience, paving the way for Black feminist literature and thought.

Ida B. Wells (1862–1931)

Quote: “The way to right wrongs is to turn the light of truth upon them.”

Contribution: Ida B. Wells was a fearless journalist, educator, and anti-lynching activist who co-founded the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). Her investigative reporting exposed the widespread violence and racism faced by African Americans, particularly lynchings. As a suffragette, Wells insisted on addressing the intersection of race and gender in the fight for women’s voting rights. At the 1913 Women’s Suffrage Parade in Washington, D.C., she famously defied instructions to march in a segregated section and joined the Illinois delegation at the front, demanding recognition for Black women in the feminist movement. Her activism laid the groundwork for modern feminisms inclusion of intersectionality, emphasizing the dual oppressions faced by Black women.

Sojourner Truth (1797–1883)

Quote: “Ain’t I a Woman?”

Contribution: Born into slavery, Sojourner Truth became a powerful voice for abolition, women's rights, and racial justice after gaining her freedom. Her famous 1851 speech, "Ain’t I a Woman?" delivered at a women's rights convention in Akron, Ohio, directly challenged the exclusion of Black women from the feminist narrative. She highlighted the unique struggles of Black women, who faced both racism and sexism, calling out the hypocrisy of a movement that often-centered white women’s experiences. Truth’s legacy lies in her insistence on equality for all, inspiring future generations to confront the intersecting oppressions of race and gender in their advocacy.

Nanny Helen Burroughs (1879–1961)

Quote: “We specialize in the wholly impossible.”

Contribution: Nanny Helen Burroughs was an educator, activist, and founder of the National Training School for Women and Girls in Washington, D.C., which emphasized self-sufficiency and vocational training for African American women. She championed the "Three B's" of her educational philosophy: Bible, bath, and broom, advocating for spiritual, personal, and professional discipline. Burroughs was also a leader in the Women's Convention Auxiliary of the National Baptist Convention, where she pushed for the inclusion of women's voices in church leadership. Her dedication to empowering Black women as agents of social change influenced both the feminist and civil rights movements, promoting a vision of racial and gender equality.

Elizabeth Piper Ensley (1847–1919)

Quote: “The ballot in the hands of a woman means power added to influence.”

Contribution: Elizabeth Piper Ensley was a suffragist and civil rights activist who played a pivotal role in securing women’s suffrage in Colorado in 1893, making it one of the first states to grant women the vote. As a Black woman operating in the predominantly white suffrage movement, Ensley worked to bridge racial and class divides, emphasizing the importance of political power for marginalized groups. She was an active member of the Colorado Non-Partisan Equal Suffrage Association and focused on voter education to ensure that women, especially women of color, could fully participate in the democratic process. Ensley’s legacy highlights the importance of coalition-building in achieving systemic change.

To honor these pioneers, we must continue to amplify Black women's voices, prioritizing intersectionality, and combat systemic inequalities in race, gender, and class.

Modern black womanism and feminist activism can expand upon these little-known founders of woman's rights by continuously working on an addressing the disparities in education, healthcare, and economic opportunities for marginalized communities. Supporting Black Woman-led organizations, fostering inclusive black femme leadership, and embracing allyship will always be vital.

Additionally, when we continuously elevate their contributions in social media or multi-media art through various platforms, and academic curriculum we ensure their legacies continuously inspire future generations. By integrating their principles into feminism and advocating for collective liberation, women and feminine allies can continue their fight for justice, equity, and feminine empowerment, hand forging a society, by blood, sweat, bones and tears where all women can thrive, free from oppression.

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African American History Month 2024 - djG

CLICK ME!! (VIDEO CLIP BELOW)

[rejectingrepublicans]

[uwmspeccoll]

BLACK HISTORY MONTH: Celebrating Artist Gordon Parks!

In a 2001 interview with the oral history project The History Makers, American photographer and filmmaker Gordon Parks (1912-2006) was asked to define his profession: “I think I was an artist,” he says, “photographer, writer, painter, poet, film director, and a lover.” He laughs. “Renaissance man. That’s what we call a lover” He might’ve added musician, composer, and documentarian. Parks was born in Kansas in 1912, left home at fifteen after the death of his mother, played piano and sang in brothels for money, worked in a Chicago flop house after the stock market crash, and found himself inspired by FSA photographs in the 1930s. After receiving work as a commercial photographer, he won a Julius Rosenwald Fellowship for his work documenting Chicago’s South Side, and was invited to join the Farm Security Administration himself.

The photographs highlighted here are drawn from his work at this early point in his long and dynamic career. They are reprinted in the 2018 book Gordon Parks : The New Tide, Early Work, 1940-1950, edited by Philip Brookman, consulting curator of photography at the National Gallery of Art. The book captures Parks’ work in and out of commercial photography, government projects, celebrity profiles, and his early years with LIFE magazine – where he would work until it stopped monthly publication in 1972. Parks was known for earning the trust of his subjects, and not betraying it. In a remembrance of Parks by one of his former editors at LIFE, Barbara Baker Burrows recalls Parks’ charm, and the confidence he earned, whether he was capturing foreign militaries, street gangs, celebrities, or civil servants. Parks died in 2006 at the age of 93.

For more about Gordon Parks and his legacy, visit The Gordon Parks Foundation.

See more Black History Month posts.

--Amanda, Special Collections Graduate Intern

[usnatarchives]

Civil Rights March on Washington, D.C. [A male marcher relaxing.] - 1963

NAID: 542026