Category Archives: History

Born of Lakes and Plains begins in earnest in the 1600s and revolves mainly around five mixed-descent families, whose stories stretch from the Great Lakes down through the Midwest to the Southern Plains. The history she recounts is both sweeping and intimate, allowing her to trace larger developments while also showing how families responded differently to changing circumstances.

From the beginning, intermarriage between white and Native peoples was connected to the fur trade. For European settlers, there were obvious advantages to such unions, including access to the protection and knowledge of Ojibwes and Crees who for generations had weathered the harsh winters around the Great Lakes and Hudsons Bay. Native peoples, Hyde says, had their own stakes in this trade; they knew that European strangers presented both opportunity (information, goods, new allegiances) and peril (war, disease, theft). Making such traders into family could lessen the dangers, giving them a stake in the clan.

For the French, these arrangements were not only accepted but even encouraged by an official edict that governed mariage la faon du pays, or the custom of the country. European men became known as hivernants winterers who spent the cold months in Native forts and villages. Sometimes, when an hivernant married a Native woman, he was already married to a white woman. Or an hivernant might abandon his Native family once he became more established in the fur trade, calculating that entry into the Canadian elite required a white wife. Some hivernants continued to provide for their Native families, and some didnt. Abandonment was so common that there was an actual phrase for the process to turn off, as in, When Alexander McKay retired, he turned off Marguerite.

Marguerite, who was born in 1775 to a Cree mother and a Swiss father, would eventually remarry another man involved in the fur trade. Hyde follows the stories of Marguerites family and others through the ensuing decades of American expansion, Andrew Jacksons policy of Indian Removal and the Civil War. Trading fur with Europeans turned out to be profoundly destabilizing to long-established relationships between Native nations; an expanded market brought guns and disease.

The proliferating narratives can make it hard to keep track of all the threads a number of Georges and Johns and Williams within and across families means that a set of family trees would have been a welcome and clarifying addition to Hydes book. But the profusion of stories is part of her point, as she shows how the same events could affect people in disparate ways, with some adapting or even flourishing while others escaped or resisted or got crushed. Many mixed-descent people worked for the U.S. government as translators and military scouts; they were often mistrusted by others, their ability to switch between languages and cultures arousing suspicions, their loyalties held in doubt.

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An Immersive History of Mixed-Descent Native Families - The New York Times

In this weeks episode of The Gilded Age, the HBO period drama set in late 19th-century New York, the young aspirant Marian Brook (Louisa Jacobson) makes an unannounced visit to the Brooklyn home of her new friend, Peggy Scott (Dene Benton), hoping to surprise her with a gift of sorts: a bag of old used shoes.

But Marian, who is white, receives the real surprise. She discovers that the Scott family, which is Black, is wealthy and educated. Peggys parents, Arthur (John Douglas Thompson), a pharmacist, and Dorothy (Audra McDonald), a pianist, live in an opulent brownstone with its own staff, and they are definitely not in need of the shoes.

The existence of an elite Black population in this era of the city Black men and women who had careers, money and influence is a factual reality, though one that is not often explored in popular culture.

As the shows historical consultant, Erica Armstrong Dunbar, said: What does the average person know about the Black elite in New York in the 1880s? The answer is very little if anything. To look at how film and television have generally treated this era of Black history, she added, Theres this huge gap between the Civil War and slavery and then, maybe, the Harlem Renaissance as if nothing happened in between.

For the people who produce and perform The Gilded Age, the Scott family represented an opportunity to dramatize this overlooked chapter to transcend enduring stereotypes and give these characters inner lives and a surrounding world as rich as those of their white counterparts. (Brooklyn, where the Scotts live, was a separate city in the 1880s; it became part of New York City in 1898.)

While these intentions were present from the inception of the series, they took on a particular urgency during a pandemic-imposed shutdown, beginning in March 2020, and amid the nationwide period of racial justice protest and reflection that followed a few months later events that had an impact behind the scenes of the show as well as in front of its cameras.

Julian Fellowes, the creator of The Gilded Age, said in an email that it seemed dishonest to set a show in 1882, less than two decades after the abolition of slavery in the United States, and not have characters who have been affected by this directly.

Fellowes, who previously created the British period drama Downton Abbey, said that including characters like the Scotts in his HBO series also allowed us to make some points about the challenges of being African American, even successful and affluent African American, in New York at that time.

Dunbar, the Charles and Mary Beard Distinguished Professor of History at Rutgers University and the author of books like She Came to Slay: The Life and Times of Harriet Tubman, started consulting on The Gilded Age in August 2019.

Black New Yorkers of the era go to Brooklyn because theyre running from persecution, she said. Theyre running from the Draft Riots of 1863. Theyre looking for a place to build their homes, to build their businesses, to create a life that was as free as possible from humiliation and violence.

In the first episode of The Gilded Age, Peggy befriends Marian and follows her into the Manhattan home of her aristocratic aunt Agnes van Rhijn (Christine Baranski). Fellowes said the Peggy character was drawn from research he had done on this time period and from books like Carla L. Petersons Black Gotham: A Family History of African Americans in Nineteenth-Century New York City.

Benton, who joined The Gilded Age in the fall of 2019, was among the earliest actors cast in the series, having previously starred in Broadway musicals like Hamilton and Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812.

If youre looking for a period drama Black woman, I guess thats who I am now, Benton said. Which Im not mad about.

McDonald, a six-time Tony Award-winner who was hired several weeks after Benton, said that when she learned Benton had joined The Gilded Age, she was happy for her industry colleague but also concerned that the series was looking to fill a quota.

When I heard that Dene was cast, I was like OK, thats the one Black person theyre bringing into all of this white space, McDonald said. I think Dene is such a light and such a talent, I hoped they gave her a lot of stuff to do. But I didnt in a million years think that there would be more of us.

Benton said that she had also had reservations about how her character would be presented.

The heart and the intention of Peggy were always there, she said, but there were some nuances to the way her story played out that bothered her, and she expressed these apprehensions to Gilded Age producers and HBO.

What excited me and made me want to advocate for more change was because of what was already there, Benton said.

An early concern arose from a narrative puzzle presented in the first episode of the series: How would Peggy gain permission to stay with Marian in her aunts home?

One solution presented in an early draft of the script was that Peggy could pretend to be Marians domestic servant. But while this might have made logical sense, Benton said she found the idea uncomfortable.

The one Black person that youre going to see regularly, does that need to be a trope? she said. Have we not seen enough Black women play that role on television?

Fellowes said that Peggy was never going to be a real servant, but even pretending to be one took us in the wrong direction. He said that other producers had expressed similar misgivings, adding, Denes concerns were a useful and productive contribution to this debate, but once the idea had been voiced, I dont remember anyone disagreeing.

Benton said producers were receptive when she would flag issues like this in the period between the fall of 2019 and spring of 2020, while The Gilded Age was preparing to shoot its first season.

I was at the mercy of people choosing to listen to me, she said. I was like, look, even though you guys are listening its amazing there needs to be more.

The onset of the pandemic in March 2020 forced The Gilded Age to halt production before filming started. Later that spring, the police killing of George Floyd led to weeks of social protest, and it also prompted a widespread re-examination about the presentation of Black people in theater, film, television and throughout the media.

It was a national conversation that played out in its own way at The Gilded Age. In June 2020, Benton sent a letter to HBO asking for further changes at the show. Her central request, Benton said, was that we now have time to really add some Black women to the central nervous system of the creative team.

Benton said she felt an expectation to speak out during this time. I could feel the pins and needles of everyone waiting to hear from me in some capacity, she said. In the way I think all corporations were like, oh God, are we next?

(She declined to provide her letter for this article. In one world it would be beautiful for everyone to see that letter and see whats possible, she said. But I want the focus to be on the fact that the changes did occur.)

By that time, HBO and producers at The Gilded Age were already in the process of recruiting and promoting women of color at the show.

Salli Richardson-Whitfield, the actor (A Low Down Dirty Shame) and director of TV shows like Queen Sugar, Black-ish and The Wheel of Time, was initially hired in November 2019 to direct two episodes of the series.

Richardson-Whitfield said she was brought onto The Gilded Age because they were looking for a director of color, because they knew that they were going to have these story lines and they wanted to make sure they were done authentically.

She was made an executive producer in June 2020, and she went on to direct four episodes of the series. Dunbar, the historical consultant, had been made a consulting producer in the winter of early 2020 and then was promoted to co-executive producer in June 2020.

A search for another writer to join the Gilded Age staff that began at the start of 2020 identified Sonja Warfield (Will & Grace, The Game), who had been developing another project at HBO. She joined The Gilded Age as a writer and co-executive producer that July, after the network set up a meeting between her and Fellowes.

I wasnt even sure it was a job at first, Warfield said. I was meeting with Julian and then they were like, Oh, youre hired. And I thought, What? OK. Great.

Warfield said she was not chosen solely to write Black characters on The Gilded Age. I was hired to write for everyone, she said. But she said she was able to bring details from her own family history to the series, like making McDonalds character a musician, a trait inspired by one of her great-grandmothers, who played and taught piano.

I wanted to show that these people were cultured and educated, Warfield explained. It was strategic.

Dunbar said that Bentons letter was part of a larger push to make changes and improvements at The Gilded Age.

There was an organic evolution that was spurred by the moment in which we were living, Dunbar said. Denes letter was helpful. It was really helpful to have a cast member give their opinions. In addition to that, there were definitely other conversations and work that was being done.

HBO said in a statement that the network and Universal Television, its studio partner on the series, had redoubled efforts to expand the series creative team to include more Black women during production by June 2020. The statement added that Bentons letter shined an important light on this crucial issue.

Filming on The Gilded Age finally began in September 2020. When McDonald was approached to play Peggys mother, Dorothy, she said she had some hesitations.

I just worried, am I going to be a maid? she said. But after reading a sample scene that showed Peggy and Dorothy discussing details of their prosperous life over lunch at a restaurant for Black customers, McDonald said, I was like, oh, yes. Because its not whats expected. Its not whats ever depicted.

Fellowes said that he had always intended for the series to include the characters of Dorothy and Arthur Scott to give Peggy a family context and broaden her story.

The shows expanded creative team added more Black characters, like the journalist and newspaper editor T. Thomas Fortune, a historical figure played by Sullivan Jones. The group also solved narrative problems, like having Peggy take a job as a secretary to Agnes, and helped redesign Peggys wardrobe.

As Benton explained: Theres a real difference in the way that I would have dressed to play a maid than to play a secretary someone with her own sovereignty and interior life that wasnt tied to Marians side. That really trickled into every part of the way my character showed up.

Thompson, a star of theater (The Merchant of Venice) and TV (Mare of Easttown), said he hoped to see The Gilded Age continue to break new ground in chronicling the Scott family and this era of Black history. (HBO announced on Monday that it has renewed the series for a second season.)

Theres more to go you can always go deeper and wider, he said. But I also feel like the table has been set for the introduction of this family, for an audience to say, Oh wow, I didnt even know there was a class of people like this that existed.

Richardson-Whitfield, who directed this weeks episode, said that there was value in teaching this history. But she said it was also important for The Gilded Age to find the humanity in sequences like Marians awkward introduction to the Scott household.

I just had so much fun with that scene, from the moment Marian walks out of that carriage, she said. The looks from the people on the street. The astonishment when she comes through the door. I wanted to make a meal out of it.

As with any other period drama, Richardson-Whitfield said, Its about telling a story and getting great performances. And showing off those beautiful clothes.

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The Gilded Age Explores a Rarely Seen Chapter of Black History - The New York Times

Some major U.S. companies, including Verizon, Facebook owner Meta, Google parent Alphabet andAmazon.com, have publicly highlighted their efforts to commemorate Black History Month.But those same companies have also contributedto lawmakers who blocked two federal elections bills in 2021.

Thats according to Accountable.US, a liberal-leaning advocacy group that released a new analysis of corporate spending this month that found at least $459,000 in donations to U.S. lawmakers who blocked the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, key pieces of legislation that backers say would help the very communities the companies claim to support.

Yet again, major corporations are insulting the intelligence of their consumers, shareholders and employees with more empty words of support for Black communities words that contradict their actions of rewarding the very lawmakers determined to silence voters of color, said Jeremy Funk, a spokesman for Accountable.US.

Other corporate-accountability groups have noted a similar contradiction from last April, when some 111 companies signed an open statement pledging their support for voting rights in the face of bills in Georgia and other states that would make it harder for Black people to vote.

Employees, the consumer public and investors all see what a company is doing, and they are all reacting and responding.

The statement, published with some fanfare in the New York Times and other publications by the Black Economic Alliance, was titled We Stand for Democracy. It was led by former American Express AXP, +0.20% CEO Ken Chenault and then Merck MRK, -0.76% CEO Ken Frazier, both of whom are Black.

Voting is the lifeblood of our democracy and we call upon all Americans to join us in taking a nonpartisan stand for this most basic and fundamental right of all Americans, said the statement, which was signed by Facebook FB, -2.02%, Alphabet GOOGL, +0.83%, Microsoft MSFT, -0.12% and Amazon AMZN, +1.02%, alongside blue-chips like General Motors GM, +1.53% and IBM IBM, -0.58%.

Yet most of those same companies were silent in January, when President Joe Biden made a last-ditch effort to shore up support for a voting-rights bill in a speech in Atlanta, according to the Popular Information newsletter.

And many had already donated to House Republicans who voted against the first elections bill in March, according to Accountable.US.

Additionally, the lawmakers those companies gave to have been openlyopposingvoting rightslegislationover the lastfew years,so their public [stance] on the issue has been crystal clear since before 2021, said Funk.

Bruce Freed, the president of the Center for Political Accountability, a nonprofit that advocates for better disclosure, said financing lawmakers who support legislation that runs counter to the values a company claims to espouse is a major risk for companies.

Younger people in particular expect that companies align their political spending with their values and policies, and they face a very serious risk when they dont because the media is paying much more attention, he said. Employees, the consumer public and investors all see what a company is doing, and they are all reacting and responding.

The Freedom to Vote Act (FVA) was introduced by a group of Democratic U.S. senators last year seeking to counter the hundreds of bills passed by Republican-controlled legislatures that critics say will make it harder for Black Americans and other people of color to vote. The bill came after the For the People Act, a 791-page bill put together by Democrats that promised a major overhaul of voting procedures, was passed in the House in March, but then blocked by a Republican filibuster in June.

When the FVA failed to muster support, it was consolidated with the John R. Lewis Act, which sought to restore and strengthen the landmark Voting Rights Act of 1965, portions of which had been struck down by Supreme Court rulings.

From the archives (March 2021):Amid outcry, Georgia governor signs bill restricting voting into law

Also from March:Raphael Warnock says Republican efforts to shift voting practices in Georgia and other states represent Jim Crow revanchism

The new bill sought to make Election Day a national holiday, expand early voting, make voting by mail easier, and expand the kind of personal identification documents that people in states that require IDs for in-person voting could present. It sought to restore voting rights to people who had completed sentences for felonies, outlaw partisan gerrymandering, and reform campaign-finance laws to shine a light on so-called dark money donations.

The bill was blocked by Republicans and finally defeated in January, when two Democratic senators, Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, refused to change the chambers rules to overcome the filibusters 60-vote threshold and allow passage with a simple majority. Both said they supported the bill itself but did not want it to pass without bipartisan support.

I ask every elected official in America: Do you want to be on the side of Dr. King or George Wallace? Biden said in his speech last month on voting rights, days before the bill collapsed. Do you want to be on the side of John Lewis, or Bull Connor?

To be sure, Republicans have a different view on their opposition to the voting bills, which they mostly cast as a states rights issue.

Former Wisconsin GOP Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner, for example,said the For the People Actis highly partisan and federalizes state election laws and procedures, violating established constitutional principles of federalism and the separation of powers.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, the Kentucky Republican, said in a January floor speech that Democrats are backing not some modest bill about ballot access. Its a sprawling takeover of our whole political system.

Were past the point of speeches on this issue; we need Washington to act.

But Black-led civil-rights groups are skeptical.

Black voters risked everything including their own health at the height of the pandemic to vote Biden and Senate Democrats into office, Cliff Albright and LaTosha Brown, the co-founders of Black Voters Matter, said in response to Bidens January speech. Its time that officials in Washington treat us and our rights with the same level [of] urgency.Were past the point of speeches on this issue; we need Washington to act.

In a separate statement last summer, the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation said the negative impact of GOP efforts to quash the Black vote would be felt for decades, and making it harder to vote now will discourage Black people from voting in the future. Ever since we made history in last years election, legislators across the country have been retaliating with restrictive voting laws nationwide, the organization added.

Microsoft kicked off Black History Month on a celebratory note Feb. 1, with a tweet focused on the theme of every act makes history, sent by chief diversity officer Lindsay-Rae McIntyre.

Taking specific, intentional bold actions today ensures a future where Black and African-American culture and communities are respected, flourish and prosper, said the tweet.

Yet the company also donated at least $135,000 to Senate Republicans who blocked the John Lewis bill, according to Accountable.US. Microsoft declined to comment for this article.

Google this month launched a search feature focused on Black history, and encouraged users to explore the theme. But the company, which also declined to comment for this article, donated at least $99,500 to lawmakers who blocked the two elections bills.

In Verizons VZ case, the company started Black History Month with a tweet pledging to elevate Black voices. But it also donated more than $450,000 to lawmakers who voted against the bills. Verizon did not respond to a request for comment.

Facebook, now renamed Meta, said it was recognizing Black History as its being lived and written today. The company has in the past called on Congress to restore the Voting Rights Act, yet in 2021, the company also donated at least $27,500 to lawmakers who voted against federal elections legislation, according to Accountable.US. Facebook did not respond to a request for comment.

Amazon started February with a pledge to amplify Remarkably Black individuals. Yet the company donated $41,000 to senators who blocked the federal elections legislation. Amazon did not respond to a request for comment.

Big Tech isnt the only industry bankrolling backers of legislation that could suppress voter participation, according to the Center for Political Accountability. A study by the center of donations during the 2018 and 2020 election cycles found even two big names headquartered in Atlanta, a city where Black people are the largest racial or ethnic group Coca-Cola Co. KO, -0.02% and Delta DAL, -0.18% were major donors.

To avoid the appearance of hypocrisy, companies need to align their corporate political responsibility with their corporate social responsibility, said Freed of the Center for Public Accountability. They need to put their money where their rhetoric is, he said.

In October of 2020, the nonprofit and the University of Pennsylvanias Wharton School released a code of conduct to help guide companies, offering a broad framework to approach and manage political spending.

The 12-point code seeks to help companies avoid the increased level of reputational, business and legal risk posed by the seismic shifts in how society engages with and scrutinizes corporations, according to an introduction.

That risk is heightened by the evolution of social media and resurgence of activism in civil society, it added.

Institutional investors have a major stake in how companies handle this, because they invest on an index basis, said Freed. They need to ensure that all companies are operating on a level playing field, and that they have some code that ensures accountability and transparency.

Original post:

Facebook, Google, Amazon and more marked Black History Month with fanfare after donating to lawmakers who blocked voting rights bills - MarketWatch

BAY CITY, MI - The Bay City NAACP branch is inviting the public to learn about Black history through the power of film with a special movie matinee.

On Saturday, Feb. 19, the NAACP will be showing two historical movies for Black History Month at the State Theatre at 913 Washington Avenue. The movie Red Tails will be shown at 2 p.m. and Marshall will be shown at 5 p.m. Both movies are rated PG-13.

The goal is to bring people of all backgrounds and walks of life, young and old together to educate us all on American history and the struggles of African Americans through motion picture. We hope that you will come out and join us, said Ali Smith, NAACP committee chairperson and event planner.

Marshall tells the tale of a Thurgood Marshall, a lawyer who would become the first African-American Supreme Court Justice, according to IMDb. Meanwhile, Red Tails is the story of African American pilots in the Tuskegee training program during the World War II era, according to IMDb.

I think we will all learn something from both movies which captures two great American Icons of the Civil Rights and Freedom Movements Thurgood Marshall and the legendary Tuskegee Airmen, said Darold Newton, president of the Bay City NAACP branch.

Admission to see the movies is free with the donation of a non-perishable food item, which will then be donated to area food pantries. Seating is limited and masks are required. Free popcorn and soda will be provided by the Bay Area Community Foundation.

Our organization came up with this idea that you can learn a lot about history through motion picture and be enlightened and entertained while doing so, said Newton. So, we encourage parents to bring their children. We also invite the whole community to come out and share in on this wonderful free event and the experience in learning about pivotal moments in Black history and American history on the big screen. Rating appropriate of course.

More from MLive

Bay Citys NAACP branch celebrates over a century of existence in a predominantly white county

A look back at Bay Citys NAACP events over the years

Black History Month 2022: Heres how you can mark the celebration in Michigan

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Experience Black History Month in Bay City with two free movies at the State Theatre - MLive.com

When the "GMA" Inspiration List debuted during Black History Month in 2021, prominent figures in fields such as business, entertainment, science and sports shared the names of change-makers who were making Black history in the present.

Names such as Dr. Kizzmekia Kizzy Corbett, who helped develop the COVID-19 vaccine, Amanda Gorman, whose inauguration poem wowed the nation, and Stacey Abrams, who galvanized the 2020 elections with her get-out-the-vote message, were recognized for their achievements, leadership and ability to inspire.

In these ever-changing times, "GMA" is continuing the conversation and asking more figures to share who in the Black community is doing work today that inspires them.

Scroll down to see the impressive list of people working their way into the history books for our time through their passion and contributions. Plus, you can hear from the nominators in their own words why they appreciate their nominee's dedication to their cause.

I met Emtithal Mahmoud, also known as Emi, in 2018 in my role as a Goodwill Ambassador for UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and was instantly captivated -- her pure talent, authenticity and infectious benevolence are extraordinary and truly merit recognition.

Emi is a World Champion Poet, former refugee and UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador, and grew up in Philadelphia. She spends her time tirelessly advocating for refugees and disadvantaged communities around the world. Some of her incredible highlights include in 2018 when she walked 1,000 kilometers from Darfur to Khartoum, mobilizing thousands along the way, and in 2020, when she served as an independent, unaffiliated advisor to the Juba Peace Talks, creating unprecedented recommendations on civil liberties, gender equality, refugee rights and more. Emi is best known for using poetry to advocate and promote peace. She has performed powerful spoken words at global events, from music festivals and concerts, to Davos and the U.N.. Most recently, Emi attended and performed at COP26 with a poem shedding light on the human impacts of the climate crisis.

What is more, not only is Emi an activist, a changemaker and a poet, she is also a scientist who studied anthropology, and molecular cellular and developmental biology at Yale, and graduated in 2016, earning a bachelor of science and Certificate in Global Health; Emi is hoping to go back to medicine this year.

Its rising stars like Emi who make the world a better place -- humanizing, inspiring and creating empathy everywhere she goes. I am so proud to nominate her.

Gugu Mbatha-Raw is an actress who currently stars as Jane on "The Girl Before" and Ravonna Renslayer on "Loki."

Felicia Pride is doing culture-shifting work in multiple facets of the entertainment world. She is a film and television writer, producer, director, podcast host and founder who is already putting her stamp on the industry across the board. Felicia's production company, Honey Chile, is aimed at centering Black women 40+. She also founded The Create Daily, a resource for underrepresented storytellers to thrive.

A specific eye-opening moment for me involving her work came this season on "Grey's Anatomy." She wrote an episode dedicated to racial bias in health care. It's an episode of television that spread waves of awareness about dealing with medical formulas and their racial disparities. People of color, particularly Black women, are often overlooked in health care systems due to outdated practices and teachings. Felicia highlighted a very real current issue that showed how race is used to determine kidney function in patients. Since it's airing, changes are now being more widely implemented in eGFR standards, which is the exact issue she raised so effectively on "Grey's." Her episode undoubtedly helped spur some of these crucial industry changes that are being made in the health care community.

Anthony Hill is an actor who currently stars as Winston Ndugu on "Grey's Anatomy."

I'm nominating Sumayyah Franklin of Sumi's Touch for "GMA's" Inspiration List. Sumayyah is a traditional midwife, a full-spectrum doula at a time when institutional racism in the hospital setting is being highlighted and examined.

Legislation is trying to be passed. The real work is happening on the ground. Sumayyah is making a huge impact on Black communities worldwide by leading doula trainings that teach Black women how to support one another in the birthing process, prenatal, through birth and postpartum, and in that, ushering in a new generation of beautiful Black babies that are born in safe, healthy, loving environments -- full of community, self-empowered mamas, and ancestral presence and wisdom.

So grateful to Sumayyah, thank you for being a change-maker and thank you, "GMA," for highlighting the beautiful work that she does.

Yaya DaCosta is an actress who currently stars as Angela Vaughn on "Our Kind of People."

I would like to nominate my aunt, Kimberly Latrice Jones. Shes a best-selling author, activist, director and all around Renaissance woman. Her speech, How Can We Win, went viral in 2020 after the tragic death of George Floyd and brought immediate attention to the lack of equality and equity in the Black community. She was a voice that was needed and necessary.

Even today, she is still fighting the good fight even while managing her extremely busy career and being an amazing mother. She is a beacon of light and a voice that will forever be heard.

Thank you for being you, Aunt Kim.

T. Murph is an actor who currently stars as Clovis on "Woke."

I first came across Elyse Fox on Instagram through her nonprofit organization, Sad Girls Club. After going through a hard time herself, Elyse created a safe space for her community. She is redefining and supporting mental wellness for BIPOC-identifying women all around the world through her organization.

As someone who is passionate about empowering and creating more opportunities for BIPOC youth artists, the work that Elyse is doing for health and wellness in the community continues to inspire me. Elyse has an amazing way of transparently showcasing the lives of Gen Z and millennial girls and women on her social media platforms, and how their mental health can be potentially impacted in living in todays world. Advocacy for mental health is so needed, and I cant wait to see what Elyse and Sad Girls Club accomplish next as they support and break stigmas in BIPOC communities worldwide.

Britt Stewart is a professional dancer who became the first Black female pro on "Dancing With the Stars" in 2020.

Osei Vita, also known as Mestre Ax, is someone Ive known and looked up to since I was a child learning Capoeira, an African-Brazilian martial art that was brought over to Brazil by enslaved Africans disguised as a dance in order to practice fighting techniques for revolting.

Osei is the first non-Brazilian mestre in North America. He is based out of the Los Angeles headquarters, Capoeira Brasil LA, which is dedicated to working in the Southern California community, and serving its families with a mission to promote self-confidence, respect and tolerance through athleticism and culture.

Not only is Osei a teacher, he is also a leader. He moves the culture forward every day through the values, and lessons he instills in his students and colleagues. His class is not just about mastering acrobatic and complex maneuvers, it focuses on our history as Black people, and revolves around music and sense of culture and family. Every class taken with Osei is empowering, I always walk away feeling uplifted and enlightened. Osei is more than deserving of this nomination.

Trevor Jackson is an actor who currently stars as Aaron Jackson on "Grown-ish."

When I first met Ceyenne, I was so surprised, because the first thing she told me was, You know my father. I was incarcerated with her dad, Frank Big Black Smith, who was a leader in the Attica Uprising in 1971. Attica was the first time that people in the United States as a whole really started paying attention to injustices in the prison system -- and the fact that prisons are not set up to be places for justice or rehabilitation. At all. But with she being his daughter, I think Ceyenne and I were destined to meet. It was at a sex work decriminalization conference in New Orleans. She would call me for advice and we got closer and she came down from New York to visit me. She started doing things in the community and I love her for that. And its not always easy.

But she keeps going and she has my heart for that. Being Black and being transgender, I couldnt just go in for a job interview and get a call back. Its still that way for most of my community. And so many of us end up in the prison system because our parents dont want anything to do with us, cant get a job, even the shelters won't think twice about turning away people in my community. So Im proud of what Ceyenne is doing, helping the community avoid the traps that lead us into the system. Shes mentoring the girls and guys and nonbinary kids who are just coming up. Shes teaching them how to use their voices. Her organization, GLITS, actually bought some property thats permanent where girls can stay and know that someone has their back, because she has the drive in her where if she sees a wrong happening to someone, shes going to try to right it.

Miss Major Griffin-Gracy is a transgender activist who runs House of GG in Little Rock, Arkansas, and executive produced the series "Trans in Trumpland."

Melanie Willingham Jaggers

Rebekah Robinson (she/her) is a storyteller, an activist and the young Black, bold queer woman this generation needs. Rebekah is a born leader who has been inspiring and advocating for young people, especially Black LGBTQ+ youth, not only in her community, but across the globe -- and at a very young age.

Rebekah led her high schools GSA (Gender and Sexuality Alliance) and collaborated with her local GLSEN chapter to provide leadership development for fellow classmates and revamping an LGBTQ-inclusive sex-ed curriculum. Rebekah took her advocacy nationally, working alongside fellow queer students across the country as experts of their lived experiences as a member of GLSENs National Student Council. Rebekahs voice continues to inspire young queer students as GLSENs first-ever Senior Advisor for Student Voices on the Board of Directors, serving to fight for affirming and inclusive K-12 environments for fellow LGBTQ students and educators. Rebekahs passions for language, travel, education, sports, social justice and journalism are rooted in her advocacy and a reminder that a strong Black voice for change knows no bounds.

Rebekah is making Black history no matter what language she is speaking, where she is traveling and who she is speaking to. In this moment, she is a masters candidate at the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism, and co-hosts and co-produces the "Dis Place" podcast for Black Futures Now Toronto, which explores Black and queer geography in Toronto, Ontario. Her audio storytelling voice has covered Black artists and international LGBTQ issues. Rebekah is an inspiration to me and serves as a voice of intersectionality for young, Black, queer students in search of support and affirmation.

Melanie Willingham-Jaggers is the first Black, nonbinary executive director of GLSEN.

Kahlil Greene, known online as the Gen Z Historian, is changing the way history education happens. Breathing new life into an ancient field with upbeat charisma and well-researched lessons.

To see a young person like Kahlil publicly confronting subjects like critical race theory, historical atrocities and more during a time when there are open discussions about curtailing the discussions of these topics in classrooms, is nothing short of inspiring. With an infectious smile, unrelenting wit, and talent for concise and incisive responses, Kahlil makes learning history engaging and exciting. He is also a recent graduate from Yale University, where he served as the student body president.

In addition to having graduated over the course of an unprecedented pandemic, he used his time at Yale to improve conditions for students as it relates to race and class. He led efforts that changed conditions not only for students on his campus but across the country.

Blair Imani is an award-winning educator, historian, influencer, semi-retired organizer, public speaker and the author of "Read This to Get Smarter."

Black history is being made by an unsung s/hero named Locola Hayes, MBA, who serves as the Management Official and Chief Strategy Advisor in the Office of Science at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Locola is a major, but humble influencer; she is spearheading transformative change to achieve equity across the agency, but never expects personal recognition. Locola has played a seminal role in the creation of CDCs first national health equity science and intervention strategy. The health equity strategy, known as CORE, has the commitment of the entire agency and consists of 159 health equity goals reflecting CDCs broad public health portfolio. When fully implemented, CORE has the potential to disrupt longstanding patterns of health inequities experienced by communities of color and other groups that have been marginalized and systematically limited in their opportunities to attain their best health.

Braced with a sense of urgency to seize a unique moment in history, Locola has been steadfast in her efforts to mobilize the needed resources, technical expertise, and partnerships -- putting in place equitable and inclusive solutions. For example, she spearheaded the establishment of a Health Equity Science Fellowship for CDC scientists wanting to increase their knowledge and ability to conduct health equity science. Without this fellowship, CDC would not have the capacity it needs to move a bold and comprehensive health equity plan forward.

Drawing upon her global public health work in Uganda and West Africa, Locola executes at a high level of management operations to leverage CDCs scientific workforce to pursue health equity and eliminate largely preventable health disparities. Her work through CORE is a truly historic initiative that will prevent excess deaths and disease in communities of color; its implementation and success would not be possible without the tireless contributions of Locola Hayes. Locola is deserving of national recognition for the role she is playing to ensure African Americans have a just and fair opportunity to be healthy. Every day, she takes actions that demonstrate her influence as a global champion for health equity.

Dr. Leandris Liburd is the associate director for the Center for Disease Control and Prevention's Office of Minority Health and Health Equity.

Octavia is the author of "Pause, Rest, Be: Stillness Practices for Courage During Times of Change" as well as the book, "Gather." Octavia's writing invites her readers into a quiet contemplative place of inquiry, reflection and deeper self-love, much like she does in her yoga classes, workshops, immersions and retreats.

Octavia has revolutionized the way we think about rest and the connection to liberation. She has dedicated her life to rest in a way that can truly transform both the individual and collective. Octavia prioritized the rest and well-being for some of the most vulnerable populations during the pandemic by virtually hosting her groundbreaking retreat, Starshine & Clay, a safe and brave space for women of color to prioritize rest and self-care.

She is a proud wife and mother who is committed to herself, family and community being well, rested and free. She uses and shares the tools that support her own sense of wellness, freedom and expansion in the world: restorative yoga, writing, meditation and yoga nidra to guide you toward living your best life!

Dr. Chelsea Jackson Roberts is a Peloton yoga teacher and the founder of Red Clay Yoga, a nonprofit organization that brings yoga to diverse communities.

Angel Gregorio is the visionary woman behind The Spice Suite, a popular spice shop in the Takoma neighborhood of Washington D.C. Angel sells unique hand-blended spices, condiments and cookware, which she travels the world to source -- and are perfect for the home cook looking to add depth of flavor to their weeknight dishes.

I love the authentic way Angel came into this business: Inspired by a gift of delicious and aromatic Kuwaiti spices, she set out on a journey to discover the world of small-batch seasonings. Having smelled and tasted the richness and quality of fresh spices and oils, she decided to open a shop and (literally and metaphorically) bring the worlds flavors to her friends and neighbors. Six years later, she continues to satisfy and inspire her customers with unique blends such as seafood/crab seasoning, a peach sriracha-flavored honey and strawberry almond-flavored vanilla. We wrote about her in our entrepreneurs package.

More, I love how she uses her success to support others. Every month, she allows other entrepreneurs to use her space as a pop-up. And during the height of the 2020 pandemic, she partnered with DC or Nothing to distribute over 80,000 pounds of food by organizing pop-ups throughout D.C. that provided access to bread, cheese and produce to the food insecure.

Dawn Davis is editor in chief of Bon Apptit.

Tony is the founder and executive director of Harlem Grown, an independent, nonprofit organization whose mission is to inspire youth to lead healthy and ambitious lives through mentorship and hands-on education in urban farming, sustainability and nutrition. Founded in 2011, Harlem Grown operates local urban farms, increases access to and knowledge of healthy food for Harlem residents, and provides garden-based development programs to Harlem youth.

Tony is an inspiration to me personally and to the entire community he serves. His approach to ending the circle of poverty through healthy food makes a huge impact on the lives of New Yorkers daily.

It would be my honor to nominate Tony for the GMA Inspiration List!

Rze Traore is a globally renowned fine-dining chef, an alum of Eleven Madison Park, model and advocate for communities facing food insecurity.

Pernell Cezar and Rod Johnson have done something incredible with Blk & Bold. As the first nationally distributed Black-owned coffee brand, Cezar and Johnson are combining purpose with quality products -- making their rising success no surprise. From partnerships with major companies like Ben & Jerrys and the NBA, Blk & Bolds approach to business is what sets them apart.

As a Black entrepreneur myself, I know first-hand how challenging it can be to meet demand while simultaneously giving back to your community. Cezar and Johnsons commitment to their social impact model is exactly why they are making waves across the industry. Not only do they dedicate 5% of Blk & Bolds profits to initiatives that help youth in need, but they have already donated more than $40,000 to community organizations.

Cezar and Johnson are shining examples of change-makers, and Im proud to nominate them to GMAs Inspiration List.

Aurora James is the founder of Fifteen Percent Pledge and the fashion label Brother Vellies.

The views and opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of ABC News.

Disney is the parent company of ABC News and "Good Morning America."

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Who is making Black history right now: The 'GMA' Inspiration List 2022 - ABC News

A member of Johnston Parents for Equity and Anti-Racism said she hopes curriculum can include Black historyand Black joyall year, not just in February.

DES MOINES, Iowa Despite more than 40 years of Black History Month celebrations, teachers still face challenges implementing it into their curriculum, and parents of color still fight for a broader range of Black experiences to be reflected.

Mike Beranek, president of the Iowa State Education Association (ISEA), hopes districts implement those teachings beyond the month of February.

"There are so many components to the history of the Black culture in the United States that it can be spread throughout all curricular areas, the entire school year," Beranek said.

Tiara Mays, a member of the Johnston's Parent for Equity Against Racism, echoes that statement.

"Black history is 365 days a year," Mays said.

Tiara hopes educators branch out and explore other Black figures that are less commonly taught in schools.

"I want them to learn more and more figures outside of just Martin Luther King Rosa Parks, talking about our first Black president, our current vice president, just going more in depth," Mays said.

Beranek said educators also have faced challenges, referencing an Iowa law passed in June prohibiting schools from teaching critical race theory.

"There are those individuals who would like to narrow the scope of what we teach in our classrooms, but that's not good," he said. "That is just presenting one opinion or another. And because our classrooms are full of all kinds of diverse cultures, and they come from all backgrounds, we need to make sure that we honor everyone who's in that room."

Mays said that type of legislation prevents kids from learning all there is to know of the history of Black Americans.

"Our teachers are continuously being threatened with, you know, going to jail or being fined," Mays said. "That's having a hindrance on what our kids are learning. It's a direct flow."

She worries that makes teachers feel like they can't talk about some topics.

"So as long as things are happening at the capitol where our teachers feel they can't talk and teach our kids in a space that's safe for them personally, our children will continue to get surface level education," Mays said.

WATCH | 'Its heartbreaking': Child care providers say Des Moines is facing a crisis

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Iowa State Education Association, parents want Black history to be taught all year round - Local 5 - weareiowa.com

Dear Tom,

Over the entire history of Chicago weather records, which day of the year has received the most total amount of snow?

Which day has most often had measurable snowfall?

Kent Rhodes, Lisle

Dear Kent,

Chicagos snowfall climatology dates back to the 1884-85 snow season and over the course of those 138 seasons, Jan. 26 with a total of 87.4 inches boasts the most snowfall of any day of the year. That total is buoyed by the 16.4 inches that fell in 1967, the first day of the citys benchmark 23.0 inch Big Snow. The runners-up snowiest days are Jan. 13 with 70.7 inches and Feb. 6 with 70.0 inches. This data was provided by Meteorologist Steve Bowen, head of Aons Catastrophe Insight Unit. The date with the most measurable snowfalls is Jan. 13 with 48 occurrences, followed by Feb. 6 with 46, and Dec. 25 with 43.

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Over the entire history of Chicago weather records, which day of the year has received the most total amount of snow? - WGN-TV

So Paulo: 468 Years of History and Construction of the State Capital

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468 years ago, at Pateo do Collegio, the largest city in Latin America was born: So Paulo. A metropolis in constant movement that, among so many complexities and conflicts, presents both cultural and human diversity, which makes it deeply rich.

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To celebrate its anniversary, we highlight some articles that help to deepen our view and experience of the capital of the state that bears the same name, So Paulo.

Not every gray in So Paulo is sad. The city was the melting pot for one of the most important schools of Brazilian architecture: Brutalist. With strong names such as Lina Bo Bardi and Vilanova Artigas, the movement sought the hard poetry of the concrete. But the greatest exponent of So Paulo brutalism was, without a doubt, Paulo Mendes da Rocha, and we have put together a guide to his most important works in the city.

A city is not just made up of its architecture, its quality is also intrinsically linked to the green spaces it provides, and as gray as we imagine So Paulo, it offers several alternatives for parks and squares.

The city, a space for encounter and confrontation of different perspectives, transforms its landscapes and sociability relations by receiving migratory flows and welcoming the different actors of this process in different ways. The focus on Latin American migrant women broadens the debate on metropolitan socio-spatial issues.

Probably, part of its population and the majority of visitors, never knew the reality that exists in its peripheries. Understanding part of the history of Fazendinhando is a small dive into the possible universes that the city encompasses and are not always seen.

Black and oriental cultures, especially Japanese, help to contribute to the understanding of Liberdade's process of identity construction. Through a comic strip it is possible to delve deeper into this historical context.

Discover the project that recognizes the role of rivers as the main urban structurers and seeks to redesign the metropolis that, throughout its development, turned its back on its waterways and turned them into beds for sewage and garbage.

One of the world's most vertical cities. Among so many buildings, some stand out and become real urban landmarks, just as there are others that are not so well known, but that show their presence on the neighborhood scale.

Check out a map with all archeological sites in the city. Places of heritage interest, from clandestine cemeteries and indigenous artifacts to gold mining ruins.

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So Paulo: 468 Years of History and Construction of the State Capital - ArchDaily

Last year, at the end of Black History Month, I put together my list of the 51 best players in pro football history from HBCUs Historically Black colleges and universities and while it was an interesting exercise, there were four reasons I wanted to do it again.

First, I wanted to get it done BEFORE the end of Black History Month. While the end of the season and the start of free-agency and draft prep pushed this project to the side, it could also be said that theres never been a more important and relevant time to feature the contributions that Black players, coaches, and executives have made to the game. You can ask Brian Flores about that.

Second, theres one thing I have at my disposal now that I did not have a year ago Pro Football Reference now has sack totals going back to 1960, which brings a lot of defensive players from Historically Black colleges and universities into sharper focus.

Third, when looking back at last years list, there are some guys I just got wrong players I underrated, and I wanted to correct that.

Finally, the HCBU Legacy Bowl will be played this Saturday, featuring the best HBCU talent right now. Steve Wyche and Bucky Brooks from the NFL Network will be calling the game, and Steve had his own Top 10 an estimable list that had be re-thinking my own.

So, without further ado, heres Volume 2 of my 51 greatest players from HBCUs in pro football history.

For a very long time, most major college football programs wanted nothing to do with Black players. Although UCLA boasted a backfield of Kenny Washington, Woody Strode and Jackie Robinson (yes, thatJackie Robinson) in the late 1930s, that was the exception.

In 1959, Alabama was set to play Penn State in the Liberty Bowl. But Alabamas Board of Trustees threatened to boycott the game because Penn State had an integrated team. As late as 1970, when the Crimson Tide played USC, Alabamas team had no Black players. Alabama coach Paul Bear Bryant had allowed seven Black players to try out in 1967, but none made the team. As Bryant later said, neither the administrators nor the fan base would stand for an integrated team.

Sadly, this was par for the course in certain conferences. Some Southern schools had signed Black players, but even in 1966, although half the schools in the SEC (the Southeastern Conference) and SWC (the now-defunct Southwest Conference) had integrated their student bodies, there still were no Black players in either league. The SWC finally broke its ban when SMU and Baylor began recruiting Black players, but the SEC held out.

That changed after the Alabama-USC game, a 42-21 win for the Trojans in which USC running back Sam Cunningham ran up and down Alabamas defense, and USCs long-integrated team beat the daylights out of Bryants white team in general. In the end, for competitive reasons alone, those who had blocked Bryants calls for integration had to back down.

But before that, in the absence of opportunity at those major programs, Black players in the South found different ways to succeed. HBCUs, some of which had been playing football since the late 19th century, were able to bring in some of the greatest football talent ever seen.

While the major Southern programs insisted on institutional racism, HBCUs were able to recruit and benefit from the talents of athletes such as these:

The all-time leader in career receptions, receiving yards and career touchdowns (Jerry Rice, Mississippi Valley State). The player with the most sacks in a single season (Michael Strahan, Texas Southern). The only man to ever win both a Super Bowl ring and an Olympic gold medal (Bob Hayes, Florida A&M). And the namesake for the NFLs most prestigious honor (Walter Payton, Jackson State).

Nearly 10 percent of the players in the Pro Football Hall of Fame came from HBCUs, which is an amazing number given the relatively low number of those players who were allowed to break into the NFL after their college successes, given the NFLs own institutional racism. The NFL banned Black players from 1934 through 1946, and as late as the 1950s, a number of NFL teams wouldnt even send scouts to HBCUs, even though all teams were well aware of the talent available.

In 1959, Black players accounted for about 12 percent of NFL rosters. What opened the floodgates was the formation of the American Football League in 1960. The new league had no such ban or quota, and its teams signed the best players regardless of color. Still, per historian Charles K. Ross, of the 173 Black players who played in the NFL between 1946 and 1962, only 42 came from historically Black schools. And from 1946 through 1960, no player from an HBCU was selected higher than the fourth round.

In 1963, the AFLs Kansas City Chiefs became the first professional football team to select a player with the No. 1 overall pick when they drafted defensive lineman Junious Buck Buchanan from Grambling State. The NFL did not see fit to select Buchanan until the New York Giants picked him with the 256th overall selection in the 19th round.

As the AFL grew and became fully competitive with the NFL, the older, more established league finally had to realize that its own racism was keeping it from some of the best football talent. It was a long road from that 12 percent to today, when Black players compose over 70 percent of NFL rosters and goodness knows theres still a long way to go when it comes to the coaching and administrative sides of things but it was the HBCUs who held, fostered and perfected so much Hall of Fame talent while the bigger and more established schools turned away players of color. The HBCUs built the bridge Black players needed, and the list of players who competed at those schools because they had no other options is truly transcendent from a talent perspective.

With all that in mind, Touchdown Wire ranks the 51 best players in pro football history who attended historically Black colleges and universities. If youre not familiar with the history, prepare to be amazed at the names.

San Francisco 49ers, 1985-2000Oakland Raiders, 2001-2004Seattle Seahawks, 2004

Pro Football Hall of Fame, 2010 class. Selected with the 16th overall pick in the first round of the 1985 draft. 13-time Pro Bowler, 10-time All-Pro. 1987 PFWA NFL MVP, Super Bowl XXIII MVP, 1993 AP Offensive Player of the Year, Pro Football Hall of Fame All-1980s and All-1990s first teams, NFL 100 All-Time Team.

By the time Rice was eligible for the NFL draft, most pro scouting departments had finally eschewed the monumentally stupid practice of ignoring players from HBCUs. So Rice was coveted by several teams, including the Cowboys (who were ahead of the game in that department, as youll see on this list) and the 49ers. Bill Walsh had watched Rice do his thing for Mississippi Valley State on a hotel room television the night before his 49ers were set to play the Houston Oilers on Oct. 21, 1984, and thats all it took. Rice had set NCAA marks for receptions (102) and receiving yards (1,450) in 1983, and broke both records in 1984 with 112 and 1,845. He also had 27 touchdowns in 1984.

In the end, Walsh traded with the Patriots to jump ahead of Dallas and select Rice, which worked out pretty well.

Rice is the greatest and most productive receiver in NFL history by an unbreakably crushing margin, and if you were to argue that hes the best player in NFL history, you wouldnt get much pushback. Rice finished his career with 1,549 receptions for 22,895 yards and 197 touchdowns. He added 87 rushing attempts for 645 yards and 10 touchdowns. Rice also had 151 receptions for 2,245 yards and 22 touchdowns in the postseason. Rice led the NFL in receptions twice, receiving yards six times and receiving touchdowns six times.

Chicago Bears, 1975-1987

Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1993 class. Selected with the fourth overall pick in the first round of the 1975 draft. 9-time Pro Bowler, 5-time All-Pro. 1977 AP NFL MVP, 1977 AP Offensive Player of the Year, 1977 NFL Walter Payton Man of the Year, 1985 Newspaper Enterprise Association NFL MVP, 1985 NFL Bert Bell Award (Player of the Year), Pro Football Hall of Fame All-1970s and All-1980s first teams, NFL 100 All-Time Team.

Payton received no offers from SEC schools despite his status as a high school star in Mississippi, which was par for the course at the time. Instead, he signed on with Jackson State, where he played with Jackie Slater and Robert Brazile. He gained 3,600 yards and scored 63 touchdowns on the ground over three seasons. After he was selected fourth overall in the 1975 draft, Payton ran eight times for zero yards in his first NFL game.

Suffice to say, things got a lot better from there. Despite a lack of talent around him or in front of him for his first few seasons, Payton gained over 1,000 yards every year from 1976 through 1981. In 1977, he led the league with 1,852 yards and 14 rushing touchdowns on 339 carries. That same season, he set the NFL single-game record against the Vikings with 275 rushing yards and he did so despite a 101-degree fever and the flu. That record stood for 23 years.

In 1984, Payton broke Jim Browns career record of 12,312 rushing yards, and Payton held the honor until Emmitt Smith broke Paytons mark of 16,726 yards in 2002. As is the case with Jerry Rice, its not difficult to state a compelling case for Payton as the greatest player in NFL history.

Los Angeles Rams, 1961-1971San Diego Chargers, 1972-1973Washington, 1974

Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1980 class. Selected with the 186th overall pick in the 14th round of the 1961 draft. 8-time Pro Bowler, 5-time All-Pro, Pro Football Hall of Fame All-1960s first team, NFL 100 All-Time Team.

Jones moves up from fifth on my first list to third here, thanks to more official sack totals. At 6-foot-5 and 275 pounds, Jones was one of the first archetypes of the modern defensive end, with his size, strength, aggression, speed around the turn and ability to bull-rush blockers right out of the picture. The most infamous purveyor of the now-illegal head slap (I didnt invent it, but I perfected it, he was fond of saying) and the inventor of the term sack for quarterback takedowns, Jones totaled 173.5 sacks in his career. To this day, only Bruce Smith and Reggie Whitehave more career sacks.

Jones led the NFL in sacks in 1964, 1965, 1967, 1968, and 1969, and the only thing that kept him from doing so in six straight seasons was the fact that George Andre of the Cowboys tallied 18.5 sacks to Joness 16.0 in 1966. Regardless, Jones total of 115.5 sacks from 1964 through 1969, in 14-game seasons against generally run-heavy offenses, is one of the most incredible sustained periods of excellence, regardless of position, pro football has ever seen.

Amazingly, Jones almost didnt get his chance. South Carolina State revoked Jones scholarship after he participated in a civil rights protest, and Mississippi Valley State took him in.Were it not from a tip to the Rams from Bill Nunn, the managing editor of the Pittsburgh Courier who annually selected the All-Black College Football Team and later stocked the Steelers rosters of the 1970s with Hall of Fame HBCU talent, Jones may have slipped through the cracks.

Oakland Raiders, 1968-1981Los Angeles Raiders, 1982

Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1989 class. Selected with the 80th overall pick in the third round of the 1968 draft. 8-time Pro Bowler, 2-time All-Pro. Pro Football Hall of Fame All-1970s first team, NFL 100 All-Time Team.

Shell is on a very short list of the best offensive tackles in pro football history, and he also holds the distinction of being the second Black head coach in NFL annals and the first in the modern era. (Fritz Pollard coached the Akron Pros in 1921 and 1925). From 1971 through 1973, Shell was part of a Raiders offensive line that included four future Hall of Famers Shell at left tackle, Gene Upshaw at left guard, Jim Otto at center and Bob Brown at right tackle. But it was Shell, among the ultimate combinations of technician and mauler, who set the tone.

Los Angeles Rams, 1976-1994St. Louis Rams, 1995

Pro Football Hall of Fame, 2001 class. Selected with the 86th overall pick in the third round of the 1976 draft. 8-time Pro Bowler.

Slater played at Jackson State with Walter Payton and Robert Brazile, and although his talent was obvious as he entered the NFL, it took three seasons before he was named a full-time starter. When that finally happened in 1979, the Rams made their first Super Bowl XIII against the Steelers. Though Los Angeles lost that game, Slater shut out Pittsburgh defensive end L.C. Greenwood in the sack column. Greenwood came into that game with five sacks in three other Super Bowls, including four of Roger Staubach in Super Bowl X.

As a pro, Slater broke the NFL record for the most seasons with one team (20), and he blocked for seven running backs who gained at least 1,000 yards in a season.

Kansas City Chiefs, 1967-1977

Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1986 class. Selected with the 50th overall pick in the second round of the 1967 draft. 8-time Pro Bowler, 3-time All-Pro, NFL 100 All-Time Team.

Before Lanier, it was considered gospel in pro football that Black players simply werent intelligent enough to play certain positions specifically quarterback and middle linebacker, the shot-callers on both sides of the ball. Over an 11-year career in which he became one of the AFLs and NFLs most formidable tacklers and intercepted 27 passes for 440 return yards and two touchdowns, Lanier destroyed that myth. He recorded seven tackles and an interception in the Chiefs Super Bowl IV win over the Minnesota Vikings, and he easily could have been named the games Most Valuable Player.

Cincinnati Bengals, 1969-1983

Selected with the 135th overall pick in the sixth round of the 1969 draft. One-time All-Pro.

Riley has the most interceptions of any player on this list with 65 in the regular season, and he added three more in seven postseason games. His regular-season mark ties him for fifth all-time in NFL history with Charles Woodson (a Hall of Famer) behind only Paul Krause, Emlen Tunnell, Rod Woodson and Dick Night Train Lane all Hall of Famers. Not only is Riley the only top-five interception artist who isnt in Canton, he somehow was named to just one Pro Bowl roster, and no All-Pro teams, in his career. Riley finally broke that logjam in his final season of 1983, when he picked off eight passes for 89 return yards and two touchdowns at age 36. Hes also one of 26 cornerbacks in pro football history to play in at least 200 games.

Cleveland Browns, 1958-1959Green Bay Packers, 1960, 1969

Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1981 class. Selected with the 181st overall pick in the 15th round of the 1956 draft. 5-time Pro Bowler, 5-time All-Pro. Pro Football Hall of Fame All-1960s Team.

We could start and end Davis credentials for the top 10 on this list with the fact that hes supposedly the only player Vince Lombardi never yelled at. You want more? Sure. The Browns selected Davis in the 1956 draft, but he didnt play until 1958 due to military commitments. Cleveland traded Davis to Green Bay in 1960, which really got the ball rolling for the future Hall of Famer. He had been a bit player under Paul Brown, but Lombardi immediately saw what Davis could be and talked Davis out of going into teaching because he didnt want to play in what he called the NFLs Siberia.

Official sack totals dont yet cover Davis first two seasons in 1958 and 1959, but hes now credited with 99.5 regular-season sacks, and 5.5 in the postseason, including 1.5 in Super Bowl I, and 3.0 in Super Bowl II. Davis was the focal point of a series of defenses that led the Packers to five NFL titles and wins in the first two Super Bowls. Packers center Bill Curry once called Davis the finest combination of leader and player that I ever saw.

San Diego Chargers, 1967-1968Miami Dolphins, 1969-1980

Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1993 class. Undrafted free agent. 5-time Pro Bowler, 5-time All-Pro, Pro Football Hall of Fame All-1970s first team.

Little was a three-time All-Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference player as an offensive and defensive lineman. But he went undrafted in both the NFL and AFL, and after getting interest from the Chargers, Dolphins and Colts, he signed with San Diego because the Chargers were offering the biggest signing bonus $750! San Diego traded Little to the Dolphins in 1969, which marked his first of five Pro Bowl selections. By the early 1970s, a Dolphins offensive line filled with undrafted players and castoffs from other teams was ready to be the force multiplier for the NFLs best rushing attack and one of the key cogs in the only undefeated season in NFL history in 1972.

Pittsburgh Steelers, 1970-1983

Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1989 class. Selected with the 53rd overall pick in the third round of the 1975 draft. 5-time Pro Bowler, 2-time All-Pro. 1975 AP Defensive Player of the Year, Pro Football Hall of Fame All-1980s first team, NFL 100 All-Time Team.

A general rule of player evaluation: If the NFL creates a rule to lessen your effectiveness, and that rule is named for you over time, you were probably pretty good at your job. That was the case for Blount, whose ability to erase and intimidate receivers with aggressive (to say the least) press coverage all over the field was a hallmark of Pittsburghs legendary defenses of the 1970s.

The Mel Blount Rule, enacted in 1978, decreed that defenders can only make contact with receivers within the first five yards of the line of scrimmage. It created a serious uptick in offensive production, but it didnt stop Blount from picking off 22 regular-season passes and two more in the postseason from 1978 on. In total, Blount had 57 regular-season picks and four more in the postseason, including a league-leading 11 in 1975.

Denver Broncos, 1990-1999Baltimore Ravens, 2000-2001Denver Broncos, 2002-2003

Pro Football Hall of Fame, 2011 class. Selected with the 192nd overall pick in the seventh round of the 1990 draft. 8-time Pro Bowler, 4-time All-Pro. Pro Football Hall of Fame All-1990s first team.

Though greats like John Mackey, Ozzie Newsome and Kellen Winslow had already freed the tight end position from the realms of yeah, he blocks a lot and catches a few passes, Sharpe was also one of the first tight ends in NFL history who could legitimately line up at the Y iso position the primary receiver detached from the formation and nuke defenders all over the field.

Despite his success in college, Sharpe wasnt considered a great prospect when he left Savannah State. In a conceit that would be considered hilarious today, he was thought of as too big to be a receiver and too small to be a true tight end. Survey says? Oops. By the time his career was over, Sharpe had set the all-time records for a tight end in receptions (815), receiving yards (10,060) and receiving touchdowns (62). He was also the first tight end to pass 10,000 receiving yards.

As Newsome once said of Sharpe when Newsome was the Baltimore Ravens general manager: I think hes a threat when hes on the field. He has to be double-teamed. Hes a great route-runner. Hes proven that he can make the big plays. Thats what separates him. Hes a threat.

Few truer words have ever been spoken, and Newsome would certainly know.

Houston Oilers, 1995-1996Tennessee Oilers, 1997-1998Tennessee Titans, 1999-2005Baltimore Ravens, 2006-2007

Selected with the third overall pick in the first round of the 1995 draft. 3-time Pro Bowler. 2003 AP NFL MVP (Co-MVP with Peyton Manning).

The University of Florida offered McNair a scholarship to play running back, but McNair wanted to play quarterback, which is why he chose Division I-AA Alcorn State instead also the preferred college of longtime Packers receiver Donald Driver and current Bills defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier. McNair threw for over 15,000 yards in college, and as a senior he totaled 6,281 combined yards (5,377 passing yards and 904 rushing yards) and was responsible for 56 touchdowns. He won the Walter Payton Award as the top I-AA player and finished third in the 1994 Heisman Trophy voting behind Rashaan Salaam and Ki-Jana Carter.

The Houston Oilers selected McNair with the third overall pick in the 1995 draft, and despite the fact that he was the quarterback in a bunch of run-first offenses, he finished sixth in passing attempts (4,544), fifth in completions (2,733), fifth in passing yards (31,304) and tied for sixth in passing touchdowns (174) in his era. McNairs banner year was 2003, when he led the league in yards per attempt, adjusted net yards per attempt and passer rating. He also was named Co-MVP with Peyton Manning that season. McNairs Titans also were famously one yard away from a chance to tie the St. Louis Rams on the final play of Super Bowl XXXIV.

Denver Broncos, 1963-1966Oakland Raiders, 1967-1978

Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1984 class. Undrafted free agent. 9-time Pro Bowler, 5-time All-Pro. AFL Hall of Fame All-1960s first team, Pro Football Hall of Fame All-1970s first team, NFL 100 All-Time Team.

The Houston Oilers signed Brown out of Grambling as an undrafted free agent but cut him in training camp, which has to go down as one of the more remarkable personnel blunders in American Football League history. Instead, Brown was signed by the Denver Broncos, for whom he amassed 15 interceptions over four seasons.

But it was the trade to the Oakland Raiders before the 1967 season that formed a perfect marriage between player and scheme. Brown was one of the best bump-and-run cornerbacks in AFL or NFL history, and the Raiders of the time were as aggressive with that particular technique as any team youll see in any era of pro football. Over 12 years with the Raiders, he grabbed 39 regular-season interceptions for 277 return yards and two touchdowns, adding seven more interceptions for 96 return yards and three more touchdowns in 17 postseason games. Browns best-known play came in the Raiders win in Super Bowl XI a 75-yard pick-six of Fran Tarkenton that iced Oaklands 32-14 win.

Kansas City Chiefs, 1963-1975

Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1990 class. Selected with the first overall pick of the 1963 AFL draft. Selected with the 256th overall pick in the 19th round of the 1963 NFL draft. 8-time Pro Bowler, 4-time All-Pro. AFL Hall of Fame All-1960s second team, NFL 100 All-Time Team.

In 1967, the Oakland Raiders selected Texas A&M-Kingsville offensive guard Gene Upshaw with the 17th overall pick in the draft. The primary reason for this, legend tells us, is that the Raiders had no answer for one Junious Buck Buchanan, who kept pummeling Oaklands quarterbacks in their preferred bombs-away offense. At 6-foot-7 and 270 pounds, Buchanan was a nightmare for all opposing offensive linemen as an occasional defensive end and primary defensive tackle.

Buchanan is credited with 16 batted passes in the 1967 season alone. He also had 70.5 regular-season sacks, adding 3.5 in the postseason, but Buchanan was about more than sacks. The first Black college player selected with the first overall pick in any professional football league, Buchanan was one of the most dominant players of his era.

Houston Oilers, 1967-1972Washington, 1973-1980

Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1986 class. Selected with the 214th overall pick in the ninth round of the 1967 draft. 12-time Pro Bowler, 2-time All-Pro. Pro Football Hall of Fame All-1970s first team, NFL 100 All-Time Team.

Nobody on this list has more Pro Bowl nods than Houston, who was selected for that honor every season from 1968 to 1979. He had to endure some lean years with the Oilers early on, but that didnt diminish his effectiveness in 1971, for example, Houston picked off nine passes for 220 return yards and matched his teams win total (four) in interception return touchdowns.

A fine punt and kick returner as well, Houston was an early version of the modern do-it-all safety who could play the strong and free positions with equal effectiveness. Houston finished his career with 49 regular-season interceptions for 898 return yards and nine touchdowns, adding one more pick in five postseason games.

Kansas City Chiefs, 1966-1978

Pro Football Hall of Fame, 2008 class. Undrafted free agent. 5-time Pro Bowler, one-time All-Pro.

Thomas was one of the primary catalysts of the great Chiefs defenses of the late 1960s and early 1970s, and he was also one of many players from HBCUs given to head coach Hank Stram by Lloyd C.A. Wells, the newspaperman and member of Muhammad Alis entourage who was the first full-time Black scout in any pro football league. Wells brought Thomas, Willie Lanier, Buck Buchanan and Otis Taylor (all four are on this list) and many more to the Chiefs. Now that Bill Nunn is in the Hall of Fame, Wells needs to be next.

In any event, Thomas totaled 58 interceptions for 937 return yards and five return touchdowns in his great career, including a league-leading 12 picks for 214 yards and two return touchdowns in 1974. He added five more interceptions in the postseason, including four in the Chiefs 1969 Super Bowl run. A longtime assistant head coach, defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach after his playing career was over, Thomas last coached for the Chiefs in 2018. He was the coach tasked to hold the Atlanta Falcons together in 2007 in the infamous aftermath of the Bobby Petrino era.

New York Giants, 1993-2007

Pro Football Hall of Fame, 2014 class. Selected with the 40th overall pick in the second round of the 1993 draft. 7-time Pro Bowler, 4-time All-Pro. 2001 AP Defensive Player of the Year, Pro Football Hall of Fame All-2000s first team.

Lightly regarded as a high-school prospect because he spent most of his childhood in Germany (his father was an Army major who once beat Ken Norton in a boxing match), Strahan played just one year of American high-school football and received a scholarship offer from Texas Southern. He set a school record with 41.5 sacks, and was named to the Black College Hall of Fame in 2014.

The Giants got a steal with Strahan in the second round; he had by far the most sacks in his era with 141.5 (Simeon Rice, Jason Taylor, John Randle and Bruce Smith finished behind him), and he added 9.5 more sacks in 10 postseason games, including two Super Bowls and one Super Bowl win. Strahan also holds the single-season sack record (now tied with Pittsburghs T.J. Watt) with 22.5 in 2001 in that season, he also led the NFL in forced fumbles with six and tackles for loss with 24. He led the NFL in sacks once again in 2003 with 18.5, and that was another season in which he also led the league in tackles for loss with 23.

Chicago Bears, 1983-1993San Francisco 49ers, 1994Chicago Bears, 1995Indianapolis Colts, 1996Philadelphia Eagles, 1997

Pro Football Hall of Fame, 2011 class. Selected with the 203rd overall pick in the eighth round of the 1983 draft. 4-time Pro Bowler, 1-time All-Pro. Super Bowl XX MVP.

Dent was a great player throughout his career, but his 1985 season stands out as one of the single greatest seasons any defensive end has ever had. In the Bears Super Bowl year, Dent had two interceptions with a pick-six, a league-high seven forced fumbles and a league-high 17 sacks. He then helped to define one of the greatest defensive seasons a team has ever enjoyed with six more sacks in three postseason games in which Chicago pitched shutouts in the divisional round against the Giants and in the NFC Championship Game against the Rams, and leveled the Patriots, 46-10, in Super Bowl XX.

Dent finished that all-time season off with a Super Bowl MVP award. In that game, he had 1.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, and a deflected pass. Not bad for a guy who had to sit through 202 draft picks in 1983 to hear his name called in the eighth round which doesnt even exist anymore.

New York Giants, 1953-1965

Pro Football Hall of Fame, 1975 class. Selected with the 322nd overall pick in the 27th round of the 1953 draft. 9-time Pro Bowler, 6-time All-Pro. Pro Football Hall of Fame All-1950s Team, NFL 100 All-Time Team.

A prodigy from the word go, Brown found himself advancing a few grades in school very early.

I was always a big boy, Brown told the New York Times in 1964. When I was 6, my mother put me in school and I took a test. I must have passed it because they put me in third grade. No first grade and no second grade. That meant I graduated from high school when I was 15 and from college at 19. When I played my first game for the Giants, in 1953, I was still 19.

When he did hit the NFL after making Bill Nunns All-America Grid Team (Giants owner Wellington Mara told his front office to select Brown based solely on the linked article), he then became the teams ultimate road grader and pass protector. Vince Lombardi, who knew as much or more about offensive line play as any coach who has ever plied his trade, put it succinctly:

When you think of great tackles in professional football, you must think of Rosey Brown.

Phoenix Cardinals, 1991-1993Arizona Cardinals, 1994-2000St. Louis Rams, 2001-2004

Pro Football Hall of Fame, 2014 class. Selected with the 59th overall pick in the third round of the 1991 draft. 8-time Pro Bowler, 3-time All-Pro. 1991 NFL All-Rookie Team, Pro Football Hall of Fame All-1990s second team.

Williams was not offered a scholarship to any college, went to Southern to focus on academics and only started playing football again in his junior year. But after bagging 18 interceptions in two seasons, he found himself on the Cardinals radar for better or worse.

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The top 51 HBCU players in pro football history - Touchdown Wire

Marblehead Museum launches online database with key details

Leigh Blander/Special to the Marblehead Reporter| Wicked Local

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In the newspaper ad, Marblehead resident Joseph Homan offers a $2 reward for his escaped enslaved person, Jack, who ranaway on Sept. 17, 1770. Homan describes him as 6 feet tall and from Martinico, or Martinique. Its not known if Jack was ever captured.

The ad, which appeared in Salem and Boston papers, is one of the most striking items in the Marblehead Museums new project, The Free and Enslaved People of Color in Marblehead. Its an online database of people of color in Marblehead through 1900. It currently lists 45 people - about 75% of them were enslaved to Marblehead residents.

Each entry includes a narrative about the person, said Marblehead Museum Director Lauren McCormack. We take peoples history and expand upon it so its not just a name and a date but a little bit of a story about each individual and how they lived and worked in Marblehead and became part of the community.

You can see the database at https://bipocdatabase.marbleheadmuseum.org/.

A 1765 census shows that 100 people of African descent lived in Marblehead, about 2% of the population at that time. Black and African Americans now make up 1.6 % of Marblehead, according to the US Census.

Theres still a belief that perhaps there werent that many enslaved people in Marblehead. We want to show that slavery did exist, McCormack said.

Slavery was abolished in Massachusetts in 1783.

Often, we just see names on a piece of paper and maybe a date, but we dont know anything about the individual and we dont know how they contributed to the community, she said. The goal of the database was the bring people to life.

With the help of two volunteers, McCormack scoured census records, tax records, probates, wills, newspapers, and pension documents to build the database.

I want to know how people in the past lived, said volunteer Lisa Ruffino. I've always believed that the past informs the present and the future. I want to meet those people. I want to know who they were and how they lived.

The earliest entry in the database is an enslaved woman named Agnes, who is interred at Old Burial Hill. Her name appears in a written record in 1711 at the death of her enslaver.

The database includes enslaved children, too. When resident John Palmer died in 1750, his recorded inventory included four enslaved people -- among them a 15-year-old boy named Prince and a girl named Phillace (who was valued at $20).

One of the people with the most available information was Cato Prince, a Black man who lived in Marblehead from the 1750s to 1826.

He may have been born in Africa, he was likely enslaved, McCormack explained.

Prince applied for a pension in 1818. He asked several white men in Marblehead, including Nathaniel Stacy and John Prince (who may have been his enslaver or his enslavers son) to vouch for him and they do. Catos pension paid him $96 a year.

Cato had no family, was infirm and lived out his days in a poor house in town, of which there were multiple, including one near Elm Street, McCormack said.

Then theres Charles Francis, who was an old man when he was shot by a sentry at Fort Sewall who may have mistaken Francis for a spy.

Its a terrible mistake and the story makes it into the newspapers as far as Boston, McCormack said. It speaks to the state of affairs around the War of 1812 and how Marblehead was a town on edge.

The Marbleheaders who owned the most enslaved people were Jeremiah Lee and Robert Hooper (of the Lee and Hooper mansions). The towns wealthiest residents were the most likely to have enslaved people, either as household domestic workers or laborers.

In one record, Jeremiah owned three people, two men and a woman, McCormack said.

The Free and Enslaved People of Color in Marblehead is an active database that can be updated moving forward. McCormack hopes to add Indigenous people soon. She encourages anyone who is interested in getting involved and doing research to reach out to her at info@marbleheadmuseum.org.

The museum created the database software with $3,200 in funding from Mass Humanities. McCormack is excited that the software will allow them to create future databases as well.

We could do a database for Revolutionary War soldiers… or fishermen, she said.

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Marblehead project will help find the history of free and enslaved people of color - Wicked Local