“I stand before you today as the elected leader of the greatest city of a great nation, to which my ancestors were brought, chained and whipped in the hold of a slave ship.” ~David Dinkins On November 23, 2020, former Mayor of New York City David Dinkins passed away at the age of 93 in … Continue reading The “Gorgeous Mosaic”: Tribute to David N. Dinkins
“It’s about life, and who you are as a human being. Today is a sad day in that we lost two of the most powerful activists we’ve ever had – C.T. Vivian and John Lewis. The impact they had on America is unbelievable…” ~Chris Paul On July 17, 2020, two icons of the Civil Rights … Continue reading In the Long Tradition of Civil Rights: Tribute to C. T. Vivian and John Lewis
written by Dr. Trichita M. Chestnut, Management and Program Analyst, in the Office of the Chief Operating Officer at the National Archives in College Park, Maryland “…there is no East, no West, no North, no South, but one great fellowship of love throughout the whole, wide world:” ~Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Sermon at the Marienkirche, … Continue reading “…there is no East, no West..:” Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Visits Cold War Berlin
"You can jail a Revolutionary, but you can't jail the Revolution" ~Fred Hampton Fred Hampton was born on August 30, 1948 in Maywood, Illinois. He was gifted in academics and athletics. As a child, he wanted to play for the New York Yankees when he finished school, but ended up studying pre-law at Triton Junior … Continue reading Fred Hampton: Vanguard Revolutionary
Barbara Lewis Burger, who retired from the Still Picture Branch of the National Archives as a Senior Archivist, wrote today’s blog. One of her areas of interest is photographic and graphic records of and about African Americans. "Keep us flying! Buy War Bonds." (NAID 514823) Almost 30 years ago I submitted a proposal to National … Continue reading Who Is He? A Long-Delayed Search for the Identity of the Airman Portrayed in a World War II Poster
“ I always tried to do the best. I knew I couldn’t always be the best, but I tried to be.” ~Frank Robinson On February 7, 2019, Hall of Fame baseball player Frank Robinson passed away at the age of 83 in Los Angeles, California. During his career, he had nearly 3,000 hits, .294 … Continue reading Tribute to Hall of Famer Frank Robinson
“Knowledge is power. Information is liberating. Education is the premise of progress, in every society, in every family.” ~Kofi Annan On August 18, 2018, Kofi Annan passed away at the age 80 in Bern, Switzerland. He was the first person from sub-Saharan Africa to lead the United Nations (UN). Under Annan’s leadership, the UN re-established … Continue reading The Gentle Peacemaker: Tribute to Kofi Annan
“You cannot define a person on just one thing. You can’t just forget all these wonderful and good things that a person has done because one thing didn’t come off the way you thought it should come off.” ~Aretha Franklin On August 16, 2018, legendary singer and songwriter Aretha Franklin passed away at the age … Continue reading R-E-S-P-E-C-T: Tribute to the Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin
Today's blog was written by Tina L. Ligon, Supervisory Archivist in Textual Processing at the National Archives at College Park, Maryland The boycotts, protests, and marches of the 1950s and 1960s contributed to the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act (1965). These pieces of legislation assisted with the … Continue reading Resurrection City: The Continuation of King’s Dream
“[B]inary opposites fit nicely the formulation of history as written, but they do little to capture the mess, inchoate reality of history as live.” ~ Ira Berlin On June 5, 2018, Ira Berlin passed away at age 77, in the Washington, D. C. area. He was an award-winning historian and Distinguished Professor of History at … Continue reading Many Thousands Gone: Tribute to Ira Berlin
