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activism, Black Men, Racism - September 07, 2020

Influential Black Leaders - Rodney King

When a mostly white jury acquitted the police officers who were caught on video beating Rodney King, it set off the L.A. riots of 1992. Who Was Rodney King? Rodney King was caught by the Los Angeles police after a high-speed chase on March 3, 1991. The officers pulled him out of the car and beat him brutally, while amateur cameraman George Holliday caught it all on videotape. The four L.A.P.D. officers involved were indicted on charges of assault with a deadly weapon and excessive use of force by a police officer. However, after a three-month trial, a predominantly white...

Dick Gregory - Influential Black Leaders

Dick Gregory was a pioneering comedian and civil rights activist who took on race with layered, nuanced humor during the turbulent 1960s. “I've always been insulted when people tell me that my humor has done a lot for race relations. I never thought comedy did anything but make uncomfortable people feel comfortable.” —Dick Gregory Who Was Dick Gregory? Dick Gregory was born in 1932 in St. Louis, Missouri. Gregory got his big break performing as a stand-up comedian at the Playboy Club in the early 1960s. Known for his sophisticated, layered humor that took on racial issues of the day,...

Na'im Akbar - Influential Black Leaders

Na’im Akbar is a Bestselling Author, Here Are Some Of His Books. "Black People in America have a much greater inner power than they realize, but they must re-discover themselves in order to use it." Dr. Na'im Akbar has been acclaimed by Essence Magazine as "one of the world's preeminent Psychologists and a pioneer in the development of an African-centered approach in modern psychology." Akbar has served as Associate Professor at Norfolk State University, was Chairman of the Morehouse College Psychology Department and is currently on the faculty in the Department of Psychology at Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida....

James Baldwin: Influential Black Leaders

1924 – 1987 Because he embraced the responsibility to be a voice of his nation James Baldwin knew it was his job to reveal the truth. The truth about his race. The truth about his country. The ugly truths of racism, poverty and inequality that plagued the United States during his lifetime — and that continue even now, 29 years after his death. He confronted American racism with fearless honesty and courageously explored homosexuality through his literature and in his life. And he did it with style. His brilliant prose combined his own experience with the best — and worst...

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