| Name | Occupation | Birth | Death | Known for |
|---|
| Debbie Allen |
Dancer |
16-Jan-1950 |
|
All About You |
| Laz Alonso |
Actor |
25-Mar-1974 |
|
Charlie Duchamp on Breakout Kings |
| Anthony Anderson |
Actor |
15-Aug-1970 |
|
Kangaroo Jack, Barbershop |
| Brian P. Anderson |
Business |
c. 1951 |
|
CFO of OfficeMax, 2004-05 |
| Nnamdi Azikiwe |
Head of State |
16-Nov-1904 |
11-May-1996 |
First President of Nigeria, 1963-66 |
| Amiri Baraka |
Author |
7-Oct-1934 |
9-Jan-2014 |
Hated Whitey |
| Michelle Bernard |
Activist |
c. 1964 |
|
Conservative commentator |
| Mary Frances Berry |
Government |
17-Feb-1938 |
|
Civil Rights Commissioner, 1980-2004 |
| James A. Bland |
Songwriter |
22-Oct-1854 |
5-Mar-1911 |
Carry Me Back to Old Virginny |
| Richard W. Boehm |
Diplomat |
25-Jun-1926 |
28-Nov-2011 |
US Ambassador to Oman, 1989-92 |
| Edward Brooke |
Politician |
26-Oct-1919 |
3-Jan-2015 |
US Senator from Massachusetts, 1967-79 |
| Claude Brown |
Author |
23-Feb-1937 |
2-Feb-2002 |
Manchild in the Promised Land |
| Gayleatha B. Brown |
Diplomat |
? |
|
US Ambassador to Benin |
| Roland W. Burris |
Politician |
8-Aug-1937 |
|
US Senator from Illinois, 2009-10 |
| Addie J. Butler |
Religion |
1946 |
|
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America |
| Donald Byrd |
Jazz Musician |
9-Dec-1932 |
4-Feb-2013 |
Hard bop trumpeter |
| Stokely Carmichael |
Activist |
29-Jun-1941 |
15-Nov-1998 |
Black separatist, Pan-Africanist |
| Paula H. J. Cholmondeley |
Business |
c. 1948 |
|
VP at Sappi Fine Paper, 2000-04 |
| Kenneth B. Clark |
Psychologist |
14-Jul-1914 |
1-May-2005 |
Studied the effects of prejudice on children |
| Lucille Clifton |
Poet |
27-Jun-1936 |
13-Feb-2010 |
Good Woman |
| Sanford Cloud, Jr. |
Business |
27-Nov-1944 |
|
President of NCCJ, 1994-2004 |
| Elijah Cummings |
Politician |
18-Jan-1951 |
|
Congressman, Maryland 7th |
| Frenchie Davis |
Musician |
9-May-1979 |
|
BBW booted from American Idol |
| Ossie Davis |
Actor |
18-Dec-1917 |
4-Feb-2005 |
Do The Right Thing |
| Wendy Davis |
Actor |
? |
|
Joan Burton on Army Wives |
| Ernest R. Dickerson |
Film Director |
25-Jun-1951 |
|
Bulletproof |
| Charles Diggs, Jr. |
Politician |
2-Dec-1922 |
24-Aug-1998 |
Congressman from Michigan, 1955-80 |
| David Dinkins |
Politician |
10-Jul-1927 |
|
Mayor of New York City, 1989-93 |
| Edward R. Dudley |
Diplomat |
11-Mar-1911 |
8-Feb-2005 |
First Black US Ambassador |
| James C. Early |
Activist |
12-Jan-1947 |
|
Smithsonian Institution |
| Billy Eckstine |
Singer |
8-Jul-1914 |
8-Mar-1993 |
First African-American singing idol |
| Mike Espy |
Government |
30-Nov-1953 |
|
US Secretary of Agriculture, 1993-94 |
| James Farmer |
Activist |
12-Jan-1920 |
9-Jul-1999 |
Co-Founder, CORE |
| Dennis Felton |
Basketball |
21-Jun-1963 |
|
UGA Head Coach |
| Adrian Fenty |
Politician |
7-Dec-1970 |
|
Mayor of Washington DC, 2007-11 |
| Roberta Flack |
Singer |
10-Feb-1939 |
|
Killing Me Softly with His Song |
| Harold Ford, Sr. |
Politician |
20-May-1945 |
|
Congressman from Tennessee, 1975-97 |
| Shirley Franklin |
Politician |
10-May-1945 |
|
Mayor of Atlanta, 2002-10 |
| E. Franklin Frazier |
Sociologist |
24-Sep-1894 |
17-May-1962 |
Black Bourgeoisie |
| Al Green |
Politician |
1-Sep-1947 |
|
Congressman, Texas 9th |
| Lance Gross |
Actor |
8-Jul-1981 |
|
Calvin Payne on House of Payne |
| Conrad K. Harper |
Attorney |
c. 1940 |
|
Simpson Thatcher & Bartlett |
| Kamala Harris |
Attorney |
20-Oct-1964 |
|
Attorney General of California |
| Patricia Roberts Harris |
Government |
31-May-1924 |
23-Mar-1985 |
Cabinet Secretary under Jimmy Carter |
| Alcee Hastings |
Politician |
5-Sep-1936 |
|
Congressman, Florida 20th |
| Donny Hathaway |
Singer |
1-Oct-1945 |
13-Jan-1979 |
Where Is The Love? |
| Wade Henderson |
Activist |
1948 |
|
Leadership Conference on Civil Rights |
| Taraji P. Henson |
Actor |
11-Sep-1970 |
|
The Division |
| Earl Hilliard |
Politician |
9-Apr-1942 |
|
Congressman from Alabama, 1993-2003 |
| Benjamin Hooks |
Activist |
31-Jan-1925 |
15-Apr-2010 |
NAACP Director, 1977-92 |
| Shirley Horn |
Musician |
1-May-1934 |
20-Oct-2005 |
Here's To Life |
| Zora Neale Hurston |
Novelist |
7-Jan-1891 |
28-Jan-1960 |
Their Eyes Were Watching God |
| John E. Jacob |
Business |
16-Dec-1934 |
|
President of Urban League, 1982-94 |
| Cheddi Jagan |
Head of State |
22-Mar-1918 |
6-Mar-1997 |
President of Guyana, 1992-97 |
| Franklyn G. Jenifer |
Educator |
26-Mar-1939 |
|
President of UT-Dallas, 1994-2003 |
| Vernon Jordan |
Business |
15-Aug-1935 |
|
Advisor to Bill Clinton |
| Colbert King |
Columnist |
20-Sep-1939 |
|
Washington Post columnist |
| Gwendolyn S. King |
Government |
23-Sep-1940 |
|
Commissioner of Social Security, 1989-92 |
| Lester L. Lyles |
Military |
20-Apr-1946 |
|
Commander, USAF Materiel Command, 2000-03 |
| Vicki Mabrey |
Journalist |
c. 1956 |
|
60 Minutes II |
| Thurgood Marshall |
Judge |
2-Jul-1908 |
24-Jan-1993 |
First black US Supreme Court justice |
| John T. McCarthy |
Diplomat |
27-Dec-1939 |
|
US Ambassador to Tunisia, 1991-94 |
| Van McCoy |
Musician |
6-Jan-1940 |
6-Jul-1979 |
The Hustle |
| Gabrielle K. McDonald |
Judge |
12-Apr-1942 |
|
US District Court Judge, Texas, 1979-88 |
| Floretta Dukes McKenzie |
Business |
c. 1936 |
|
DC School Superintendent, 1981-88 |
| Gregory Meeks |
Politician |
25-Sep-1953 |
|
Congressman, New York 6th |
| Kelly Miller |
Sociologist |
23-Jul-1863 |
29-Dec-1939 |
Out of the House of Bondage |
| May Miller |
Playwright |
26-Jan-1899 |
8-Feb-1995 |
The Bog Guide |
| Keith Mitchell |
Head of State |
12-Nov-1946 |
|
Prime Minister of Grenada |
| Stacey J. Mobley |
Attorney |
1946 |
|
Senior Counsel at Dickstein Shapiro |
| George Moose |
Diplomat |
23-Jun-1944 |
|
US Ambassador to the UN in Europe, 1998-2001 |
| Toni Morrison |
Author |
18-Feb-1931 |
|
Beloved |
| James C. Napier |
Government |
9-Jun-1845 |
21-Apr-1940 |
Founder of Nashville One-Cent Savings Bank |
| Me'Shell NdegéOcello |
Singer |
29-Aug-1969 |
|
Eclectic R&B singer and bassist |
| Jessye Norman |
Singer |
15-Sep-1945 |
|
Operatic soprano |
| Madalyn Murray O'Hair |
Religion |
13-Apr-1919 |
Sep-1995 |
Atheist spokeswoman |
| Ronald D. Palmer |
Diplomat |
22-May-1932 |
|
US Ambassador to Mauritius, 1986-89 |
| Paula Jai Parker |
Actor |
19-Aug-1969 |
|
Trudy Proud on The Proud Family |
| Carl Anthony Payne II |
Actor |
24-May-1969 |
|
Cole Brown on Martin |
| Gerald D. Prothro |
Business |
c. 1943 |
|
Former IBM executive |
| Puff Daddy |
Music Producer |
4-Nov-1969 |
|
Can't Nobody Hold Me Down |
| Peggy A. Quince |
Judge |
3-Jan-1948 |
|
Justice, Florida Supreme Court |
| Phylicia Rashad |
Actor |
19-Jun-1948 |
|
Claire Huxtable on The Cosby Show |
| Gilbert T. Ray |
Business |
c. 1944 |
|
Former Partner, O'Melveny and Myers |
| Kasim Reed |
Politician |
10-Jun-1969 |
|
Mayor of Atlanta |
| Irvin D. Reid |
Educator |
21-Feb-1941 |
|
President, Wayne State University |
| Wendy Raquel Robinson |
Actor |
25-Jul-1967 |
|
Tasha Mack on The Game |
| Roxie Roker |
Actor |
28-Aug-1929 |
2-Dec-1995 |
Helen Willis on The Jeffersons |
| Frank Savage |
Business |
c. 1940 |
|
VP at Equitable Life, 1987-96 |
| Pauline A. Schneider |
Attorney |
c. 1943 |
|
Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe |
| Oliver R. Sockwell, Jr. |
Business |
c. 1944 |
|
CEO of Connie Lee, 1987-97 |
| H. Patrick Swygert |
Educator |
17-Mar-1943 |
|
President of Howard University, 1995-2008 |
| Tracie Thoms |
Actor |
19-Aug-1975 |
|
Kat Miller on Cold Case |
| Kathryn C. Turner |
Business |
c. 1947 |
|
Founder of Standard Technology, Inc. |
| Dale Wainwright |
Judge |
19-Jun-1961 |
|
Justice, Texas Supreme Court |
| Isaiah Washington |
Actor |
3-Aug-1963 |
|
Dr. Burke on Grey's Anatomy |
| Crystal Waters |
Singer |
10-Oct-1964 |
|
Gypsy Woman |
| Marlon Wayans |
Comic |
23-Jul-1972 |
|
A Wayans Brother |
| Togo West |
Government |
21-Jun-1942 |
|
US Secretary of the Army, Veterans Affairs |
| George Henry White |
Politician |
18-Dec-1852 |
28-Dec-1918 |
Congressman from North Carolina, 1897-1901 |
| Karen Malina White |
Actor |
7-Jul-1965 |
|
The Proud Family |
| L. Douglas Wilder |
Politician |
17-Jan-1931 |
|
Governor of Virginia, 1990-94 |
| Christopher J. Williams |
Business |
c. 1958 |
|
Williams Capital Group |
| Hattie Winston |
Actor |
3-Mar-1945 |
|
The Electric Company |
| Harris Wofford |
Politician |
9-Apr-1926 |
|
US Senator from Pennsylvania, 1991-95 |
| Jeremiah Wright |
Religion |
22-Sep-1941 |
|
Trinity United Church of Christ |
| Albert Wynn |
Politician |
10-Sep-1951 |
|
Congressman, Maryland 4th |
| Andrew Young |
Politician |
12-Mar-1932 |
|
Mayor of Atlanta, 1982-90 |
| Name | Occupation | Birth | Death | Known for |
|---|
| Alexander T. Augusta |
Doctor |
8-Mar-1825 |
21-Dec-1890 |
First black battlefield surgeon |
| Roscoe Bartlett |
Politician |
3-Jun-1926 |
|
Congressman, Maryland 6th |
| David H. Blackwell |
Mathematician |
24-Apr-1919 |
8-Jul-2010 |
Bayesian statistics |
| Lee P. Brown |
Politician |
4-Oct-1937 |
|
Mayor of Houston, 1998-2004 |
| Ralph Bunche |
Diplomat |
4-Aug-1904 |
9-Dec-1971 |
UN Mediator in Palestine 1948 |
| Kenneth B. Clark |
Psychologist |
14-Jul-1914 |
1-May-2005 |
Studied the effects of prejudice on children |
| E. Franklin Frazier |
Sociologist |
24-Sep-1894 |
17-May-1962 |
Black Bourgeoisie |
| Al Freeman, Jr. |
Actor |
21-Mar-1934 |
10-Aug-2012 |
Malcolm X |
| Patricia Roberts Harris |
Government |
31-May-1924 |
23-Mar-1985 |
Cabinet Secretary under Jimmy Carter |
| Melville J. Herskovits |
Anthropologist |
10-Sep-1895 |
25-Feb-1963 |
The Myth of the Negro Past |
| Percy Julian |
Chemist |
11-Apr-1899 |
19-Apr-1975 |
Physostigmine and cortisone |
| Ernest Just |
Biologist |
14-Aug-1883 |
27-Oct-1941 |
Cell surfaces and egg fertilization |
| Max Kampelman |
Diplomat |
7-Nov-1920 |
25-Jan-2013 |
US Ambassador to the CSCE |
| Rayford W. Logan |
Historian |
7-Jan-1897 |
4-Nov-1982 |
The Negro in American Life and Thought |
| Donald F. McHenry |
Diplomat |
13-Oct-1936 |
|
US Ambassador to the UN, 1979-81 |
| Kelly Miller |
Sociologist |
23-Jul-1863 |
29-Dec-1939 |
Out of the House of Bondage |
| Keith Mitchell |
Head of State |
12-Nov-1946 |
|
Prime Minister of Grenada |
| Toni Morrison |
Author |
18-Feb-1931 |
|
Beloved |
| Cecil B. Pickett |
Biologist |
5-Oct-1945 |
|
Ezetrol, Singulair, and Vioxx |
| Charles B. Purvis |
Doctor |
14-Apr-1842 |
14-Dec-1929 |
Pioneering African-American physician |
| Irvin D. Reid |
Educator |
21-Feb-1941 |
|
President, Wayne State University |
| Eric Williams |
Head of State |
25-Sep-1911 |
29-Mar-1981 |
Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, 1956-81 |
| Name | Occupation | Birth | Death | Known for |
|---|
| O. Rudolph Aggrey |
Diplomat |
24-Jul-1926 |
|
US Ambassador to Romania, 1977-81 |
| Lee Atwater |
Politician |
27-Feb-1951 |
29-Mar-1991 |
RNC Chairman, 1988-90 |
| Tony Brown |
Talk Show Host |
11-Apr-1933 |
|
Host of Tony Brown's Journal |
| Blanche K. Bruce |
Politician |
1-Mar-1841 |
17-Mar-1898 |
US Senator, former slave |
| Roland W. Burris |
Politician |
8-Aug-1937 |
|
US Senator from Illinois, 2009-10 |
| Bruce S. Gelb |
Diplomat |
24-Feb-1927 |
|
US Ambassador to Belgium, 1991-93 |
| Earl G. Graves |
Business |
c. 1935 |
|
Black Enterprise magazine |
| Patricia Roberts Harris |
Government |
31-May-1924 |
23-Mar-1985 |
Cabinet Secretary under Jimmy Carter |
| Oliver O. Howard |
Military |
8-Nov-1830 |
26-Oct-1909 |
Headed the Freedmen's Bureau |
| John E. Jacob |
Business |
16-Dec-1934 |
|
President of Urban League, 1982-94 |
| Franklyn G. Jenifer |
Educator |
26-Mar-1939 |
|
President of UT-Dallas, 1994-2003 |
| Sheila Crump Johnson |
Business |
1949 |
|
Billionaire |
| John Mercer Langston |
Politician |
14-Dec-1829 |
15-Nov-1897 |
First black Congressman elected from Virginia |
| Rayford W. Logan |
Historian |
7-Jan-1897 |
4-Nov-1982 |
The Negro in American Life and Thought |
| Robert L. Lumpkins |
Business |
c. 1944 |
|
Vice Chairman of Cargill |
| Gabrielle K. McDonald |
Judge |
12-Apr-1942 |
|
US District Court Judge, Texas, 1979-88 |
| Floretta Dukes McKenzie |
Business |
c. 1936 |
|
DC School Superintendent, 1981-88 |
| Kelly Miller |
Sociologist |
23-Jul-1863 |
29-Dec-1939 |
Out of the House of Bondage |
| Stacey J. Mobley |
Attorney |
1946 |
|
Senior Counsel at Dickstein Shapiro |
| James C. Napier |
Government |
9-Jun-1845 |
21-Apr-1940 |
Founder of Nashville One-Cent Savings Bank |
| Richard Parsons |
Business |
4-Apr-1948 |
|
CEO of Time Warner, 2002-07 |
| Harry J. Pearce |
Business |
20-Aug-1942 |
|
Vice Chairman of GM, 1996-2001 |
| Percy A. Pierre |
Educator |
3-Jan-1939 |
|
President, Prairie View A&M University, 1983-89 |
| Colin Powell |
Government |
5-Apr-1937 |
|
US Secretary of State, 2001-05 |
| Gerald D. Prothro |
Business |
c. 1943 |
|
Former IBM executive |
| Charles B. Purvis |
Doctor |
14-Apr-1842 |
14-Dec-1929 |
Pioneering African-American physician |
| A. Barry Rand |
Business |
1945 |
|
CEO of Equitant, 2003-05 |
| Kasim Reed |
Politician |
10-Jun-1969 |
|
Mayor of Atlanta |
| Sidney A. Ribeau |
Educator |
c. 1947 |
|
President of Howard University |
| Frank Savage |
Business |
c. 1940 |
|
VP at Equitable Life, 1987-96 |
| Kurt L. Schmoke |
Politician |
1-Dec-1949 |
|
Mayor of Baltimore, 1988-99 |
| H. Patrick Swygert |
Educator |
17-Mar-1943 |
|
President of Howard University, 1995-2008 |
| John A. Thain |
Business |
26-May-1955 |
|
CEO of CIT Group |