Celebrating Black History Month

This is a response to Black Women And Emotional Labor: A History.

Black history month is upon us, and to celebrate this amazing month, I want to shed light upon just a few of the most influential black individuals throughout U.S. history.

Rosa Parks was an American activist in the civil rights movement who was best known for her crucial role in the Montgomery bus boycott where she refused to give up her seat to a white man. The boycott lasted more than a year and only ended when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that bus segregation was unconstitutional. Over the next half-century, Parks became a nationally recognized character of dignity and strength in the fight to end racial segregation. The United States Congress honored her as the “first lady of civil rights” as well as the “mother of the freedom movement”.

Harriet Tubman was an escaped enslaved woman who became a “conductor” on the Underground Railroad, leading enslaved individuals to freedom before the Civil War. She played other roles as a nurse, a union spy, and a women’s suffrage supporter. Tubman is one of the most recognized icons in American history and her legacy has inspired countless individuals from every race and background.

Ruby Bridges is an American civil rights activist. At the age of six, she was the first African-American child to desegregate the all-white William Frantz Elementary School in Louisiana, all during the New Orleans school desegregation crisis that occurred in the 60s. While some families supported her courage, others protested throughout the city in opposition. Over time, other African American students enrolled and many years later, Ruby’s four nieces would also attend. A very cool fact about Bridges is that the artist Norman Rockwell celebrated her courage with a painting of that first day entitled, “The Problem We All Live With.”

Frederick Douglass was an American social reformer, abolitionist, orator, writer, and statesman. After escaping from slavery in Maryland, he became a national leader of the abolitionist movement in Massachusetts and New York, becoming famous for his oratory and keen antislavery writings.

Bessie Coleman was an early American civil aviator. She was the first African-American woman to hold a pilot license. Her goal was to encourage women and African Americans to reach their dreams which ended up becoming her legacy. Though her life and career were cut short in a tragic plane crash, her legacy continues to inspire people around the world.

Martin Luther King Jr. was an American Baptist, minister, and activist who was one of the most prominent leaders in the civil rights movement. King was a part of many marches and many he led for the right to vote, desegregation, and labor rights. As president of the Christian Leadership Conference, he led the Albany Movement in Albany, Georgia, and helped organize some of the 1963 protests in Birmingham, Alabama. King was one of the leaders of the 1963 March on Washington, where he delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. The civil rights movement achieved pivotal legislative gains in the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the Fair Housing Act of 1968 due to his courage for wanting equality.

These are only just a few of the most influential black individuals throughout our history. I encourage everyone to not only learn and care about black figures during black history month, but to keep educating yourself on these individuals plus many others.