Newspaper Page Text
THE VOICE OF BLACK WOMANHOOD
Vol. XXXII No. IV
Atlanta, Georgia
February, 1979
MLK Week Keeps The Dream Alive
Marchers from A.U. Center participate to help keep the dream alive. Pho, ° by Novice Johnson
Do You Know Your Black History?
by Malrey Head
This year’s Martin Luther King,
Jr. celebration was one of the most
outstanding compared to past
years. King, who would have been
50 on Jan. 15, was praised and
honored for six days, from Jan. I I-
16, by local, national and interna
tional figures.
They all spoke of what a great
man King was and helping to keep
his dream alive. The dream being
that blacks would one day obtain
complete racial equality.
King, the greatest of the civil
rights leaders, had helped to open
many doors for blacks and the
poor. In April of 1968, before his
assassination. King was aiding
striking garbage workers in their
struggle.
One of the major events of the
six day celebration was President
Jimmy Carter receiving the Martin
Luther King, Jr. Non-Violence
Peace prize. Sen. Julian Bond, who
marched outside the church, com
pared the award to the Nobel
Peace Prize given to Isreali Prime
Minister Menachem Begin and
Egyptian President Anwar Sadat.
“It is given in hope of what he
might do,” he said.
Another important happening
was the presentation of the Martin
Luther King Black Heritage
stamp. The presentation was made
on Jan. 13 to Ms. Coretta King by
the U.S. Postmaster. The stamp is
the second in the series.
The appearance of Carter in the
city brought out marchers to voice
their grievances with Carter. The
Southern Christian Leadership
Conference (SCLC), which King
helped to form, lead a march from
Central City Park to Ebenezer
Church. SCLC had the support of
many other organizations and
marchers including Dick Gregory,
Dr. Ralph Abernathy, Hosea Wil
liams, the Rev. Joseph Lowery and
students from the Atlanta Univer
sity Center and Atlanta Junior
College.
The group of about 200 people
marched to inform Carter that he
had not kept his promise to blacks
and the poor in regards to jobs,
Abernathy stated, “We are here on
behalf of poor America and we
don’t like it.”
“We are fulfillers of the dream of
Martin Luther King and we do like
that,” he said.
continued on page 4
By Shelia Poole
Crispus Attucks, Harriet Tub-
man, George Washington Carver,
and Sojourner Truth. Do these
names sound familiar? Probably
so, because every since one can
remember these names have been
drilled in our minds for each cele
bration of Black History Week.
The month of February has been
proclaimed Black History Month
which should give the community
not only a chance to learn about
Crispus Attucks, Harriet Tubman,
George Washington Carver and
Sojourner Truth, but also other
lesser known, but still great figures
in black history.
Throughout the ages, from
country to country blacks have
made several contributions to
humanity and the black race. For
instance there was Hannibal, the
Carthaginian general whose army
occupied Italy for 15 years proving
to Europe the superior military
strength of the Carthaginians. St.
Augustine of Hippo is another out
standing black man. He was the
bishop of Hippo, a city in North
Africa, and became known for his
great theological writings, “Con- 1
fessions” and “City of God.”
Blacks played a role in the dis
covery of America that predates
the Pilgrims; evidence suggests
that a black man (named Pedro
Alonso Nino) sailed with Chris
topher Columbus in his search for
a new route to the Indies.
Once in America blacks con
tinued to make contributions to
American independence. Prince
Estabrook, a black slave, fought
with the patriots at Lexington and
was one of the 49 killed.
Other outstanding black figures
in history include:
Sadie T. M. Alexander—the
first black woman to get a Ph. D. in
the U.S. and also the first woman
to earn a law degree from the Uni
versity of Pennsylvania. In 1927
she became the first black woman
to be admitted to the bar in the
state of Pennsylvania.
James P. Beckworth—scout for
the U.S. government and fur
trader. Beckworth discovered a
pass through the Sierra-Nevada
Mountains.
David Walker—‘founded the
Appeal to the Colored Citizens of
the World in 1829. Walker became
one of the most outspoken pamp
hleteers on slavery. He urged all
slaves to fight for their freedom.
Many southerners claimed
Walker’s Appeal influenced the
rebellions of Gaberial Prosser and
Denmark Vessey. The circulation
of the pamphlet was made a capital
offense in the south.
Garrett Morgan—in 1923 Mor
gan invented the automatic traffic
light. General Electric bought the
patent rights for $40,000.
Oscar De Priest—An 1928 DePri-
est was elected to the U.S. House of
Representatives in Washington.
He became the first black to repres
ent a northern district.
Charlotte A. Bass—Ms. Bass
became the first black woman to
run for the office of Vice-
President. In 1952 she was unanim
ously selected at the Progressive
continued on page 3
