Civil Rights

Aviator Elizabeth “Bessie” Coleman was born on January 26, 1892, in Atlanta, Texas.  The first female African American aviator, she achieved her dream of becoming a pilot during a time when most African Americans would not have even considered learning to fly.

Civil Rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. was born on January 15, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia. A Baptist minister, King sought equality for all Americans and fought for peaceful solutions to racial issues.

The Civil Rights Movement took a major step forward on November 13, 1956, when the Supreme Court ruled that the bus segregation in Montgomery, Alabama, was unconstitutional.

Mahalia (born Mahala) Jackson was born on October 26, 1911, in New Orleans, Louisiana. The best-known gospel singer in the world and one of the most influential vocalists of the 20th century, she received more acclaim than any other gospel singer, and is said to have been the vocal, physical, and spiritual symbol of religious music.

On October 25, 1940, Benjamin O. Davis Sr. was appointed the first African American general in US Army. He was a driving force behind the desegregation of the Army, which was finally achieved just days after his retirement.

America’s 36th President, Lyndon Baines Johnson, was born on August 27, 1908, in Stonewall, Texas. President Johnson promoted a “Great Society” and signed many initiatives into law aimed at civil rights, public broadcasting, health, education, the arts, and public services.

Poet and writer Dorothy Parker (born Dorothy Rothschild) was born on August 22, 1893, in Long Branch, New Jersey.  A founding member of the Algonquin Round Table, she was known for her sharp wit.

Civil rights leader Whitney Moore Young, Jr., was born on July 31, 1921, in Shelby County, Kentucky. He served as Executive Director of the National Urban League, helped organize the March on Washington, and advised several presidents.

On July 19, 1848, the Women’s Rights Convention, also known as the Seneca Falls Convention, opened in New York. The convention’s attendants issued a declaration calling for equal rights, including the right to vote.