Raven Wilkinson (born November 2, 1935) is an American dancer who is credited with being the first African-American woman to dance for a major classical ballet company. Wilkinson broke the color barrier in 1955 when she signed a contract to dance full-time with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. She was promoted to soloist during her second season with the troupe, and remained … [Read more...] about Thursday Open Thread: African-American Ballet Dancers
Race
Wednesday Open Thread: Black Romance Authors
Francis Ray (July 20, 1944 – July 3, 2013) was a New York Times and USA Today bestselling African-American writer of romance novels. Her literary fiction series – Taggart and Falcon, the Invincible Women, Grayson Family of New Mexico, and Grayson Friends – consistently made bestseller's lists. She lived in Dallas, Texas. … [Read more...] about Wednesday Open Thread: Black Romance Authors
Tuesday Open Thread: Black Romance Authors
Brenda Jackson (b abt 1953) is an American novelist who writes contemporary multicultural romance novels. She was the first African-American author to have a novel published as part of the Silhouette Desire line, and has seen many of her novels reach the New York Times and USAToday Bestsellers lists. Brenda reached a milestone in her career in October, 2013 when she published … [Read more...] about Tuesday Open Thread: Black Romance Authors
Saturday Open Thread: The Nadir of African American History
Good Morning POU! Although the "Nadir of African American History" is defined around the institutionalized racism embedded into each level of government, specifically to erase any gains made by the children of slaves immediately following the Civil War, there were actual gains made during this time. Black literacy levels, which rose during Reconstruction, continued to … [Read more...] about Saturday Open Thread: The Nadir of African American History
Tuesday Open Thread: More African-Americans in Aviation
Lee Andrew Archer, Jr. (September 6, 1919 – January 27, 2010) was an African-American fighter pilot in the 332nd Fighter Group, commonly known as the Tuskegee Airmen, during World War II. He was one of the first African-American military aviators in the United States Army Air Corps, the United States Army Air Forces and later the United States Air Force, eventually earning the … [Read more...] about Tuesday Open Thread: More African-Americans in Aviation