Enlightened Free Thinking Nubian Kings And Queens

Harriet  Ann Jacobs, daughter of Delilah, a slave, and Daniel Jacobs, a slave who was born in Edenton, North Carolina, on February 11, 1813.  Until she was six years old Harriet was unaware that she was the property of Margaret Horniblow. Before her death in 1825, Harriet's relatively kind mistress taught her slave to read and sew. In her will, Margaret Horniblow bequeathed eleven-year-old Harriet to a niece, Mary Matilda Norcom. Since Mary Norcom was only three years old when Harriet Jacobs became her slave, Mary's father, Dr. James Norcom, an Edenton physician, became Jacobs's de facto master. Under the regime of James and Maria Norcom, Jacobs was introduced to the harsh realities of slavery. Though barely a teenager, Jacobs soon realized that her master was a sexual threat. Around the time Harriet turned 15, Norcom began his relentless efforts to bend the slave girl's will. To get Harriet away from his wife, who was suspicious of her husband's intentions, he...

Henry Johnson was a World War I hero because of his remarkable performance in France. Johnson, born in 1897 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, moved to Albany, New York with his family when he was still a child.  At the age of 20, he worked as a “Red-cap” porter at the Albany train station.  On  June 5th  of that year, however, he joined the U.S. Army and was eventually assigned to the all-black New York 369th Infantry Regiment, better known as the “Harlem Hellfighters.”  Nearly four months into his Army enlistment, Johnson married Georgia Edna Jackson of Great Barrington, Massachusetts on September 17, 1917.   Johnson and the other troops were trained in segregated Camp Wadsworth, South Carolina.  On January 1, 1918, the unit arrived in Brest, France and at first were used as laborers and stevedores.  By mid-March the 369th was sent to the front and attached to the 16th Division of the French Army.  On May 1, 1918, Johnson was promoted to ...

Dewey "Pigmeat" Markham was an African American entertainer. Though best known as a comedian, Markham was also a singer, dancer, and actor. His nickname came from a stage routine, in which he declared himself to be "Sweet Poppa Pigmeat". Dewey Pigmeat Markham was born April 18, 1904 in Durham, North Carolina. His family was the most prominent on their street, which was later officially renamed Markham Street. Running away from home in 1918, Markham began his career in traveling music and burlesque shows. He took up with a white showman he ambiguously referred to over the years as "Mr. Booker" owner of a "gilly carnival."  For a time he was a member of Bessie Smith's Traveling Revue in the 1920s and later appeared on burlesque bills with such comedy legends as Milton Berle, Red Buttons, and Eddie Cantor. He claims to have originated the Truckin' dance which became nationally popular at the start of the 1930s. Markham performed ...

The first African American U.S. Marines were trained at Camp Montford Point, in Jacksonville, North Carolina.  African Americans, from all states, were not sent to the traditional boot camps of Parris Island, South Carolina or San Diego, California. Instead, African American Marines were segregated - experiencing basic training at Montford Point - a facility at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. Approximately twenty thousand (20,000) African American Marines received basic training at Montford Point between 1942 and 1949. On June 25, 1941,  President Roosevelt issued Executive Order 8802, which barred government agencies and federal contractors from refusing employment in industries engaged in defense production on the basis of race, creed, color, or national origin. The order required the armed services, including the Marine Corps, to recruit and enlist African Americans. With the beginning of World War II African Americans would get their chance to serve in the previou...

       "The release of two African-American men from prison in North Carolina after 30 years of incarceration for a murder they didn’t commit is yet another example of the American justice system’s racist targeting of African-Americans as the supposed primary criminal class in the country.        Between this outrageous case, the recent police broad daylight execution of Mike Brown, and the choke hold killing of Eric Garner, we must ask: isn’t it time we launch a movement to defeat the raci st law enforcement and criminal justice system’s systematic war on Black-America?        Why do we still pretend as if these are random isolated unconnected occurrences? This week’s news of the release of Henry Lee McCollum and Leon Brown after 30 years in jail for the 1983 rape and murder of an 11 year-old girl, represent another case of the gross miscarriage of justice." African Globe Staff

W. R. Pettiford was born on his father's North Carolina farm in 1847. In his youth he worked for a tanner, then returned home to run the farm. In 1868, art the age of 21, Pettiford, who was then serving as a clerk in the Baptist church of Rocksboro, realized he had been called to spread the Gospel. By 1877, Pettiford's theological studies had led him to Selma University, where he became a member of the school's pioneer faculty. As an instructor, Pettiford was remembered by students and co-workers alike as a well-spoken, patient man who taught the advantages of hard work by example. He was also one of the most successful fundraisers the University ever had. After marrying Della Boyd of Selma, Pettiford left professorship for a pastor's duties at 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama. Soon the Baptist pastor saw that many black workers employed in the area needed financial as well as spiritual advice. In 1890, the progressive clergyman organized the Ala...