February: Black History Month

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February Black History Month
There are so many individuals that made a
difference for African Americans. Therefore, it
is impossible to name them all and give credit to
them. However, it is not impossible to
acknowledge how African Americans, as a whole,
has made a difference and are continuing to make
a difference.
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1954 Brown vs. Board of Education
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the
Brown v. Board of Education decision. On May 17,
1954, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the
separate but equal doctrine in American public
schools.

• Brown vs. Board of Education was made up of five
  separate but similar court cases
• Briggs v. Elliott in South Carolina
• Davis v. County School Board of Prince Edward
  County in Virginia
• Gebhart v. Belton in Delaware
• Bolling v. Sharpe in the District of Columbia
• Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka in Kansas.

The half-century since Brown vs. Board of
Education has been a series of gains and losses,
from segregation to integration and on to a new
kind of segregation. Other movements feminism,
the fights for other minority rights, gay rights,
advocacy by and on behalf of people with
disabilities were aided, bolstered and fueled
by Brown vs. Board of Education.
Source Teaching Tolerance Magazine, Article
written by Brian Willoughby. http//www.tolerance.
org/
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African American Inventors
1821 Dry Cleaning Process by Thomas L. Jennings
1884 Hand-operated Machine for Kneading and
Rolling Dough by Judy W. Reed
1885 Cabinet Bed by Sarah E. Goode
1834 1836 Seed Planter and Cotton Planter by
Henry Blair
1874 Water Closet for Railroad Cars by Lewis
Latimer
1888 Overhead Electric Conducting Lines for
Railroads by Granville T. Woods
1969 Electrogasdynamic Systems and Methods by
Dr. Meredith Gourdine
Source http//inventors.about.com/library/invento
rs
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Heroes of the Past, Present Future
What do you consider a hero to be? Is it someone
who has made a difference for the world or could
it be someone who has made a difference for one
person? Heroes are everywhere and heroes can be
anyone.
To only name a few
Martin Luther King Jr. Rosa Parks Sammy Davis,
Jr. Nichelle Nichols Jesse Owens Ella
Fitzgerald Maya Angelou
W. E. B. DuBois Zora Neale Hurston Fannie Lou
Hamer Tavis Smiley Colin Powell Fredrick
Douglass Malcolm X
Louis Armstrong Les Brown Dr. Frank Hale Jesse
Robinson Oprah Winfrey Rev. Al
Sharpton Condoleezza Rice
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• Picture Show of African Americans

Those who made a difference those who continue
to make a difference.
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Nothing in the world is more dangerous than
sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.
Martin Luther King Jr.
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Sometimes I feel discriminated against, but it
does not make me angry. It merely astonishes me.
How can anyone deny themselves the pleasure of my
company? It's beyond me. Zora Neale Hurston
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"The important thing to me, man, was to get a
black face on the screen and let him be a hero.
Bill Cosby