One of the big stories of last night had to be the victory of Deval Patrick, making him the first black governor ever in Massachussets and only the second black governor in U.S. history.
But, nonetheless, the former Coca-Cola executive-cum-politician overcame this to become governor in his first run for political office. Of course, the hard work is ahead of him but, hats off to Mr. Patrick for this history-making achievement.
Way to go Virginia! In a first-of-its-kind move, the state will participate in a project to index and digitize Freedman’s Bureau records. This will allow the descendents of emancipated slaves, freed slaves and Union soldiers to electronically search for information on their ancestors.
The Freedmen’s Bureau records are effectively the “genesis records” of African- American identity post Civil War. They provide the earliest major compilation of information on the African-American community, documenting for the period 1865-1872 names, legalized marriages, educational pursuits, work contracts, and receipt of rations, health care, legal, and other services.
After nearly five years of effort, the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) of the United States recently completed the microfilming of all Bureau records, which produced over 1,000 rolls of microfilm. The Genealogical Society of Utah (GSU) will scan these records and provide overall direction to the extraction effort, and FamilySearch will provide online access to the genealogy-related data extracted.
The GSU is now scanning the 203 rolls containing the Virginia records, and will assess over 300,000 digitally scanned images for inclusion in the Virginia Freedmen Project. Ultimately, Howard University will place the broader collection of extracted and indexed records on the Internet for access to genealogists and historians.
Well, I hope that other states soon follow. I would be interested in looking up some history on my own family.
Nikki Giovanni is a world-renowned poet. She is also a proud child of Cincinnati, Ohio. So, it filled my heart to hear her be down for her people and let Ohio Secretary of State, gubernatorial candidate and Cincinnati Native, Kenneth Blackwell have it with both barrels.
Buck O’Neil packed a lot into his 94 years on earth. He was a player and manager in the Negro Leagues. After the integration of baseball, he went on to be a scount and coach. At the end of his life, he made sure that America did not forget the contributions of Negro League players.
Since Buck O’Neil spent his remaining years wanted to share the Negro League story with the word, I thought it only fitting to share this brief clip from the DVD on the Negro Leagues, titled It’s Been A Long Time Coming. Please check it out when it becomes available.
R.I.P. Mr. O’Neil and thank you for keeping this part of our story alive.
It refers to them keeping a vigilant watch so that atrocities like the Holocaust never happen again. As a black person, I hope that my people adopt that same mentality. Part of developing this mentality is to come face to face with the horrors of the past and learning of how we dealt with and overcame particular struggles. I don’t believe I am alone in this hope.
If you aren’t familiar with the story of Emmett Till, he was a 14-year-old Chicago native who was visiting family in Mississippi in the summer of 1955. Not knowing the “rules” of Mississippi, he flirted with a white woman by whistling at her. For this “transgression” he was brutally tortured and murdered. His body was later dumped in the Tallahatchie River. Read the rest of this entry →
black...MYstory returned to the internet as a blog in September 2006. At black...MYstory, we believe that, in stories affecting black people, a black perspective is vital.
One of the big stories of last night had to be the victory of Deval Patrick, making him the first black governor ever in Massachussets and only the second black governor in U.S. history.
