December 17
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1991- Michael Jordan is named Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year.
December 18
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1989- Ernest Dickerson wins the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Cinematography for Spike Lee movie, “Do the Right Thing”.
December 19
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1895- Dr. Carter G. Woodson was born in New Canton, Virginia. Woodson was one of the first scholars to study African American history and founder of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History.
December 20
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1986- Max Robinson, the first African American news anchor for a major television network, died from Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) in Washington D.C. He joined ABC’s “World News Tonight,” in 1976.
December 21
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1976- Spingarn Medal was presented to Alvin Ailey in recognition of his international pre-eminence in the field of dance. Ailey was an African American choreographer and activist who was credited with popularizing modern dance for African American participation.
December 22
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1943- W.E.B. Du Bois was the first African American elected to the National Institute of the Arts and Letters.