First to Fight - the Black Tankers of WWII

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First to Fight - the Black Tankers of WWII part 1


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First to Fight - the Black Tankers of WWII part 2

The 761st Tank Battalion made history as the first all black tank unit to see combat. Like the better-known Tuskegee Airmen, they proved they were as competent as any soldier in the U.S. military. Over the course of 183 days on the front, the 761st helped liberate more than 30 towns under Nazi control. Collectively they were awarded 11 Silver Stars, 70 Bronze Stars, 250 Purple Hearts, and a Medal of Honor. And more than 30 years after coming home, the 761st was finally recognized with the prestigious Presidential Unit Citation.

Through the stories of a select group of surviving veterans, FIRST TO FIGHT examines the history of the battalion--how they came to be; the racism they faced; their battles to be allowed to fight; and courageous service in the European Theater. The program also examines the larger issue of how the U.S. military has evolved from a segregated to an integrated institution.

A DISTANT SHORE

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A DISTANT SHORE part 1


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The story of blacks fighting for the United States of America in WWII is a saga both glorious and shameful. This moving documentary from THE HISTORY CHANNEL® pays tribute to the valor and sacrifice of African-American soldiers while shedding light on the discrimination and disregard that at times proved more threatening than the rigors of battle.

1.2 million African-Americans served in World War II, and although largely forgotten by history, nearly 2,000 of them stormed the beaches of Normandy. For the first time ever, seven of these forgotten heroes tell their stories. Through dramatic recreations and in-depth interviews, we will discover the African-American contribution to the Normandy Invasion.

On that deadly DISTANT SHORE, only the bullets were color blind. This DVD offers history at its most eye-opening.

Alcan Highway

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Alcan Highway part 1


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Alcan Highway part 2

Modern Marvels

The Alcan Highway

Stretching from Dawson Creek in Canada to Alaska, the Alcan Highway is one of the most picturesque roads in North America. But the story of this fifteen hundred mile plus road is one rooted in war and hardship. Built during World War II, the Alcan Highway is one of the major engineering feats of the twentieth century. Over ten thousand American soldiers built the highway, of which almost four thousand were African-American. The African-American soldiers faced the trials and tribulations that the white soldiers faced, but had to contend with the racism and segregation of the era that mandated their isolation and relegated to them inferior tools and supplies. The Alcan Highway is the story of the triumphant effort of these soldiers. The Alcan Highway would be useful for classes on American History, African-American History, Military History, Geography and Science and Technology. It is appropriate for middle school and high school.

Honor Deferred

Honor Deferred part 1


Honor Deferred part 2


HONOR DEFERRED is the story of seven men worthy of the Medal of Honor for their valor during WWII, but who received their medals only recently, after six had already died. More than a million African-Americans served within the army's segregated ranks. Despite their bravery and courage, not one of the 432 Medal of Honor awards went to a black soldier. Was the army racist? Did African-Americans receive appropriate training? The program explores these issues and more in breathtaking recreations as we document the stories of the Congressional Medal of Honor winners. And watch as President Clinton presented the medals to Vernon Baker--the last living recipient--and the proud family members of the other six.

Among the dramatic real-life stories in HONOR DEFERRED are these:

* During fighting in Europe, Lieutenant John Fox found himself completely
surrounded by German forces. He called for U.S. artillery to be fired
directly on his position, dooming himself to death but taking more than
100 German soldiers with him.

* Private George Watson's cargo ship came under unexpected fire by the
Japanese in New Guinea and sank, stranding more than 150 soldiers, many
of whom couldn't swim, in the deep waters. Watson helped carry dozens of
men to safety before he himself drowned from sheer exhaustion.

* Sergeant Edward Carter was shot several times by German soldiers while
crossing hundreds of yards of wide-open land in the Rhineland. Despite
being shot, Carter managed to capture two German soldiers, who he
brought back to his unit, where they provided valuable information that
allowed U.S. forces to advance.

* Lieutenant Charles Thomas's vehicle was hit with artillery fire on a
scouting mission and badly damaged. Thomas, refused to evacuate the area
until he was sure the other vehicles in his unit could return fire. He
was killed, but his efforts saved the lives of many others.

* After performing a valuable scouting mission, Private Willie James was
shot and killed trying to rescue his commander from German sniper fire.

* In France, Staff Sergeant Ruben Rivers pressed on for three days on a
leg injured by a land mine and badly infected. He refused orders to
return to an aid station, and died covering the escape of others in his
tank unit in France.

* Vernon Baker is the only black soldier still alive today to receive the
award for service in World War II. After his commander abandoned the
unit, Baker assumed command and refused to fall back. He completed an
impossible mission, and bears sole responsibility for continuing to
engage the enemy.

James Beckwourth

James Pierson Beckwourth (April 6, 1798 or 1800, Frederick County, Virginia - October 29, 1866, Denver) (a.k.a. Jim Beckworth, James P. Beckwith)

James Pierson Beckwourth was born in Virginia in 1798 to Sir Jennings Beckwith, a descendant of Irish and English nobility, and an African-American mulatto woman about whom little is known.

His life is best known from the book The Life and Adventures of James P. Beckwourth from 1856, which was rejected by early historians of the Old West as being ridiculous campfire lore, but has been rehabilitated since as not reliable in details, but a valuable source of social history. The civil rights movement discovered Beckwourth as an early afro-american pioneer and he is subsequently named a role model in children's literature and textbooks.

In the American west

Beckwourth spent his life in fur trapping and Western exploration. With his family he moved around 1809 to Missouri. He attended school in St. Louis for four years and learned at a blacksmith's in the city till age 19. In 1824, while living in Missouri, he joined Gen. William Ashley's fur trapping company as a wrangler on his expedition to explore the Rocky Mountains. In the following years Beckwourth became known as a prominent trapper and Indian fighter. He was well known for telling lore about his adventures about fighting Indians and hunting. But not only did he entertain his listeners, on the 1826 rendezvous trapper colleague Caleb Greenwood told the campfire story of Beckwourth being the child of a Crow chief, who has been stolen as a baby by raiding Cheyennes and sold to the whites. This lore was widely believed, as Beckwourth looked and acted native for years.


Beckwourth as Indian warrior, illustration of the first editionLater that year he got caught by Crow Indians while trapping in the dangerous border county between the areas of Crow, Cheyennes and Blackfoots. They recognised him and as they knew the story of his Crow ancestry he was admitted to the nation and immediately married to the daughter of a chief. For the next eight to nine years he lived with the Crows, rising in their hierarchy, becoming a warrior, a chief, a leader of the Dog clan and finally according to his own record the highest ranking war chief of the Crow Nation. He still went trapping, but did not sell his furs and that of his nation to his former partners of the Rocky Mountain Fur Company but made business with the competing American Fur Company. And he participated in the raids by his new people. They mostly stole horses from neighboring nations and the occasional white party. Sometimes these raids escalated to warfare, most often with the Blackfoots.

In 1837, when the American Fur Company did not want to renew his contract, he returned to St. Louis and volunteered for the Second Seminole War in Florida. In his own book he claims to have been a soldier and courier, but according to preserved records he was a civilian wagon master in the baggage. From 1838 he was an Indian trader on the Arkansas River, working out of Fort Vasquez, Colorado, near Platteville, Colorado with the Cheyennes. 1840 he moved to the Bent & St. Vrain Company and later the same year he established himself as an independent trader, building the trading post Pueblo together with others. From it the city Pueblo, Colorado developed.

From 1844 he traded on the Old Spanish Trail between the Arkansas River and Mexican California. With the beginning of the Mexican-American war in 1846 he returned to the United States, not without stealing around 1800 Mexican horses and bringing them as spoils of war. In the war he was a courier with the US Army and participated in suppressing the Taos Revolt, where his former employer Charles Bent as interims governor of New Mexico was slain.

1848 saw him back in California, in the Gold Rush he opened a store at Sonoma, he sold quickly, going to Sacramento living as a professional card player. In 1850 he discovered Beckwourth Pass, the lowest mountain pass through the Sierra Nevada and in the following year he established Beckwourth Trail, a road through the mountains. It began near Pyramid Lake and the Truckee Meadows east of the mountains, climbed to his pass and on a ridge between two forks of Feather River down to the gold fields of northern California at Marysville. The road should spare the settlers and gold seekers about 150 miles and several steep slopes, such as Donner Pass. It was supposed to be paid by the business communities of the gold towns in California, but when Beckwourth tried to collect his payment in 1851, Marysville suffered from two huge fires and was unable to pay.

Beckwourth eventually began ranching in the Sierra. His ranch, trading post and hotel in today's Sierra Valley later became Beckwourth, California. In the winter of 54/55 Thomas D. Bonner a corrupt Justice of the peace stayed in the hotel, where Beckwourth told him the story of his life. Bonner took it down, edited it the following year and offered the book to Harper & Brothers in New York, where The Life and Adventures of James P. Beckwourth came out in 1856. According to the contract, Beckwourth was entitled to one half of the proceeds, but never got anything from Bonner. His stay in California can be traced until 1858, he returned to Missouri in 1859 and settled later that year in Denver, Colorado. He lived as store keeper and was appointed local agent for Indian affairs by the city council. In 1864 Beckwourth was forced by John M. Chivington of the Third Colorado Volunteers to act as a scout for a campaign against the Cheyenne and Arapaho, that led to the Sand Creek Massacre.

The Cheyennes interdicted him from further business with them as a result of the massacre, and he returned to trapping, well in his 60s. He was employed by the army as a scout in Fort Laramie and Fort Phil Kearny in 1866. While guiding a military column to a Crow Tribe in Montana, he complained of severe headaches and suffering nosebleeds (most probably a severe case of hypertension). Beckworth returned to the Crow village where he died on October 29, 1866. The founder of the "Rocky Mountain News", William Byers, used the death of Beckworth to publish a circulation-boosting, baseless yarn stating that the Crow had poisoned Beckworth. The falsehood is repeated to this day.

Beckwourth and his book

Later in his life, Beckwourth recounted an astonishing life history to Thomas D. Bonner, who produced the book The Life and Adventures of James P. Beckwourth: Mountaineer, Scout, Pioneer and Chief of the Crow Nation. Beckwourth's language and style were as notable as the reported adventures. Some material in the book provide historical information on the role of alcohol in the US Government, how occupations effect the occupied, our historical relationship to diseases, wildlife, and the environment, as well as reports dealing with massacres and war.

Beckwourth Pass, California

Beckwourth Pass, named in honor of James Beckwourth, is located in the Sierra Nevada Mountains in Plumas County, California. State Route 70 crosses the Sierras at an elevation of 1,591 m (5,221 ft.), making it one of the lowest crossings of the Sierra Nevadas in California. It is also the route that the Union Pacific Railroad (former Western Pacific Railroad) used to cross the Sierra's along their Feather River route. The pass is located east of Portola, California.

In 1851, Beckwourth, following an Indian trail, discovered a low elevation pass over the Sierra Nevada mountains into California. He improved what became known as the Beckwourth Trail through Plumas, Butte and Yuba counties. In August, 1851, he led the first intact wagon train into the burgeoning Gold Rush city of Marysville, California, named after Mary Murphy, a survivor of the Donner Party in the winter of 1846-47. Beckwourth demanded payment for improving the trail, claiming he had an agreement with the city and its merchants. When the city failed to pay him, he had no standing as a dark-skinned man in a California court to sue for damages. An estimated 10,000 people used the trail to enter Marysville in the following decade. In 1996, at the urging of promoters of Beckwourth Frontier Days, a living history festival, the city of Marysville's largest park was renamed Beckwourth Riverfront Park in recognition of the debt owed by the city and Beckwourth's significance to the growth of the city.

Afrikan World Civlization

by Dr. Kwaku

Afrikan World Civlization part 1

Afrikan World Civlization part 1


Afrikan World Civlization part 2

Afrikan World Civlization part 2


Afrikan World Civlization part 3

Afrikan World Civlization part 3




Afrikans are responsible for the creation of world civilizations and Dr. Kwaku takes you to the far reaches of the globe to show you the creative genius of the master architects, authors, doctors and more. Narrated by Dr. Kwaku.

Imhotep

Imhotep (sometimes spelled Immutef, Im-hotep, or Ii-em-Hotep, Egyptian ii-m-ḥtp *jā-im-ḥatāp meaning "the one who comes in peace") was an Egyptian polymath,[1] who served under the Third Dynasty king, Djoser, as chancellor to the pharaoh and high priest of the sun god Ra at Heliopolis. He is considered to be the first architect and physician known by name in history [2]. The full list of his titles is: Chancellor of the King of Lower Egypt, First after the King of Upper Egypt, Administrator of the Great Palace, Hereditary nobleman, High Priest of Heliopolis, Builder, Chief Carpenter, Chief Sculptor and Maker of Vases in Chief. As with Hatshepsut and Senemut's later relationship, Imhotep is one of very few mortals to be depicted as part of a pharaoh's statue. He was one of only a few commoners ever to be accorded divine status after death. The centre of his cult was Memphis. From the First Intermediate Period onward Imhotep was also revered as a poet and philosopher. His sayings were famously referred to in poems: I have heard the words of Imhotep and Hordedef with whose discourses men speak so much. [3]
The knowledge of the location of Imhotep's tomb was lost in antiquity [4] and is still unknown, despite efforts to find it. The general consensus is that it is at Saqqara.

Much else 'known' about him is hear-say and conjecture. The ancient Egyptians credited him with many inventions. As one of the officials of the Pharaoh, Djosèr, he probably designed the Pyramid of Djoser (the Step Pyramid) at Saqqara in Egypt around 2630-2611 BC [5]. He may have been responsible for the first known use of columns in architecture. He has also been acclaimed to be the inventor of the Papyrus scroll, being its oldest known bearer.

Imhotep is credited with being the founder of Egyptian medicine and with being the author of a medical treatise remarkable for being devoid of magical thinking, the so-called Edwin Smith papyrus, detailing anatomical observations, ailments, and cures. The surviving papyrus was probably written around 1700 BC but may be a copy of texts a thousand years older. This attribution of authorship is speculative, however.[6].
He was said to be a son of Ptah, his mother being a mortal named Khredu-ankh

Two thousand years after his death, his status was raised to that of a deity. He became the god of medicine and healing. He later was linked to Asclepius by the Greeks. The Encyclopedia Britannica says, "The evidence aforded by Egyptian and Greek texts support the view that Imhotep's reputation was very respected in early times... His prestige increased with the lapse of centuries and his temples in Greek times were the centers of medical teachings."

As the "son of Ian", his mother was sometimes said to be Sekhmet, the patron of Upper Egypt because Ptah often was said to have married her. As Imhotep was considered the inventor of healing, he was also sometimes said to be the one who held up the goddess Nut (the deification of the sky), as the separation of Nut and Geb (the deification of the earth) was said to be what held back chaos. Due to the position this would have placed him in, he was also sometimes said to be Nut's son. In artwork he also is linked with the great goddess, Hathor, who eventually became identified as the wife of Ra. He also was identified with Maat, the goddess who personified the concept of truth, cosmic order, and justice—having created order out of chaos and being responsible for maintaining it. An association with Amenhotep son of Hapu, who was another deified architect, also occurred.

It is Imhotep, says Sir William Osler, who was the real Father of Medicine. "The first figure of a physician to stand out clearly from the mists of antiquity."

An inscription from Upper Egypt, dating from the Ptolemaic period, mentions a famine of seven years during the time of Imhotep. According to the inscription, the reigning pharaoh, Djoser, had a dream in which the Nile god spoke to him. Imhotep is credited with helping to solve the famine. The obvious parallels with the biblical story of Joseph have long been commented upon. [7]. More recently, the Joseph parallels have led some alternative historians to identify Imhotep with Joseph, and to argue that the supposedly thousand years separating them are indicative of a faulty chronology. [8].

Prejudice VS Racism

Prejudice (prej·u·dice Pronunciation)
noun, verb, -diced, -dic·ing. –noun
1.
an unfavorable opinion or feeling formed beforehand or without knowledge, thought, or reason.
2.
any preconceived opinion or feeling, either favorable or unfavorable.
3.
unreasonable feelings, opinions, or attitudes, esp. of a hostile nature, regarding a racial, religious, or national group.
4.
such attitudes considered collectively: The war against prejudice is never-ending.


Racism (rac·ism Pronunciation)
–noun
1.
a belief or doctrine that inherent differences among the various human races determine cultural or individual achievement, usually involving the idea that one's own race is superior and has the right to rule others.
2.
a policy, system of government, etc., based upon or fostering such a doctrine; discrimination.

Valaida Snow

Valaida Snow (born June 2, 1904, Chattanooga, Tennessee; died May 30, 1956, New York City) was an African american jazz musician and entertainer. Raised in Chattanooga, Tennessee by a family devoted to music, she learned to play cello, bass, banjo, violin, mandolin, harp, accordion, clarinet, trumpet, and saxophone at professional levels by the time she was 15. She also sang and danced.

After focusing on the trumpet, she quickly became so famous at the instrument that she was named "Little Louis" after Louis Armstrong, who used to call her the world's second best jazz trumpet player besides himself. She played concerts throughout the USA, Europe and China.

Her most successful period was in the 1930s when she became the toast of London and Paris. Around this time she recorded her hit song, "High Hat, Trumpet, and Rhythm." She was performed in the Ethel Waters show, Rhapsody In Black, in New York. In the mid-30s she made films with her husband Ananais Berry of the Berry Brothers dancing troupe. After playing New York's Apollo she revisited Europe and the Far East for more shows and films.

Later she became addicted to morphine. While touring through Denmark, she was arrested and sent to prison for theft and possession of drugs. After her release, she claimed having been sent to a Concentration camp by the Nazis. In the 1950s she had a tough time living up to her former success.

Valaida Snow died of brain hemorrhage on May 30, 1956 in New York City.

There is a novel, Valaida by Candace Allen, based on her life story.

Valaida Snow - Caravan (Ellington), 1939

For More on Valaida Snow Check out VALAIDA SNOW JAZZ TRUMPET STAR

SEPTIMIUS SEVERUS (AFRICAN EMPEROR OF ROME)

Lucius Septimius Severus (b. Leptis Magna, April 11, 146 - d. York, February 4, 211) was a Roman general, and Roman Emperor from April 9, 193 to 211. He was the first emperor to be born in Africa (present-day Tunisia and western Libya).

Founder of the African dynasty of Roman emperors, b. at Leptis Magna in Africa, 11 April, 146; d. at York, England, 4 February, 211.
Severus came from a family that had become Roman citizens. In his career as an official at Rome and in the provinces he had been favored by the Emperor Marcus Aurelius. In the reign of Commodus he was appointed legate of the fourth legion on the Euphrates; this gave him the opportunity to become acquainted with affairs in the East. He married Julia Domna, a member of a priestly family of Emesa, who was the mother of Caracalla and Geta. When the Emperor Pertinax was killed by the mutinous soldiers at Rome, Severus, who was then governor of Upper Pannonia, was proclaimed emperor at Carnuntium by the legions on the Danube. The fact that the leaders of the troops in the eastern and western parts of the empire were at once ready to follow him is evidence that Severus himself had shared in the conspiracy against the dead emperor. Severus had clear political vision, still he cared nothing for the interests of Rome and Italy. He nourished within himself the Punic hatred of the Roman spirit and instinct and furthered the provincials in every way. He was revengeful and cruel towards his opponents, and was influenced by a blindly superstitious belief in his destiny as written in the stars. With iron will he labored to reorganize the Roman Empire on the model of an Oriental despotism. The troops in the East had proclaimed as emperor the capable governor of Syria, Pescennius Niger; the legions in Britain, the governor Clodius Albinus. On the other hand the soldiers in Italy and the senators came over to the side of Severus; Julianus, the prefect of the Pretorian Guard, was executed. Severus rested his power mainly upon the legions of barbarian troops; he immortalized them upon the coinage, granted them, besides large gifts of money and the right of marriage, a great number of privileges in the military and civil service, so that gradually the races living on the borders were able to force Rome to do their will. The Pretorian Guard was made into a troop of picked men from the provinces; in the first years of the emperor's reign their commander was the shrewd Caius Fulvius Plautianus, who exerted a great influence over Severus. After making careful preparation for the decisive struggle, and having secured his opponent in Britain by the bestowal of the title of Caesar, Severus entered upon a campaign against his dangerous rival Niger. He defeated Niger's subordinate Ascellius Æmilius at Cyzicus and Niger himself at Issus. He then advanced into Mesopotamia, established the new Province of Osrhoene and

(Picture is the

Arch of Septimius Severus)

the new legion called the Parthian. He divided several old provinces into smaller administrative districts. After this, while at Antioch, he declared war against Albinus and returned to Europe by

forced marches. In 197 the decisive battle was fought with Albinus near Lyons in Gaul. Albinus had under him the legions of Britain, Gaul, Germany, and Spain, yet in spite of

severe losses Severus was the conqueror. Albinus was killed, his adherents were utterly destroyed in a bloody civil war, and their property was confiscated for the emperor. The common soldiers received the right of entering the Senate and the equestrian order. For the greater security of the imperial power the Parthian legion was garrisoned upon Mount Alba near Rome. Severus went to Asia a second time, traversed the countries on the Euphrates and Tigris, strengthened the Roman supremacy, and gave the natives equal rights with the Italians. He then went to Egypt where he granted the City of Alexandria the privilege of self-government. During the reign of Severus the fifth persecution of the Christians broke out. He forbade conversion to Judaism and to Christianity. The persecution raged especially in Syria and Africa. In 203 Saints Perpetua and Felicitas and their companions suffered martyrdom at Carthage. The emperor returned to Rome for the celebration of the tenth year of his reign, erected the triumphal arch that still exists, and strengthened his hold on his hordes of mercenaries by constant gifts of money and the bestowal of favors detrimental to military discipline. The Senate was replaced by the Consistorium principis, one of the members of which was the celebrated jurist Papinian. Although he had suffered for years from rheumatic gout, Severus went to Britain, where trouble had broken out, in order to give occupation to his sons, who were at deadly enmity with each other. He restored Hadrian's Wall, and strengthened again the Roman power in Britain.

Though his military leanings were costly to the empire, Severus was the strong, able ruler that Rome needed at the time. He began a line of military emperors that would carry on for the following few rulers. However, although necessary from some point of view, his politics of expansion of the army's benefit were criticized by his contemporary Dio Cassius and Herodianus: in particular, they pointed out the increasing burden (in the form of taxes and vessations) the civilian population had to bear to maintain the new army.
Severus was also distinguished by his buildings. Apart from the triumphal arch in the Roman Forum carrying his full name, he also built the Septizodium in Rome and enriched greatly his native city of Leptis Magna (including another triumphal arch in occasion of his visit of 203).

Reign
April 9, 193 - February 197(in competition with others);

February 197-198 (alone);198 - 209

(with Caracalla);209 - February 4, 211(with Caracalla & Geta)
Born
April 11, 146(146-04-11)
Leptis Magna
Died
February 4, 211 (aged 64)
Eboracum
Predecessor
Didius Julianus
Successor
Caracalla and Geta