Category: National Written by Associated Press

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by Brett Zonker
Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP)—Frederick Douglass was Black and that was enough for the Smithsonian Institution to bar the famed abolitionist from speaking at a lecture series intended to convince President Abraham Lincoln that he should end slavery as war divided the nation in February 1862.

BREAKING GROUND—President Barack Obama embraces Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., as former first lady Laura Bush stands at the Smithsonian groundbreaking, Feb. 22. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

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Category: National Written by NNPA News Service

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by Maria Morales
For New Pittsburgh Courier

(NNPA)—“Guess who’s coming to dinner?” is becoming a standard refrain in many homes as the number of interracial marriages reached an all-time high in 2010, according to a study just released on Social and Demographic Trends project by the Pew Research Center.

HBO DOCUMENTARY—In this 1960s image released by HBO, Richard Loving and his wife, Mildred, are shown. The Lovings are the subject of an HBO documentary “The Loving Story,” which premiered Feb. 14. Convicted of violating a law against interracial marriage, the Lovings fought for their rights and won a landmark 1967 Supreme Court case that struck down such bans nationwide. (AP Photo/HBO, Grey Villet)

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Category: National Written by Robert N. Taylor

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Week of March 5-11

March 5

1770—Crispus Attucks is shot and killed by British soldiers becoming the first American to die in the struggle for American Independence from England. Attucks was an escaped slave who became a sailor and rope maker. It is unclear exactly how he became involved in the protest of that day. But a crowd had gathered and began to taunt British troops. Attucks, who was of Black and Indian parentage, was inspired to give a speech in which he spoke of the importance of freedom. Suddenly a volley of shots was fired into the crowd. Four people died that day in an event which became known as the Boston Massacre.

CRISPUS ATTUCKS

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Category: National Written by Associated Press

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by Suzanne Gamboa
Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP)—Before the death of Don Cornelius stirred pangs of “Soul Train” nostalgia in the American public, a group of Black entrepreneurs already had begun working to revive Cornelius’ creation and carry it beyond the continued popularity of the show’s dances and television reruns.

KEEPIN’ THE ‘TRAIN’ ALIVE—In this July 21, 2011, photo, Hall of Fame basketball player turned businessman Earvin “Magic” Johnson smiles during a news conference, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File)

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