Phillis Wheatley was born in what is present-day Senegal/Gambia around 1753 and kidnapped from West Africa around the age of seven or eight. Within one and a half years of her arriving in Boston she had quickly learned English before moving on to history, literature, and theology. While in her early 20s, Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral by Phillis Wheatley became the first book published by a Black woman in America.
Category: <span>Black History Profile</span>
A profile of Claudia Jones, journalist, activist, and founder of the Notting Hill Carnival. Jones died at the relatively young age of 49 but spent the entirety of her adulthood advocating for race, class, and gender equality.
A profile of Benjamin Banneker, a mostly self-taught astronomer who is best known for a series of almanacs that were published in the late 1700s. Born free, Banneker received a rather limited formal education but built his knowledge through a passion for reading and self-education. He was middle-aged by the time he began studying astronomy but used his knowledge to provide useful predictions for farmers and seamen.
A profile of Elizabeth Freeman, an enslaved woman who utilized the Massachusetts State Constitution to gain her freedom. She noticed the pride that was exhibited by citizens who were proud to see their colony fighting for freedom. And was motivated to advocate for herself when she heard the new state constitution being read aloud on the street. After seeking out a lawyer, Freeman filed a suit against her owner using the state constitution to contest the legality of her enslavement.
A profile of Hiram Rhodes Revels, an educator and minister in the African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) Church who also served as the first Black U.S. Senator.