Lifting Every Voice

On February 12 in Black History...

In 1900, "Lift Every Voice and Sing" (now also known as "Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing") was publicly performed first as a poem as part of a celebration of Lincoln's Birthday on February 12, 1900 by 500 school children at the segregated Stanton School. Its principal, James Weldon Johnson, wrote the words to introduce its honored guest Booker T. Washington.  The poem was later set to music by Johnson's brother John in 1905. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lift_Every_Voice_and_Sing


I was first introduced to Lift Every Voice when I began singing in the Love Community Choir founded by Ms. Laura Wall in Winston-Salem, NC.  Ms. Wall started this choir of about 50 local middle school and high school kids and performed at holiday and other celebrations at local churches and other venues.  Her goal was introduce kids to proper singing and choral music beyond just contemporary gospel. I remember she once took us all to see the Harlem Boys Choir when they performed at The University of North Carolina at Greensboro.  Each rehearsal began with vocal exercises and at the culmination of every performance, the choir sang ALL THREE VERSES of Lift of Every Voice and Sing.  As I started high school, I was singing in my church youth choir, honors chorus and our high school gospel choir in addition to the Love Community Choir.  As a teenager, I felt that singing those boring spirituals in our uniform white blouses with red vests and navy blue skirts and slacks, with the Love Community Choir was just too childish for me anymore.  My mom made us stay in it until I was in the tenth grade.  As an adult, I look back and am thankful of my time singing with the Love Community Choir.  Ms. Wall passed away sometime around 1992 or so, but I am thankful for her sacrificing her time to expand our music and cultural education for us kids to another fascet of our culture and making us appreciate it in so many ways.  To this day, I can pretty muich recite all three verses as I could back then...the difference is that I know and appreciate what it means to our culture much more.

Lift Every Voice and Sing

By James Weldon Johnson

Lift every voice and sing,

'Til earth and heaven ring,

Ring with the harmonies of Liberty;

Let our rejoicing rise

High as the listening skies,

Let it resound loud as the rolling sea.

Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us,

Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us;

Facing the rising sun of our new day begun,

Let us march on 'til victory is won.

Stony the road we trod,

Bitter the chast'ning rod,

Felt in the days when hope unborn had died;

Yet with a steady beat,

Have not our weary feet

Come to the place for which our fathers sighed?

We have come over a way that with tears has been watered,

We have come, treading our path through the blood of the slaughtered,

Out from the gloomy past,

'Til now we stand at last

Where the white gleam of our bright star is cast.

God of our weary years,

God of our silent tears,

Thou who has brought us thus far on the way;

Thou who has by Thy might

Led us into the light,

Keep us forever in the path, we pray.

Lest our feet stray from the places, our God, where we met Thee,

Lest, our hearts drunk with the wine of the world, we forget Thee;
Shadowed beneath Thy hand,

May we forever stand,

True to our God,

True to our native land.

January in Black History

At the end of each month we'll post a recap in Black History for the montFor the current month's black history notes, check out the Today in Black  History.

January 31 in Black History

Etta Moten

In 1865 - Congress passed the Thirteenth Amendment which, on ratification, abolished slavery in America. The vote in the House was 121 to 24. See the original proposal for the 13th proposal.

In 1988 - Washington Redskins quarterback Doug Williams, the first African American quarterback to play in a Super Bowl game, is named MVP in Super Bowl XXII.

In 1963 - James Baldwin's influential collection of essays, The Fire Next Time is published.

In 1962 - Lt Comdr. Samuel L. Gravely assumed command of destroyer escort, USS Falgout. Navy said he was the first Black to command a U.S. warship.

In 1962 - Samuel L Gravely becomes first Black person to command a U.S. warship

In 1934 - Etta Moten sings for President and Mrs. Franklin D. Roosevelt at a White House Dinner. It is the first time an African American actress performs at the White House.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etta_Moten_Barnett

In 1931 - Baseball star Ernie Banks, former Chicago Cub star, was born in Dallas, TX.
In 1920 - Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, founded at Howard was incorporated.

In 1919 - Baseball Great Jackie Robinson, the first African American to play major league baseball, was born. In Cairo, Georgia on this date baseball great Jackie Robinson was born. The fifth African American to play major league baseball with a white team, Robinson joined the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947, ending five decades of segregated baseball. At the time of his retirement in October 1972, Robinson is believed to have been the most respected of all baseball players.

In 1914 - Boxer Jersey Joe Walcott born; Boxer Jersey Joe Walcott was born Arnold Raymond Cream in Merchantville, New Jersey. Walcott won the World Heavyweight Championship from Ezzard Charles, whom he knocked out in the 7th round of their 1951 title bout in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Walcott had 69 professional fights. He won 30 of them by knock-out and was elected to the Boxing Hall of Fame in 1969.

January 30 in Black History...

In 1979 - Franklin Thomas was named president of the Ford Foundation.

Satchel Paige

In 1965 - Leroy "Satchel" Paige, major league baseball player, named all-time outstanding player by National Baseball Congress In 1956 - Home of Martin Luther King Jr, Montgomery bus boycott leader, was bombed.

In 1945 - U.S. Rep. Floyd Flake was born in Los Angeles, California. A businessman and minister, Flake established the Allen Christian School and Allen Home Care Agency.

In 1944 - Sharon Pratt Dixon, first woman Mayor of Washington, was born

In 1927 - Harlem Globetrotters formed

In 1910 - Inventor Granville T. Woods dies in New York City on January 30, 1910.

John Parker

In 1900 - John Parker, Underground Railroad Conductor died; Born: 1827 Died: January 30, 1900 Birthplace: Norfolk, Virginia John P. Parker was born in Norfolk, Virginia , the son of a white father and a slave mother. He was sold to a slave agent from Richmond, Virginia at age eight. Parker worker for two years at a foundry and the New Orleans docks as a stevedore and purchased his freedom from his earnings. The price of freedom for John P.Parker in 1845 was $1800. In 1845, Parker obtained a pass to travel north to Indiana, where he was lured by the work offered in foundries near New Albany or Jefferson, Indiana. Near Cincinnati, Parker began his career as a "conductor" on the Underground Railroad. Helping a local Negro barber, Parker was able to remove two young girls from Kentucky to freedom in Indiana and Ohio. "He devoted his life to forays in Kentucky, to scouting on both sides of the Ohio River, to taking care of the helpless slaves who had found their way to Ohio and could not get across, to actual fighting for them and against their pursuing masters." Parker before the Emanicipation Proclamation, took an active role in removing an estimated 1000 slaves from bondage. Unlike other abolitionists Parker remained separate from organized church groups, which he viewed as an 'enemy of the people.'

In 1858 - William Wells Brown, novelist and dramatist, publishes first Black drama, "Leap to Freedom"

In 1844 - Richard Theodore Greener becomes the first African American to graduate from Harvard University

In 1800 - United States population: 5,308,483 Black population 1,002,037 (18.9 per cent).
In 1797 - Congress refused to accept the first recorded petitions from American Blacks.
In 1797 - Birth of Sojourner Truth was born a slave in Hurley, New York.

In 1797 - 1st Black Interstate organization; Boston Masons, led by Prince Hall, established first Black interstate organization, creating lodges in Philadelphia and Providence, Rhode Island.

January 29 in Black History...

Sharon Barnes

In 1991 - Nelson Mandela, former president of South Africa, and Chief Mangosuthu Buthelezi held the first talks for almost 30 years between predominantly Zulu Inkatha and the ethnically mixed African National Congress.

In 1991 - Sharon J. Barnes, Chemist at Dow Chemical; Sharon J. Barnes, Chemist at Dow Chemical part of a team of five (two African Americans) who were assigned U.S. Patent #4,988,211 for an application in Infra-Red Thermography In 1981 - William R. "Cozy" Cole, jazz drummer, dies. His recording of "Topsy" became the only drum solo to sell more than one million records.

In 1966 - Charles Mahoney, first Black American delegate to the UN, died

In 1955 - Heavyweight Boxer John Tate born; Birthday of heavyweight boxer John Tate, who was born in Marion City, Arkansas. Tate won the vacant World Boxing Association title in 1979 from South African Gerrie Coetzee.

In 1954 - Oprah Winfrey birthday; American television personality whose syndicated daily talk show is among th most popular was born in Kosciusko, Miss.

In 1926 - Violette Neatley Anderson the first African American woman admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court

In 1913 - Fiftieth Anniversary of Emancipation Proclamation; Black Americans celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of Emancipation Proclamation. Major celebrations were held at Jackson, Mississippi, New Orleans and Nashville. Three states--Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey--appropriated money for official celebrations of the event.

In 1908 - Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, founded at Cornell, is incorporated.

In 1872 - Franics L Cardoza elected State Treasurer of South Carolina

January 28 in Black History...

In 1997, At South Africa's Truth Commission, police confessed to the 1977 murder of Steve Biko.

In 1989, Darkie Tooth Paste Changed. After 62 years, the Colgate-Palmolive Co. redesigned packaging for its "Darkie" tooth paste made and sold only in Asia. The nickname for Darkie tooth paste was renamed "Darlie" and the blackface sambo like character was changed into a "non-racially offensive" silhouette.

In 1986, Astronaut Ronald McNair died in the space shuttle Challenger disaster. Surviving him are his wife Cheryl McNair and children.
In 1970, Arthur Ashe, first Black male to win Wimbledon, is denied entry to compete on the US Team for the South African Open tennis championships due to Ashe's sentiments on South Africa's racial policies
In 1963, Black student Harvey Gantt entered Clemson College in South Carolina, the last state to hold out against integration.
In 1944, Matthew Henson receives a joint medal by Congress for his role as co-discoverer of the North Pole. In 1938, Crystal Byrd Fauset was elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. Fauset was the first Black woman elected to a state legislature.
In 1934, Baseball Outfielder William "Bill" White was born in Lakewood, Ohio. Now baeball's National League President, White played in 1,673 games and ended his career with a .286 batting average on 1,706 hits. He won the Golden Glove award in 1960 and 1966
In 1901, Richmond Barthe, sculptor, was born.
In 1787, Free Africa Society organized in Philadelphia.
http://www.blackfacts.com/
In 1960, Zora Neale Hurston ~ (celebrated writer of the Harlem Renaissance) dies in Durham, North Carolina

January 27 in Black History...
1. 1973 - Joseph Lowze named auxillary Bishop of Missippii
2. 1972 - Mahalia Jackson, gospel music legend, dies this day in Evergreen Park,ILL.
3. 1961 - Leontyne Price, world renowed opera singer, makes her debut at the Metropolitan Opera House
4. 1952 - Ralph Ellison's powerful novel, Invisible Man, wins the National Book Award.
5. 1869 - Will Marion Cook, noted composer and conductor, was born.
http://www.blackfacts.com/
6. 1863 54th Regiment, a Black infantry unit, was formed.
7. 1893 Bessie Coleman, first Black American woman aviator, was born.
8. 1948 Executive Order 9981, to end segregation in US Armed Forces is signed by President Harry Truman
http://www.dayinblackhistory.com/

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January 26 in Black History...
1. 1990 - Pioneering Black Women - In 1990, Elaine Weddington Steward was named assistant general manager of the Boston Red Sox, making her the first Black woman executive of a professional baseball organization.
2. 1990 - Pioneering Black Women - In 1990, Elaine Weddington Steward was named assistant general manager of the Boston Red Sox, making her the first Black woman executive of a professional baseball organization.
3. 1948 - Executive Order 9981, to end segregation in US Armed Forces is signed by Preside - Executive Order 9981, to end segregation in US Armed Forces is signed by President Harry Truman
4. 1944 - Activist, Angela Davis was born - Activist, Angela Davis was born
5. 1940 - Army Brig. Gen. Sherian Grace CAdoria born. - Birthday of Army Brig. Gen. Sherian Grace Cadoria, in Marksville, Louisiana. A graduate of Southern University, Gen. Cadoria was the highest ranking African American woman officer in the US Armed Forces at the end of 1990.
6. 1893 - First Black American woman aviator - First Black American woman aviator, Bessie Coleman was born, 1893
7. 1893 - First Black American woman aviator, Bessie Coleman was born, 1893 - First Black American woman aviator, Bessie Coleman was born, 1893
8. 1863 - 54th Regiment was formed - Black infantry unit, 54th Regiment was formed, MA 1863
9. 1863 - War Department authorized Massachusetts governor - War Department authorized Massachusetts governor to recruit Black troops. The Fifty-fourths Massachusetts Volunteers was first Black regiment recruited in North.
10. 1863 - USCT - The Secretary of War authorizes the governor of Mass. to recruit African American troops.

January 25 in Black History...
1. 1980 - Black Entertainment Television - BET - Black Entertainment Television {BET} - first black owned company to be listed on the NYSE, begins broadcasting from Washington, DC.  Check out EH post here:  http://experiencinghistory.blogspot.com/2011/01/voice-for-black-entertainment.html

2. 1999 - Rev. Henry Lyons goes on trial for embezzlement - Rev. Henry Lyons, president of National Baptist Convention, USA goes on trial for 54 counts of embezzlement, bank/wire fraud and extortion. NBC, USA is the largest Black denominational convention in the US with an estimated membership of 8.5 million.
3. 1972 - Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm begins her campaign - Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm begins her campaign for President of the U.S.
4. 1966 - Constance Baker Motley - Constance Baker Motley - becomes the first african american woman to be appointed to a federal judgeship
5. 1950 - Gloria Naylor, born - Writer, Gloria Naylor, born
6. 1890 - National Afro-American League, Pioneer Black - National Afro-American League, Pioneer Black protest organization, founded at Chicago meeting. Joseph C. Price, President of Livingstone College, was elected president.
7. 1851 - Sojourner Truth addressed the first Black Women's Rights Convention, Akron Ohio - Sojourner Truth addressed the first Black Women's Rights Convention, Akron Ohio

January 23 in Black History
In 1941,Richard Wright wins the Spingarn Medal for "Native Son."
In 1837, Amanda Berry Smith, born into slavery, becomes an independent missionary and travels the U.S. and three other continents.
In 1964, the 24th Amendment to the US Constitution is ratified. It abolishes poll tax
Check out EH post here:  http://experiencinghistory.blogspot.com/2011/01/on-january-23-in-black-history.html

January 22 in Black History
In 1920, William Warfield, concert bass-baritone singer, was born
In 1931, Sam Cook was born.
Check out EH post here:  http://experiencinghistory.blogspot.com/2011/01/from-bass-baritone-to-king-of-soul.html

January 20 in Black History
In 2009 President Barack Obama was inaugurated as the 44th president of the United States and the first African-American president of the United States.
Check out EH post here:  http://experiencinghistory.blogspot.com/2011/01/president-obama-and-his-family-make.html

January 18 in Black History
In 1975, "The Jeffersons" premiered on television.
Check out EH post here:  http://experiencinghistory.blogspot.com/2011/01/well-were-moving-on-up.html

January 16 in Black History
In 1776, Continental Congress approved Washington's order on the enlistment of free Blacks.
In 1920, Zeta Phi Beta was founded at Howard University.
Check out EH post here:  http://experiencinghistory.blogspot.com/2011/01/on-january-16-in-black-history.html

January 15 in Black History
In 1929, Martin Luther King Jr. born in Atlanta.  MLK day is celebrated the 3rd Monday in January each year.  Check out EH post here:  http://experiencinghistory.blogspot.com/2011/01/day-of-service.html
In 1908, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority was founded at Howard Universityin Washington, D.C.
In 1961, "The Supreme" signed with Motown.
Check out EH post here: http://experiencinghistory.blogspot.com/2011/01/leaders-in-politics-sisterhood-and.html

January 14 in Black History
In 1972 "Sanford and Son" premeired on NBC.
Check out EH post here:  http://experiencinghistory.blogspot.com/2011/01/sanford-and-son-debuts.html

January 13 in Black History
In 1953, Don Barksdale became the first Black person to play in an NBA All-Star Game.
In 1913, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority was founded at Howard University
Check out EH post here:  http://experiencinghistory.blogspot.com/2011/01/basketball-firsts-and-sisterhood-of.html

January 12 in Black History
In 2010 Haiti has an earthquake that leaves the nation paralyzed.  Check out EH post here:  http://experiencinghistory.blogspot.com/2011/01/haiti-celebrates-life-one-year-after.html
January 9 in Black History

In 1866, Fisk University opened for classes in Nashville, Tennessee
In 1914, Phi Beta Sigma was founded at Howard University
Check out EH post here: http://experiencinghistory.blogspot.com/2011/01/on-january-9-in-black-history.html


January 7 in Black History...
In 1955, Marian Anderson becomes first Black person to appear in the Metropolitan Opera House in Verdi's Masked Ball.
In 1901, Zora Neale Hurston was born.
Check out the EH post here: http://experiencinghistory.blogspot.com/2011/01/women-of-dreams-without-tragedy.html
In 2011, Bobby Robinson, Harlem record producer dies.  Check out EH post here:  http://experiencinghistory.blogspot.com/2011/01/remembering-bobby-robinson-record.html

January 6 in Black History
In 1968, John Singleton, director and screenwriter was born.
Check out the EH post here:  http://experiencinghistory.blogspot.com/2011/01/on-january-6-in-black-history.html

January 5 In Black History
In 1943….. George Washington Carver Day is now celebrated on January 5 in honor of the brilliant agricultural chemist who died on this day in 1943.
In 1911, Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. was founded at Indiana University.
Check out the EH post here:  http://experiencinghistory.blogspot.com/2011/01/vision-and-brotherhood.html

January 1 in Black History...

In 1997 - The former prison for Nelson Mandela and many other South Africans is turned into a museum at Robben Island.
2. 1997 - Kofi Annan of Ghana becomes first black secretary of United Nations.
3. 1996 - Picture of Rosa Parks taken by Bob Bozarth at Langston University
4. 1960 - Cameroon gains independence
5. 1959 - Edimnia Lewis was born to a Chippewa mother and African father...given the indian name Wildfire. In the fall of 1859 she admiting in Oberlin College, and later studied sculpting privately with Edmund Brackett. Lewis became known for her busts of famous figures as Abraham Lincoln, Longfellow and John Brown. Her Staue ''The Death of Cleopatra', received critical acclaim. Most popular was her "Forever Free..depicting African American man and woman removing their shackles.

6. 1956 - Sudan proclaimed independent
7. 1916 - First issue of Journal of Negro History published
8. 1912 - Second annual report of the NAACP listed total receipts from May through December, 1911, of $10,317.43. Organization had local chapters in Chicago, Boston and New York.
9. 1863 - President Lincoln signed Emancipation Proclamation which freed slaves in rebel states with exception of thirteen parishes (including New Orleans) in Louisiana, forty-eight countries in West Virginia, seven countries (including Norfolk) in Eastern Virginia. Proclamation did not apply to slaves in Border States.
10. 1863 - The Emancipation Proclamation,(freed all the slaves in the slave states), 1863
11. 1860 - Black Code in Arkansas - A law went into effect in Arkansas which prohibited the emplotyment of free blacks on boats and ships navigating the rivers of that state.
12. 1854 - The oldest Historically Black University in the US, Lincoln University is incorporated, 1854
13. 1854 - Lincoln University, one of the first Black colleges, chartered as Ashmun Institute in Oxford, Pennsylvania.
14. 1831 - William Lloyd Garrison published first issue of abolitionist journal, The Liberator.
15. 1808 - The African Benevolent Society for Education is found, 1808
16. 1808 - International Slave Trade was abolished.
17. 1808 - the federal law prohibiting the importation of African slaves went into effect.
18. 1804 - Jean Jacques Dessalines proclaimed independence of Haiti, the second republic in the Western Hemisphere.
19. The Last day of Kwanzaa  is Imani which means Faith

Ringing in the New Year

"The greatest luxury with which they are acquainted is a stew of bacon and peas, with red pepper, which they call ‘Hopping John’."

A Journey in the Seaboard Slave States, Frederick Law Olmsted

Happy New Year!  Today many African-American families will be eating the traditional new years feast - black eyed peas, rice, greens and greens.  Hopping John, which is usually black-eyed peas and rice, is traced back to a similar dish in West Africa.  The old tradition is now mixed with European traditions and black eyed peas along wtih the greens represent good fortune and good luck.

For many African-Americans today, the meal isn't as much necessarily meant for good luck and good fortunes as it is just meant for good food.

Happy Freedom's Eve & Happy Birthday Odetta

On Dec 31 in Black History...

In 1862, on December 31, Freedom's Eve, black slaves and free blacks came together in churches and private homes all across the nation awaiting news that the Emancipation Proclamation actually had become law. At the stroke of midnight, it was January 1, 1863 and all slaves in the Confederate States were declared legally free. When the news was received, there were prayers, shouts and songs of joy as many people fell to their knees and thanked God.  
Even though the first religious watch night service is believed to have begun with the Moravians in 1770, Blacks have gathered in churches annually on New Year’s Eve ever since Freedom's Eve in 1862, praising God for bringing us safely through another year.

In 1930, on December 31, Odetta, African-American singer, song writer and Civil Rights activist, was born in Birmingham, Alabama. 

“ you reach a fork in the road and you can either lie down and die, or insist upon your life.” 

Odetta

See 2007 NY Times Interview Here

She earned a music degree from Los Angeles City College. Her training in classical music and musical theater was “a nice exercise, but it had nothing to do with my life,” she said.  

Odetta sings at the March on Washington in 1963.



Her fame hit a peak in 1963, when she marched with the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and performed for President John F. Kennedy.

Her acting credits included Tony Richardson's ''Sanctuary'' (1960) with Yves Montand and Lee Remick. On television she appeared with Cicely Tyson in ''The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman.'' She also appeared with the Stratford Shakespeare Company in Ontario and at the Neptune Theater in Halifax. In 1999  she was awarded Odetta the National Endowment for the Arts Medal of the Arts and Humanities.

The first thing that turned me on to folk singing was Odetta."

Bob Dylan

Here's Odetta on "The Johnny Cash Show," August 30, 1969. The first song she performs is based on a Negro "field blues" song known simply as "Black Woman," then duets with Cash on "Shame And Scandal In The Family"

Odetta Plays Guitar as she sings with Tennessee Ernie Ford, Woody Guthrie and Pastures of Plenty and Merle travis Nine Pound Hammer




http://www.aaregistry.org/historic_events/view/first-watch-night-service-occurs
http://www.aaregistry.org/historic_events/view/odetta-soul-american-folk-music
http://www.snopes.com/holidays/newyears/watchnight.asp
http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/o/odetta/index.html?scp=1-spot&sq=odetta&st=cse





Happy Kwanzaa!!!

Kwanzaa, founded in 1966, was originally meant to be alternative to the commercialism of Christmas.  Even though it was originally intended to be an alternative to Christmas, many African-Americans recognize both holidays focusing on the principles of Kwanzaa as a cultural holiday while still recognizing their faith in Christmas celebrations.  Each of the seven days of Kwanzaa is dedicated to one of the following principles:

Umoja (Unity): To strive for and to maintain unity in the family, community, nation, and race.

Kujichagulia (Self-Determination): To define ourselves, name ourselves, create for ourselves, and speak for ourselves.

Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility): To build and maintain our community together and make our brothers' and sisters' problems our problems, and to solve them together.

Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics): To build and maintain our own stores, shops, and other businesses and to profit from them together.

Nia (Purpose): To make our collective vocation the building and developing of our community in order to restore our people to their traditional greatness.

Kuumba (Creativity): To do always as much as we can, in the way we can, in order to leave our community more beautiful and beneficial than we inherited it.

Imani (Faith): To believe with all our heart in our people, our parents, our teachers, our leaders, and the righteousness and victory of our struggle.