One Story of the Great Migration

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“Black people can fight for injustice in this current day by continuing to take over; to continue protesting and marching for change.  We need to start working with the young Black kids and give them education and mentors.”  –Rebecca Gilton Hardin

In this episode, Mrs. Rebecca Gilton Hardin tells her story as an active woman in the civil rights movement while attending Alabama State. She also discusses attending Martin Luther King Jr.’s church, marching with him and a lot more.

Mrs. Rebecca Gilton Hardin was born and raised in Lanett, Alabama in early 1934. Her birth certificate says she is a “Negro”.   She is a wife, a mother of 2 children, 3 grandchildren, and 9 siblings. Rebecca felt that children needed to be treated like people, so she became an elementary teacher in Chicago for 37 years and then became a librarian because there was a shortage of librarians.
SHOW NOTES
  • Her father and mother-
    • He wanted his kids “tall”, and Ms. Rebecca called her mother by her first name.
  • Education-
    • There were no schools for them. Her father had to build one. However, “they” sent them a teacher.
    • They didn’t have a school bus.
    • She was kept in 6th grade for 2 years because she was too little to go downtown for school.  Young Rebecca was required to walk 5 miles to her downtown school because there was no school bus for her demographic group.
    • She attended Alabama State and was very active in the Civil Rights Movement.
  • The Movement-
  •  She did not fear to march and protesting
    • After the law was passed about bus segregation, she had to cross state lines with her sick baby on the bus.
    • A white person entered the bus, they asked her to move to the back of the bus.  She did, only because she was with her sick baby. If she hadn’t, they would have arrested her.
    • She attended a church where Martin Luther King, Jr. was the pastor
    • She marched with him in Washington.
  • Her white friend
    • When she was 8 years old, she would play with a little white girl on a regular basis
    • One day the little girl told her, “I can’t play with you anymore because you are a negro”.
  • President Obama
    • She cried the day Obama became President
    • She believes he did help Black people  

Growing Up Black In Alabama

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SHOW NOTES

Our teller for this episode grew up in Alabama during the civil rights movement. Mrs. Dorothy Wright shares stories about her family, what it was like growing up during segregation in the south, and her opinion on racism today.
About the Teller
Mrs. Dorothy Wright, who goes by the name “Do Wright”, is the widow of a Vietnam Veteran. She has 4 children, 2 grandchildren, and 9 siblings. She was born and raised in Lanett, Alabama during the 1940s.  Mrs. Do Wright attended Stillman College and Temple University but later moved to Chicago where she worked for over 30 years at the U.S Post Office.  Twenty of those years, she worked as a supervisor. 
Family background
  • She tells stories of her father, Abraham Stiggers, and also passes down stories he had shared with her.
  • Her mother and her role growing up
  • What she knew of her ancestors
Story at the Dentist Office
  • How she was treated by a white dentist
  • Segregation
Issues with racism today
  • Comparing R. Kelly to Elvis Presley marrying a teenage girl
Here are some additional clips from the interview with Mrs. Dorothy Wright that were not included in our original podcast.

“Make sure their kids have a father and mother figure that are good role models but believe reading books is the best education”.

– Dorothy Wright

 

Introduction

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Tellers of the Untold co-hosts will be interviewing those who have an untold story related to race relations. People of all ages and races will be telling their stories related to black history and culture. We discuss with our tellers how our nation still bears the scars today. Our goal is to make black history the shared history of all Americans appealing, and fun so that our children continue a cycle of awareness and positive future changes.

Black History Games for Family & Kids

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Black History Games for Family & Kids

Regardless of whether you’re thinking of having a game night with friends, organizing a family get-together, or your kids just like board games, you’ll find what you need in this list of the best games with a black history theme.

Black America 52 Great African Americans Hero Deck Playing cards

Black Heritage Trivia Game

Black America 52 Great African Americans Hero Deck Playing cards

Gary Grimm Famous African Americans

In Search of Identity An Exciting Way to Discover Black Heritage

Revisa African American History Stories. Pioneers in Black History. Flashcard and Game for kids.Multicolor Flash Cards

Black Trivia: The African American Experience A-to-Z! (Black Heritage)

Set of 2 Black Heritage Games: My First Matching Game and I Can Do Anything

Academy Games Freedom – The Underground Railroad

Black Heritage Trivia Game for Kids

Edupress Reading Comprehension Social Studies Cards, Black History (EP63540)

Springbok Puzzles – Making History – 1000 Piece Jigsaw Puzzle – Large 30 Inches by 24 Inches Puzzle – Made in USA – Unique Cut Interlocking Pieces

Urban Intellectuals Black History Flashcards (52 Educational Card Deck) (Volume 2)

Black History Flash Cards

Urban Intellectuals Black History Flashcards (52 Educational Card Deck) (Combo 4 Pack)

Black Heritage Series – Elijiah McCoy – Jigsaw Puzzle – 24 Pc

Disclosure

If you like what we do, you can support us through our chosen links, which earn us a commission.

History of Black History Month

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Since 1976, every U.S. president has officially designated the month of February in the United States as National Black History Month. Other countries around the world, such as Canada (1995), United Kingdom (1987), and Ireland (2010), also devoted a month to celebrate black history.
Dr. Carter G Woodson
Why February?
When it became Black History Month
Celebrities on Black History Month
Podcast Notes

The History Behind Black History Month

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The History Behind Black History Month

Since 1976, every U.S. president has officially designated the month of February in the United States as National Black History Month. Other countries around the world, such as Canada (1995), United Kingdom (1987), and Ireland (2010), also devoted a month to celebrate black history. 

Dr. Carter G Woodson

In 1916 Dr. Carter G. Woodson, the second Black American to receive a Ph.D. from Harvard University, began editing the Association’s principal scholarly publication, The Journal of Negro History.  Dr. Woodson believed it was important that black Americans have a concrete understanding of their history. 

He believed that each black person needed to succeed as a productive member of society in America. Building on his ideas, Dr. Woodson published several books and articles on the contributions of black people toward the development of the United States. He hoped to have all Americans recognize black people as equal and valuable parts of society; Churches played a significant role in the distribution of literature in Association with Negro History Week. 

In 1924, Negro History and Literature Week began with Dr. Woodson and his college fraternity, Omega Psi Phi. In 1926, Woodson and the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History announced the second week of February to be “Negro History Week.” The response was overwhelming: Black history clubs grew in size; teachers demanded materials to instruct their students, and progressive whites and other scholars and philanthropists came forward to endorse the effort.

Why February?

Dr. Woodson wanted to honor the legacy of Abraham Lincoln, who issued the Emancipation Proclamation, whose birthday was on February 12. The issue of slavery was complicated when it came to President Abraham Lincoln. He did not agree with slavery, but he said, “My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or to destroy slavery. If I could save the Union without freeing any slave I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone, I would also do that.”

Also, Woodson wanted to honor Frederick Douglass, an abolitionist, author, and orator. His birthday was on February 14. Dr. Woodson wanted the accomplishments of these two individuals but also the history and achievements of black people, in general, to be incorporated in February.

As early as the 1940s, in West Virginia, a state where Woodson often spoke, blacks began to celebrate February as Negro History Month. In the 1960s, a cultural activist, Fredrick H. Hammaurabi, in Chicago, started celebrating Negro History Month. He used his cultural center, the House of Knowledge, to combine African awareness with the study of the black past. 

Before Dr. Woodson’s death in 1950, he believed that black history was too important to America and the world to be limited to a small time frame. He spoke of a shift from Negro History Week to Negro History Year.

If a race has no history, it has no worthwhile tradition, it becomes a negligible factor in the thought of the world, and it stands in danger of being exterminated. The American Indian left no continuous record. He did not appreciate the value of tradition, and where is he today? The Hebrew keenly appreciated the value of tradition, as is attested by the Bible itself. In spite of worldwide persecution, therefore, he is a great factor in our civilization.

– Dr. Carter G. Woodson

When it became Black History Month

In 1969 according to the Kent Stater, Black History Month was first proposed by black educators and the Black United Students at Kent State University and celebrated in February of 1970 for the full month. However, it was not until 1976 that every president designated the month of February as Black History Month. The Association for the Study of Negro Life and History used its influence to institutionalize the shifts from a week to a month and from Negro history to black history. Since the mid-1970s, every American president, Democrat, and Republican has issued proclamations endorsing the Association’s annual theme.

Celebrities on Black History Month

Actor and director Morgan Freeman and actress Stacey Dash have criticized the concept of declaring only one month as Black History Month. Freeman noted, “I don’t want a Black history month. Black history is American history.” Supporters argue Black History Month will integrate much needed cultural inclusion and promote a positive, accepting environment where students can learn the history of a people in a primarily white narrative of history. 

In February 2020, Forbes noted that “much of corporate America is commemorating” black history month including The Coca-Cola Company, Google, Target Corporation, Macy’s, United Parcel Service, and Under Armour.

Work Cited

Black History Month – Black History –

HISTORY.com. https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/black-history-month

Gilmour Academy – Wikipedia.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilmour_Academy

Black History Month – Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_History_Month

Abraham Lincoln’s Letter to Horace Greeley. https://www.abrahamlincolnonline.org/lincoln/speeches/greeley.htm

ASALH – The Founders of Black History Month | Origins of …. https://asalh.org/about-us/origins-of-black-history-month/

Black History Month | Student Multicultural Center | Kent …. https://www.kent.edu/smc/black-history-month

Ewers, Jim. “Keeping Black History Alive.” The Charlotte Post, vol. 42, no. 23, Charlotte Post Publishing Co., 9 Feb. 2017, p. 4A.

Black History Month – Unionpedia, the concept map. https://en.unionpedia.org/Black_History_Month

american civil war – What is the context of Lincoln saying …. https://history.stackexchange.com/questions/32832/what-is-the-context-of-lincoln-saying-if-i-could-save-the-union-without-freein

The first black-American is known to have earned a bachelor’s degree

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EPISODE 31

Podcast Notes
  • Introduction to Alexander Twilight
  • His parents
    • father, Ichabod was black or mulatto
    • His mother, Mary’s race, is not certain
  • His education
    • He completed not only the secondary school courses but also the first two years of a college-level curriculum all within six years. Following his graduation from Randolph, he was accepted at Middlebury College where he graduated.
  • Career
    • Twilight was a teacher, preacher
    • He was also the first Black-American elected as a state legislator, serving in the Vermont House of Representatives, and the only Black-American ever elected to a state legislature before the Civil War.
  • More details can be found here

The First Black-American To Earn A Bachelor’s Degree From An American College

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The First Black-American To Earn A Bachelor’s Degree From An American College

Alexander Lucius Twilight was the first Black-American known to have earned a bachelor’s degree from an American college or university. He was also the first Black-American elected as a state legislator, serving in the Vermont House of Representatives, and the only Black-American ever elected to a state legislature before the Civil War.

Alexander Lucius Twilight Early Life

Born on Sept. 23, 1795, on a farm in Corinth, Vermont., to a mixed-race couple. His mother, Mary’s race, is not certain. In national census documents and local records, Mary is categorized as “colored” people or free blacks. However, she was known to be light-skinned. His father, Ichabod was black or mulatto and born in Boston in 1765. Some believe he may have been mulatto due to his last name.

Ichabod and Mary were free but It is unknown if they were born free; they were likely descendants of African slaves and English ancestors. Ichabod was a Revolutionary War veteran. His parents were both listed in the Corinth town history as “the first negroes to settle in Corinth where they bought the property. Their children were evidently all light enough skinned to pass for white. Whatever Alexander Twilight’s precise racial background he left behind no records mentioning his African-American ancestry

According to the Orleans County Museum website, it appears that Twilight labored for a neighboring farmer in Corinth, around 1803, when he was eight years old. “There is no proof that it was an indenture agreement,” the website stated. He then learned reading, writing, and math skills while performing various farming duties for the next twelve years.

In 1826, he married Mercy Ladd Merrill in which they had no children.

Education

In 1855, Twilight was able to save enough money to enroll in Randolph’s Orange County Grammar School at the age of twenty. He completed not only the secondary school courses but also the first two years of a college-level curriculum all within six years. Following his graduation from Randolph, he was accepted at Middlebury College. However, it seems his admission to Middlebury was a mistake.

The college didn’t know he was black when he applied. After he graduated, another, man Andrew Harris, another black American, applied to Middlebury. This time the college didn’t make a similar “mistake.” It rejected Harris because of his race due to school policy. However, Harris instead attended and graduated from the University of Vermont. Alexander Twilight entering as a junior in August of 1821 and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in 1823. This fact was not made known until Amherst College claimed to have awarded its first Black American bachelor’s degree to Edward Jones in 1826.

Career

In 1829 Twilight became principal of the Orleans County Grammar School and then. He also taught for four years in Peru, N.Y., at the same time he studied for the Congressional Ministry. He occasionally led worship services and delivered sermons.

While continuing to teach, the Champlain Presbytery of Plattsburgh licensed him to preach. Twilight studied theology, the church, and the ministry. He occasionally led worship services and preached. There he designed and built Athenian Hall, the first granite public building in the state.

In 1836 he became pastor of Brownington’s Congregational church and principal of the Orleans County Grammar School. That same year he was elected to the Vermont General Assembly and became the first African-American to serve in a state legislature in the United States. Eleven years later, Twilight was embroiled in a contentious disagreement with the county board administrators, and he moved to Quebec, Canada, for five years.

https://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/js/adsbygoogle.js

Legacy



Alexander Twilight: Vermont’s African-American Pioneer

By Michael T. Hahn

  • Alexander Twilight House (1830), still stands across the street from the hall and serves as headquarters for the Orleans County Historical Society. It is within the Historic District is listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP).
  • Athenian Hall (1834–36) is now operated by the Orleans County Historical Society as the Old Stone House Museum and anchors the Historic District of Brownington. It was the first granite public building in Vermont.
  • The Aspire Alexander Twilight College Preparatory Academy in Sacramento, California was named for Twilight. It opened in the fall of 2009.[8]
  • Howard Frank Mosher, wrote about the Stone House in Vermont Life Magazine, Autumn 1996:

Work Cited

Alexander Twilight — Wikipedia Republished // WIKI 2. https://wiki2.org/en/Alexander_Twilight

Twilight Bio | Old Stone House Museum. https://oldstonehousemuseum.org/twilight-bio/

Social Welfare History Project Education. https://socialwelfare.library.vcu.edu/programs/education/

Alexander Twilight | State governments in the United …. https://stategovernmentsintheunitedstates.fandom.com/wiki/Alexander_Twilight

Wahlberg, Roberta. “The Amazing Age of John Roy Lynch.” The Catholic Library World, vol. 86, no. 1, Catholic Library Association, Sept. 2015, p. 68.

My thought on Kwanzaa

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My thoughts on Kwanzaa
Read the full blog here.
Outline
  1. What is Kwanzaa?
  2. The founder. Maulana Karenga and his birth name, Ronald McKinley Everett.
  3. Karenga assault charges, arrest and jailed for torturing two women.
    4. Only thirteen percent of black Americans celebrate this holiday
    5. Kwanzaa in December vs. February during black history month
    6. Should we celebrate this holiday that was started this man with this type of past?

Kwanzaa: 6 Unknown Facts

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Kwanzaa: 6 Unknown Facts

 

Tellers Untold Podcast about Kwanzaa

Kwanzaa: The Founder

In 1966, Maulana Karenga, author, and activist who was involved with the Black Power movement in the 1960s and 1970s, founded Kwanzaa. His goal was to create the first Black holiday. He said he wanted to “give Blacks an alternative to the existing holiday to allow Blacks to celebrate themselves and history, rather than simply imitate the practice of the dominant society.”
The name Kwanzaa comes from a phrase of Swahili origin, “Matunda Ya Kwanza,  and translates as “First Fruits of the Harvest.” The holiday is based on African agricultural rites and communal activities.
Six Unknown Facts About Kwanzaa
2003 Kwanzaa celebration with Founder, Ronald Karenga. Wikipedia.
Kwanzaa: 6 unknown facts
1. The founder of Kwanza was arrested and jailed on assault charges.
Maulana Karenga’s real name is Ronald McKinley Everett. He is a professor of Pan-African studies at California State University at Long Beach; his birth name was Ronald McKinley Everett. His chosen name comes from KiSwahili. Maulana means “master teacher,” and Karenga means “keeper of tradition.”
1972 Karenga was arrested and sent to jail for assault and false imprisonment. The jury found him guilty after two women testified that Karenga and his followers tortured them. These two women were members of the US (United Slaves), a black nationalist cult he had founded. Karenga spent just four years in prison.
2. According to the Daily Caller, Members of Karengas US Organization murdered two Black Panthers in cold blood. The murders occurred in 1969 when the US Organization and the Black Panthers fought over which group would control the then-new Afro-American Studies Center at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).
3. Homemade and educational gifts are encouraged.
Gifts are handed out to family members on the last day of Kwanzaa. They are often homemade. Some buy cultural-themed products or books, music, art accessories, or other culturally-themed products, but participants prefer to buy from a black-owned business.
4. The first US postage stamp to commemorate Kwanzaa was issued in 1997. Five designs have been released since then, the most recent being in 2016.
5. Only thirteen percent of black Americans celebrate this holiday. According to the National Retail Foundation found that just 13 percent or 4.7 million Black Americans observe the holiday.
6. Kwanzaa is not celebrated in Africa. However, “Kwanzaa” is taken from “matunda ya kwanza,” which is Swahili (East African coast) for “first fruits.” Dr. Karenga combined several different African harvest celebrations, including traditions of the Ashanti in Northwest Africa and the Zulu in South Africa.
· Umoja (Unity): Striving for and maintaining family and community unity.
· Kujichagulia (Self-Determination): Defining oneself and speaking for oneself
· Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility): Building and maintaining a community and making our brother’s and sister’s problems our own and solving them together
· Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics): Building and supporting our businesses for ourselves and each other
· Nia (Purpose): To build and develop our collective communities together
· Kuumba (Creativity): To do whatever we can to leave our communities more beautiful than when we inherited them
· Imani (Faith): To believe with our hearts in our people, our families and the righteousness of our struggle
 
Work Cited
Kwanzaa in 2019/2020 – When, Where, Why, How Is Celebrated?. https://www.holidayscalendar.com/event/kwanzaa/
5 Things You May Not Know About Kwanzaa – HISTORY. https://www.history.com/news/5-things-you-may-not-know-about-kwanzaa
 
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