Henrietta Lacks was born to the name Loretta Pleasant on August 1 ,1920 in Roanoke, Virginia. At some point in her life she changed her name to Henrietta. When her mother dies in 1924 she had to moved with her grandfather in a log cabin that happening to be a slave quarters of a white ancestor's plantation. Henrietta didn’t get her own room she had to share a room with her cousin David " Day" Lacks. In 1935 when Henrietta was only 14 her and David had a son together that they named Lawrence. In 1939 the couple had a daughter and named her Elsie and married in 1941. Henrietta and David moved to Maryland and they had Deborah, David Jr. , and Joseph. Their second child Elsie was developmentally disabled in…
During the years 1954 through 1968, times were hard for african american people. In Alabama, african american people did not have access to the same equipment and things that white people had. When going to places, africans could only go to certain areas in certain places, or they would get arrested. For example, some places and things that required you to be white to get the better quality were school's, restrooms, water fountains, and restaurants. African american people would be discriminated, and racism scattered all over Alabama. During these hard times, african americans would wear the usual regular clothes, which were denim jeans, blue jeans, and regular T-shirts. African american people would also dress decent because when protesting…
Nelson Mandela was born July 18, 1918 in a small village in southern Africa and named Rolihlahla Mandela. In a country controlled by a white government, he was extremely fortunate to become the first of his family to attend school. Since his name meant “troublemaker,” his school teacher decided to call him Nelson hoping that he would not cause trouble with a new name. Little did she know that in a few years he would become one of the greatest troublemakers in history; a man who would change the racial ideals of the ruling white minority.…
The years somewhere around 1951 and 1960 were difficult times, both for South Africa and for the ANC. More youthful anti-apartheid activists, including Mandela, were going to the perspective that peaceful exhibits against apartheid did not work, since they permitted the South African government to react with violence against Africans. In spite of the fact that Mandela was prepared to attempt each technique to get rid of apartheid peacefully, he started to feel that peaceful resistance would not change conditions at…
He was born on July 18 1918 in Mvezo of South Africa. His birth name was Rolihlahla but he got his nickname from a teacher at his school. Nelson was a member of Thimbu royalty and his father was chief of the city. Nelson attended school and later college ta Fort Hare and the University of Witwatersrand, there he got his law degree.…
New York- Sojourner Truth, a brave and fearless woman who sends gave the speech for the rights of woman in Akron, Ohio, on May 29, 1851.…
William Edward Burghardt Du Bois, commonly known as W.E.B Du Bois, was a famous historian, essayist, and sociologist. In 1868, Du Bois was born February 23rd in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. His contributions to the world through a sociological standpoint were: “his role as one of the early sociological pioneers, sociologist of race, and as a scholar- activist” ( sociology website ) Du Bois was a very intelligent man that attended college at Fisk. In 1888, Du bois earned his bachelor's degree. Though that was not enough, Du Bois later transferred to the college he had always wanted to attend, but could not afford at first: Harvard. There, he earned a second bachelor's degree where he later also earned his master’s three years later in…
On July 18th, 1918, Mandela was born in Mvezo on the banks of the Mbashe River in Transkei, South Africa (Biography of Nelson Mandela). He was born with the name of "Rolihlahla", meaning "pulling the branch of a…
Sojourner Truth once declared, at the Women’s Rights Convention in 1851, “If the first woman God ever made was strong enough to turn the world upside down all alone, these together ought to be able to turn it back and get it right side up again” (“Sojourner Truth” Encyclopedia). This statement brought a wave of protest from the men in the crowd and left most women with renewed hope for receiving equal rights. Sojourner Truth was a woman’s rights activist and African American abolitionist, on top of being a freed slave. Sojourner Truth had the “worst of both worlds” being that she was African American, and also a woman. She spoke at a countless amount of conventions, largely inspired by Lucrietta Mott. Rather than using weapons, Truth would use her incredible talent of speech to get her points across. Truth was an extremely opinionated woman who would not give up on an issue until she thought the result was satisfactory. Without Sojourner Truth’s hard work and dedication to the issues that she cared about, America would not be shaped today how it is (“Sojourner Truth” Encyclopedia).…
“If my cup won’t hold but a pint, and yours holds a quart, wouldn’t you be mean not to let me have my little half measure full? (National Park Service- Sojourner Truth)... this small passage was taken from a speech that has been repeated throughout time. The woman who spoke these words was known as Sojourner Truth. Truth’s speeches about the equality between women and men gave not only a powerful message, but it also intensified her fight for women and civil rights. After being released from slavery, she made it her mission to fight for her vision of equality within gender and races. Truth goes on to speak at numerous conventions, helping African Americans rebuild their lives after slavery, and being an activist for change. Although, Sojourner…
During the summer break one of Xavier's required reading included I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban. As I read Malala's struggle towards seeking education for not only herself but for others, I realized how fortunate and privileged I truly am to have the opportunity to attend All Saints' Episcopal Day School and now Xavier College Preparatory. I never had to stumble in order to receive an education. From reading Malala's story, I realized that the most meaningful part of my Xavier education is, of course, receiving the education itself, especially with rigorous classes, variety of clubs, and the Xavier community by my side.…
due to cultural and ethnic beliefs in the African-American culture average products for each group are:…
Heritage makes up a large portion of our History. Combine that heritage with race and you have a foundation for establishing different beginnings of races that can trace their early origins back to the beginning of the United States. A giant melting pot as it has been described due to all of the immigration that occurred in the early nineteenth century. African Americans have established an enormous role in the beginnings and the history of the America. Their continuous fight for equality and rights as American people have spanned many years. The actions against African Americans immediately following the conclusion of the civil…
The Mother of the Civil Rights Movement Rosa Parks is one of the most famous people in the history of the American Civil Rights movement, for her refusal to “move to the back of the bus” on December 1, 1955. Although her moment of protest was not a planned event , it certainly proved to be a momentous one. The nature of Rosa Park’s protest, the response of the authorities of Montgomery, the tactics adopted by the civil rights leaders in Montgomery, and the role eventually played by Federal authority, were all aspects of this particular situation that were to be repeated again and again in the struggle for equality of race. Rosa Parks’ action, and the complex combination of events that followed, in some measure, foreshadowed a great deal of the history of the civil rights movement over the next decade. Obeying the law can change history in an instance, even if you’re actions don’t express it, it will later on affect society. After the arrest of Rosa Parks, black people of Montgomery and sympathizers of other races organized and promoted a boycott of the city bus line that lasted 381 days. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was appointed the spokesperson for the Bus Boycott and taught nonviolence to all participants. Contingent with the protest in Montgomery, others took shape throughout the south and the country. They took form as sit-ins, eat-ins, swim-ins, and similar causes. Thousands of courageous people joined the "protest" to demand equal rights for all people. As of my opinion, we should all be questioning the fact on how brave someone can be…
What is courage? The dictionary says that courage is the ability to do something that frightens one. But is that really the only definition of courage. Courage is just one word but that one word creates courageous words. Martin Luther King Jr. showed this throughout his life. He led a protest for what was right and spoke for what had to be done. Sadly all this courage led to his assassination as we remember today. Dr. King was born in Atlanta, Georgia in 1929. As a child he never failed to ask discerning questions about the world around him. Though his father was a reverend, King initially had many doubts about the Christian religion, and it was only after years of schooling that he became convinced that religion could be both “intellectually…