Jean Idelle was a black American burlesque dancer and singer who trained under Katherine Dunham and is credited as one of the first black performers to appear on stage with white dancers throughout the US and Canada. As a young woman, Idelle expressed to her mother she wanted to be a burlesque performer. Her mother was shocked and against her daughter’s dance intentions and … [Read more...] about Tuesday Open Thread: Black Burlesque and Vaudeville Perfomers
Education
Wednesday Evening Thread: June 11, 1963
Color footage of the Radio and Television Report to the American People on Civil Rights, delivered from the President's office at 8 p.m. on June 11, 1963 President Kennedy speaks from the Oval Office in response to the National Guard being sent to protect African American students at the University of Alabama. The President declares that a moral crisis exists in America … [Read more...] about Wednesday Evening Thread: June 11, 1963
POU Livestream: Remembering Dr. Maya Angelou (Updated with video)
Saturday Open Thread: African Americans and The Struggle for Education Equality
Good Morning POU! Hope you're have a wonderful weekend. We conclude our series with a look at the "Segregation Academy" and the correlation to today's Voucher movement, the impact of such schools on public education and the opportunities for minority children. A segregation academy was a private school in the United States that was established in the mid-20th … [Read more...] about Saturday Open Thread: African Americans and The Struggle for Education Equality
Friday Open Thread: African Americans and the Struggle for Education Equality
TGIF POU! Today we continue our topic of education equality with a look at the legacy of disparity in funding for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). Before the end of the Civil war, the Morrill Land-Grant Colleges Act (Morrill Act of 1862) was passed to provide for federal funding of higher education by each state with the details left to the state … [Read more...] about Friday Open Thread: African Americans and the Struggle for Education Equality