Category: Black history

THE CAGED BIRD Florence Price

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In an abandoned house in St. Anne, Illinois, an astonishing treasure trove of handwritten sheet music was discovered in 2009. That cache was the life’s work of composer Florence Price, the first African-American woman to have her work performed by major orchestras. But Price’s story is so much bigger – and wilder – than even that headline-grabbing discovery could show, and her astonishing contributions to classical music are finally getting the praise they deserve. Our …

20th century / Black history / Composers / Educators / First woman to... / Musicians / North America / Performers / Transcripts / United States

THE FREE WOMAN Harriet Jacobs

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When Harriet Jacobs’ enslaver threatened to sell her children away to the plantation unless she accepted his sexual abuse, she decided the only way to keep them safe was to run. But with no resources and no way to get north, where could she go instead? The answer is an astonishing one. Jacobs’ story is one of the most dramatic and remarkable ‘slave narratives’ in United States history, yet for over 100 years, everyone believed …

19th century / Activists / Black history / North America / Politics / Transcripts / Travel / United States / Writers

THE SCULPTOR Edmonia Lewis

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What if you had a vision for your life, but absolutely everyone around you told you it was impossible? Edmonia Lewis lived a life so improbable, that if we didn’t have the actual evidence that she really existed, we’d never believe it! The orphaned daughter of a Native American mother and Caribbean father in mid 19th century America, she set out on the most unlikely path: to become a famed classical sculptor in Rome, all …

19th century / Artists / Black history / England / Europe / Indigenous Peoples / Italy / LGBTQ+ / North America / Transcripts / United States

THE REVOLUTIONARY Mae Mallory

Mae Mallory was a radical civil rights activist, Black Power movement leader, school desegregation organizer and strong proponent of Black armed self-defense. Her passionate dedication to “solving Black peoples’ problems” changed the world, but her name is mostly known because of her false arrest and conviction for kidnapping an elderly white couple in 1961. After the verdict was overturned by the North Carolina Supreme Court, Mallory continued to work for freedom, autonomy and security for …

20th century / Activists / Black history / North America / Politics / Tanzania / United States

THE MARTYRS Perpetua and Felicitas

When your heart tells you to do one thing, and your parents tell you to do another, what do you do? 22-year-old Perpetua faced this dilemma 1,800 years ago in ancient Carthage. She faced a grisly death in an ancient Roman arena with her slave, Felicitas, at her side. Their tale is full of bizarre twists, gladiators, preemie babies, religious visions, and even a “most ferocious cow.” Our guest is Eliza Rosenberg, Postdoctoral Teaching Fellow …

3rd century / Africa / Ancient / Black history / Religion / Tunisia

THE JOURNALIST Claudia Jones

Claudia Jones (born Claudia Cumberbatch) was a journalist, Black Nationalist and prominent member of the American Communist Party. Emigrating from Trinidad to NYC at eight years old, she was an extremely well-known peace activist and worked toward civil rights and women’s rights in America. Arrested for giving a speech promoting peace and women’s rights, in 1955 she was deported to England. There she founded the nation’s first Black newspaper, continued her work fighting racism and …

20th century / Activists / Black history / England / Journalists / Politics / South America / Trinidad and Tobago / United States / Writers

THE MUSICIAN Mary Lou Williams

Mary Lou Williams was one of the most innovative, creative, groundbreaking musicians in the history of jazz. She was a brilliant and prolific composer and uniquely gifted pianist whose influence spans nearly the entire timeline of jazz music, but her name is almost never listed among the “giants of jazz.” Although prejudice kept her from achieving the recognition and fame she deserved during her lifetime, her contributions cement her legacy as a true pioneer of …

20th century / Black history / Musicians / North America / Performers / United States