Press "Enter" to skip to content

Posts published in “Awards/Honors”

University Of Virginia Honors Man Who Rang College Bell For Sixty-Two Years

By goodblacknews on October 19, 2012


The University of Virginia recently installed a plaque in front of the University Chapel which honors Henry Martin.
Martin was born a slave in 1826. He was a free man when hired by the university in 1847 as a janitor and to ring the bell in the university’s Rotunda. He rang the bell at dawn and every hour for the remainder of the day. After a fire in the Rotunda, the bell was moved to the University chapel. All told, Martin was the university’s bell ringer from 1847 to 1909, a period of 62 years.
The plaque was sponsored by the IDEA Fund, a group founded to promoted diversity on campus. IDEA stands for Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access.

Gabby Douglas Wins Sportswoman of Year Award

By goodblacknews on October 18, 2012

Olympic gymnast Gabrielle Douglas attends the 33rd Annual Salute To Women In Sports Gala at Cipriani Wall Street on October 17, 2012 in New York City. (Photo by Jason Kempin/Getty Images)Olympic gymnast Gabrielle Douglas attends the 33rd Annual Salute To Women In Sports Gala at Cipriani Wall Street on October 17, 2012 in New York City. (Photo by Jason Kempin/Getty Images)

NEW YORK (AP) — Olympic all-around champion Gabby Douglas has won Sportswoman of the Year honors from the Women’s Sports Foundation.  The gymnast won the award Wednesday night, beating out Lindsey Vonn, London Olympians Serena Williams, Missy Franklin, Allyson Felix, and Paralympians Jessica Long and Tatyana McFadden. Douglas is the third gymnast to win the award, joining fellow Olympic gold medalists Mary Lou Retton (1984) and Nastia Liukin (2008). Liukin presented Douglas with the award, given to an individual athlete who exhibits exceptional performances. Douglas won the all-around gold at the London Olympics, the fourth American — and first African-American — to win gymnastics’ biggest prize. She also helped the U.S. women to the team title, their first since 1996 and second overall.

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press via thegrio.com

Forty-Eight Years Ago Today: Martin Luther King Jr. Wins Nobel Peace Prize

By goodblacknews on October 14, 2012

Martin Luther King Jr.
On Oct. 14, 1964, Martin Luther King Jr. received a Nobel Peace Prize for his work in the civil rights movement at age 35, making him the youngest person to receive the honor.  By the mid-’60s, King was known internationally for his work in advocating racial equality through nonviolent civil disobedience. King was influenced by Indian activist Mahatma Gandhi and appropriated many of his theories about nonviolence in his organization of peaceful protests that were often met with brutal violence by whites. 
Upon notification of his Nobel win, King announced that he would donate the $54,123 in prize money to further the civil rights movement.  King continued to work as an activist and an outspoken advocate of civil rights until he was assassinated on April 4, 1968, while standing on the balcony of his hotel room in Memphis, Tennessee.
article by Naeesa Aziz via bet.com (Photo: Keystone/Getty Images)

Statue of Activist Fannie Lou Hamer Unveiled in Mississippi

By goodblacknews on October 11, 2012

fannie-lou-hamer-statue

Scores of men, women and children attended the recent unveiling of a statue honoring the late civil rights icon Fannie Lou Hamer in her hometown of Ruleville, Miss.  Hamer, who would have been 95 on Oct. 6, is remembered the world over as a woman who was “sick and tired of being sick and tired.”  At the time of her death, on March 14th, 1977, Hamer was almost penniless, yet her funeral was well attended by celebrities, social activists and political leaders from all walks of life.

Bahamas To Get ‘Sidney Poitier’ Bridge

By goodblacknews on October 10, 2012

Sidney Poitier attends the 40th AFI Life Achievement Award honoring Shirley MacLaine held at Sony Pictures Studios on June 7, 2012 in Culver City, California. The AFI Life Achievement Award tribute to Shirley MacLaine will premiere on TV Land on Saturday, June 24 at 9PM ET/PST. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)Sidney Poitier attends the 40th AFI Life Achievement Award honoring Shirley MacLaine held at Sony Pictures Studios on June 7, 2012 in Culver City, California. The AFI Life Achievement Award tribute to Shirley MacLaine will premiere on TV Land on Saturday, June 24 at 9PM ET/PST. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

NASSAU, Bahamas (AP) — A bridge in the Bahamas is being renamed to honor Sidney Poitier, who spent part of his childhood in the island chain east of Florida.  Prime Minister Perry Christie says the Paradise Island Bridge will be rechristened as part of next month’s 40th anniversary celebration of Bahamian independence. Christie says the 88-year-old film star is being honored because of his life story and diplomacy. Poitier has been Bahamian ambassador to Japan and UNESCO.

The Oscar-winning Poitier was born in the United States but spent much of his childhood on Cat Island, a sparsely populated island in the central Bahamas.  The Paradise Island Bridge is the largest in the Bahamas. It connects the capital to the Atlantis resort, one of the region’s top tourist destinations. The renaming was announced Tuesday.

story by The Associated Press via thegrio.com

Dylan Penningroth and Dinaw Mengestu Win 2012 MacArthur Fellowships

By lorilakinhutcherson on October 7, 2012

Dylan C. Pennigroth (left) and Dinaw Mengestu (right)

Penningroth received a B.A. (1993) from Yale University and an M.A. (1996) and a Ph.D. (2000) from Johns Hopkins University. He was affiliated with the University of Virginia (1999–2002) prior to his appointment as associate professor in the Department of History at Northwestern University in 2003. Since 2007, he has also been an American Bar Foundation research professor. Northwestern University Professor Dylan C. Penningroth and writer Dinaw Mengestu are among this year’s recipients of the prestigious MacArthur Foundation Fellowship, commonly known as the “genius grant.”  The MacArthur Fellowship is a “no strings attached” award bestowed annually to encourage people of outstanding talent to pursue their own creative, intellectual, and professional inclinations. 

South Africa's Desmond Tutu wins $1 Million Prize

By goodblacknews on October 4, 2012

Archbishop Desmond Tutu

A billionaire’s foundation announced Thursday a one-off $1 million award to South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu for “his lifelong commitment to speaking truth to power.”  The foundation, which promotes good governance in the continent, was established by Sudan-born billionaire Mo Ibrahim.

South Africa’s Desmond Tutu wins $1 Million Prize

By goodblacknews on October 4, 2012

Archbishop Desmond Tutu

A billionaire’s foundation announced Thursday a one-off $1 million award to South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu for “his lifelong commitment to speaking truth to power.”  The foundation, which promotes good governance in the continent, was established by Sudan-born billionaire Mo Ibrahim.

Quincy Jones Accepts Montblanc Lifetime Achievement Award

By goodblacknews on October 3, 2012

 It was an evening suitable for a legend at the historic Chateau Marmont hotel in West Hollywood, as internationally acclaimed composer, filmmaker and philanthropist Quincy Jones was on hand to receive the Montblanc Lifetime Achievement Award.  There to introduce the iconic producer were Hollywood legends Sidney Poitier and Morgan Freeman as well as Quincy Jones’ daughter, actress and filmmaker Rashida Jones.