Media Monday - African American History Month - Week 1

Okay, so the format for Media Mondays for African American History month will be - 1) Song of the week (by an African/African-American Artist), 2) African-American Firsts (a fact of who was the first African American to do what, along with a little biography), 3) This Week In African-American History (self-explatory).

Song of the Week

"We Are Growing" - Margaret Singana 

Margaret Singana was a South African musician who produced World and Afro-Soul Music. She was nicknamed "Lady Africa" and her real name was Margaret M'cingana, which was changed Singana so that non-African people would be able to pronounce it better. This song, the theme song for the South African TV series Shaka Zulu, brought some of her fading popularity back after its release in 1986. She was born in 1938 and lived to age 62 in 2000, when she died of a long-lasting illness and destitute. In 2005, she got a Lifetime Achievement Award from the South African Music Awards, which she deserves. 

African-American Firsts

Hattie McDaniel was the first African-American to win an Academy Award (which she won for her role as 'Mammy' in Gone With the Wind, a role that was and still is hotly debated among African American groups as being racist, with McDaniel herself being quoted as saying: "Why should I complain about making $700 a week playing a maid? If I didn't, I'd be making $7 a week being one."), the first African-American woman to sing on radio and in 2006 was the first African American Oscar winner to be awarded with a stamp. 

Fun Fact: When she was banned from attending the Atlanta premire for Gone with the Wind, Clark Gable, the male white lead, said he would boycott the premire if she wasn't allowed to attend. The studio head, David Selnick, tried to convince MGM to override the laws and let McDaniel attend, but MGM wouldn't have it. McDaniel convinced Clark Gable to go ahead and attend the premire while Selnick made sure that her pictures were featured prominetly in the program for the film. 

This Week in African-American History

Monday, February 5th

White supremiscist Beckwith is convicted for the murder of civil rights leader Medgar Evars, over 30 years after the crime in 1995. Medgar Evars served in WWII, graduated from Alcorn College, fought to desegregate schools so he could attend Missisipi's Law School, became the NAACP's first field secretary in Mississipi, held many peaceful rallies and helped the first African-American get into the same law school he was barred from attending. He was murdered in 1963 at age 37, after receiving numerous death threats for trying to segreate our schools. Beckwith was given a life sentence and died in prison. I would have loved to see  Beckwith put ot death, but that's up for debate.

Tuesday, February 6th

Freed United States slaves departed for their homeland of Africa in 1820. It was largely the work of the American Colonization Society founded in 1816 to return freed slaves to their homeland. The US Congress also allocated $100,000 to be used in this effort. Some where not enthuastic to be giving up their homes in the states to back to Africa and Abolishists did not like it because it could be seen as a strengthening of the awful instituion of slavery. Either way, between 1820 and the Civil War, more than 15,000 freed slaves were taken back to Africa. 

Friday, February 9th

Satchel Paige, in 1971, got nominated to the Baseball Hall of Fame. He was the first African American to do so. He began his baseball career in the 1920s and after Jackie Robinson desegregated baseball in 1947, Satchel Paige followed suit in 1948. He was baseball's oldest rookie at age 42. Paige retired in 1953 but briefly returned to baseball in 1965 to pitch 3 innings the Kansas City A's, a team he used to play for during his career. Satchel Paige died on June 8th, 1982. He was known for his sense of humor and observations of life, including: “Don’t look back. Something might be gaining on you” and “Age is a question of mind over matter. If you don’t mind, it doesn’t matter.”

Saturday, February 10th

Ronald H. Brown, in 1989, was the first African-American to be hold the top position in a US political party as chairman of the Democratic party. Brown worked as a welfare case worker before joining the army. He held positions in many advocacy groups before becoming a member of the United States Supreme Court Bar and chief counsel for the Senate Judiciary committee. As chairman to the Democractic party, he helped Bill Clinton get into office and in 1992, he became the first African-American to be secretary of commerce. He served that role until he died in a tragic plane crash along with 32 other Americans in Crotia on April 3rd, 1996 after leading a delegation to help the former Yugoslavia build business opportunites. 

Sunday, February 11th

Nelson Mandela got freed from prison on this day in 1990! Nelson, a laywer,  joined the oldest black political orgnization in South Africa in 1942, and in 1952 he gained leadership of it. He used his role to advocate non-violent protests. He fought to end the apatheid (basically Jim Crowe Laws, but over in Africa. Y'know? The birthplace of all Africans...). He was arrested for treason in 1961, but after he was acquited and tried to leave the country, he got convicted in 1962. Two years later, he was sentenced to life in prison for sabatoge. Despite the cruel prison they put him in, Mandela stayed glued to his resolve of destorying the apartheid. In 1989, a new South African president came into power and freed Mandela. The president and Mandela recieved a joint Nobel Peace Prize for their effots and success in getting a multi-racial government and ending the apartheid. Mandela retired from politics in 1999 but advocated for peace and social justice until his death in 2013.