This Week In Black History (December 21 – December 27)
December 21, 1948 – Samuel L. Jackson was born in Washington, D.C. An Academy Award nominee, he has starred in countless films including: “Jungle Fever,” “Pulp Fiction”, “Jackie Brown,” “Eve’s Bayou,” and many more. (Courtesy Photo)
December 22, 1960 – Legendary artist, Jean-Michel Basquiat was born in Brooklyn. Famous for being part of an informal graffiti group called SAMO, his art was thought provoking with poetic words. The Haitian-American artist was known for Neo-expressionism, Primitivism and Contemporary art. His work attracted high profile artists, such as Andy Warhol and Madonna. (Photo Courtesy: Courtesy of William Coupon / CORBIS)
December 23, 1867 – Madam C. J. Walker was born in Delta, Louisiana to sharecroppers. During the 1890s, Walker During the 1890s, suffered from a scalp ailment that caused her to lose most of her hair. She founded her own business, selling Madam Walker’s Wonderful Hair Grower, a scalp conditioning and healing formula in 1905. She established Madame C.J. Walker Laboratories to manufacture cosmetics as well as training sales beauticians. A civil rights activist and philanthropist, Walker was the first women to become a self-made entrepreneur. (Courtesy Photo)
December 24, 1832 – The Georgia Infirmary was the first hospital for African Americans built in the United States. It was established by the Georgia General Assembly and funded by a $10,000 grant from the estate of Thomas F. Williams, a local merchant and minister. Today the institution is known as the Adult Day Center-Georgia Infirmary and is part of St. Joseph’s/Candler healthcare network. (Courtesy Photo)
December 25, 1907 – Jazz singer Cab Calloway was born in Rochester, NY. He was known for his legendary stint at Harlem’s Cotton Club. His debut song “Minnie the Moocher” (1931) was a huge hit. He was a film and stage actor, starring in “Stormy Weather” in 1943 and the revival of musical “Porgy and Bess” on Broadway in 1952. (Courtesy Photo)
December 26, 2004 – Reggie White died on this year in North Carolina. He played for Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers. White is a member of the College and Pro Football Hall of Fame. (Courtesy Photo)
December 27, 1857 – Born in Henderson, NC, Henry P. Cheatham was the only African American in congress in 1889. A Republican, he defeated Furnifold M. Simmons, a White Democrat for the 2nd Congressional District of North Carolina. Cheatham served two terms in congress and later served the last 28 years of his life as the Superintendent of the State Colored Orphanage Asylum of North Carolina in Oxford. (Photo Courtesy: Blackhistory.today)
