Child categories
Category | Path |
---|---|
Arts-Entertainment | /Black Experience - M/Black History/Icon Profiles/Arts-Entertainment |
Historical | /Black Experience - M/Black History/Icon Profiles/Historical |
Politics | /Black Experience - M/Black History/Icon Profiles/Politics |
Sports | /Black Experience - M/Black History/Icon Profiles/Sports |
Technology | /Black Experience - M/Black History/Icon Profiles/Technology |

Katherine G. Johnson, trailblazing NASA mathematician immortalized in the film 'Hidden Figures,' dies at 101
Katherine G. Johnson, the mathematical genius whose calculations took her from a behind-the-scenes job in a segregated NASA as portrayed in the film “Hidden Figures” to a key role in sending humans to the moon, died on Monday, Feb. 24, 2020, at her residence at an assisted living facility in Newport News.

Historic first: A. Benjamin Spencer named dean of W&M Law School
As a University of Virginia law school professor, A. Benjamin Spencer has earned accolades for his knowledge of federal courts and civil litigation.

Rep. John Lewis
A lion of the Civil Rights Movement and ‘conscience of Congress’ dies at 80
Congressman John Lewis of Georgia, a lion of the Civil Rights Movement whose bloody beating by Alabama state troopers in 1965 helped galvanize opposition to racial segregation, and who went on to a long and celebrated career in Congress, died late Friday, July 17, 2020. He was 80.

NFL Hall of Famer Gale Sayers dies at 77
Gale Sayers, remembered for his spectacular athleticism and inspiring friendship with an ailing teammate, died Sept. 23, 2020. He was 77.

Beloved slugger, MLB Hall of Famer Hank Aaron dies at 86
Growing up poor in Mobile, Ala., during the Great Depression, Hank Aaron began playing baseball by hitting bottle caps with sticks.

Legend of screen and television Cicely Tyson dies at 96
Actress Cicely Tyson, whose legendary roles portraying the history and humanity of Black people won awards and touched hearts, has died.

Olympian and activist Lee Evans, who took iconic stand at 1968 Mexico City Games, dies at 74
Lee Evans, the record-setting sprinter who wore a black beret in a sign of protest at the 1968 Summer Olympics and then went on to a life of humanitarian work in support of social justice, died Wednesday, May 19, 2021, at age 74.

Hair care products founder Joe Dudley dies
Joe Louis Dudley, who rose from humble beginnings and overcame a speech impediment to create a multimillion-dollar, Black-owned hair care company, died Friday, Feb. 9, 2024, at age 86. Funeral services were Monday, Feb. 19, at Mount Zion Baptist Church in Greensboro, N.C.

Louis Gossett Jr., the first Black man to win a supporting actor Oscar, dies at age 87
Louis Gossett Jr., the first Black man to win a supporting actor Oscar and an Emmy winner for his role in the seminal TV miniseries “Roots,” has died. He was 87.