Tag: African American history

July is officially National Watermelon Month—a U.S. Senate-approved celebration of one of summer's favorite fruits. But behind those family backyard BBQs lies a piece of history that was left out of the textbooks. Long before the fruit was hijacked and weaponized as a racist stereotype, the watermelon was actually a powerful symbol of Black freedom and economic independence.

Walking alone into Little Rock Central High School, Elizabeth Eckford remained composed as an angry white mob screamed insults behind her. The photograph became one of the defining images of school desegregation, capturing her quiet courage and dignity in the face of hatred and intimidation during the fight for educational equality.

The 250th anniversary of America arrives as historians confront the full, complicated truth of the Revolution and Black soldiers, spies and petitioners whose stories have been marginalized. While around 5,000 Black men fought for the Patriots, thousands more fought for the British. From double agents securing victory at Yorktown to Dunmore's 1775 proclamation pulling enslaved people into British lines, Black contributions were vast and often crucial. Figures like James Armistead Lafayette, a double agent who gained freedom in 1787, and Belinda Sutton, who petitioned for reparations based on her decades of forced labor, reveal how the Revolution extended into petitions, education and early Black community building.

The 2026 Black History Month theme is a century of commemorations, but a deeper conversation is on The Secret Black Systems. These underground networks for money, safety, and healthcare were the parallel infrastructure that shielded Black lives from systemic erasure.

In a transformative move, the Baltimore Museum of art named Rhea L. Combs its inaugural Senior Fellow in Contemporary and Global Art. The former Smithsonian curator will develop new curatorial frameworks focusing on marginalized voices and global exchange.

Ruby Bridges faced intense racism integrating a school in 1960. Her bravery remains an iconic moment. This image captures a poignant era.