Born in Port Au Prince Haiti, Claudinette Fouchard won Miss Haiti and the Miss World Sugar Pageant in 1960. Upon winning Haiti had made a few stamps in her honor, she also made it to the covers of Jet & Ebony magazine. She eventually left to study in France and eventually at Georgetown University in Washington D.C. After her success in pageantry, Fouchard married and largely left the public eye. She married a German Industrialist in her parent’s backyard villa in Petionville, Haiti. Her time in the spotlight was short, however she made an immense impact on the world’s impression of Haiti.
Black History 365 | # 79 George Washington Carver
This is George Washington Carver. He’s the man who discovered more than 300 uses for peanuts. The agriculturist who developed many methods to prevent soil depletion. The one thing he didn’t actually invent around peanuts was peanut butter. That was Marcellus Gilmore Edson. But I digress. Carver was castrated at a young age by his adoptive “owners” at around 11 years old. They made him a eunuch to be a servant for their daughter. Search the depths of your search engine pages to discover the truth. History has been rewritten & hidden and continues to be hidden & rewritten. Now there are articles that discuss the sexual orientation of Carver. George Washington Carver’s achievements are taught in elementary school. He is a very well known agriculturalist in American history. Bless his soul.
Black History 365 | # 77 Katherine Johnson
Did you know Katherine Johnson was one of the first women to work at NASA? She was a member of the Space Task Group. In 1960 she coauthored a paper with one of the group’s engineers about calculations for placing a spacecraft into orbit. It was the first time a woman in her division received credit as an author of a research report.
Black History 365 | # 75 Sylvia Robinson
Did you know a black woman, Sylvia Robinson is the Godmother of Hip-Hop? At least within the industry…conceiving and producing the first successful rap record in the summer of 1979, “Rapper’s Delight” by The Sugarhill Gang. That record singlehandedly transformed the genre from a regional activity to commercially viable art form. We can thank her for that.
Black History 365 | # 73 Patrice Lumumba
Referred to by Malcolm X as “the greatest Black man who ever walked across the African continent.” Patrice Lumumba was the first Prime Minister of the Republic of Congo — an anti-colonist, anti-imperialist, & pan-africanist whose efforts were short lived, he was assassinated at the hands of The CIA & Belgium less than 7 months after the Congolese gained independence. In 1955 he became regional president of a Congolese trade union of government employees, this union was not affiliate with the main Belgian federations. So, in 1956 he was invited to a study tour in Belgium which he intended & was arrested immediately after returning to the Congo. With charges of embezzlement. He served a 12-month sentence and upon freedom he launched the Congolese National Movement, the first nationwide political party in the Congo. His speech at the All-African People’s Conference in 1958 ignited all the people who attended. The Belgium government saw this fire for independence on the rise across the continent and in 1960 held general elections for the Congo as a way to smother this fire. Lumumba’s Congolese National Movement boycotted this election and many Congolese did as well. This resulted in the murdering of 30 Congolese in Kisangani (Stanleyville under colonist rule) and Lumumba was arrested on charges of inciting a riot. The Congolese National Movement decided to change direction and join the election race which they did, and they won with a 90% vote. Upon winning they demanded the release of Lumumba. And Belgium forces released him. This all resulted in the Congo gaining independence in June 1960. Just six months later he was imprisoned and executed by firing squad.