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GBN Daily Drop Podcast: Drs. Joanna and Elmer Martin and the National Great Blacks in Wax Museum (LISTEN)

GBN Daily Drop Podcast: Drs. Joanna and Elmer Martin and the National Great Blacks in Wax Museum (LISTEN)

By goodblacknews on February 3, 2022

by Lori Lakin Hutcherson (@lakinhutcherson)

Here is GBN’s Daily Drop for Thursday, February 3rd, 2022, about the creation of The National Great Blacks in Wax Museum in Baltimore, MD, the first all African-American wax museum in the U.S.

(Also available for streaming and download at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, rss.com or create your own RSS Feed.)

Transcript below:

SHOW TRANSCRIPT:

Hey, this Lori Lakin Hutcherson, founder and editor in chief of GoodBlackNews.org, here to share with you a daily drop of Good Black News for Thursday, February 3rd, 2022, based on the “A Year of Good Black News Page-A-Day Calendar” published by Workman Publishing. It’s in the category for Black Museums and Landmarks we call “Get the Knowledge”:

Sociologist Dr. Elmer Martin and his wife, Dr. Joanna Martin, wanted to teach Black history in a way that would grab kids’ attention—so they did it with wax. The Martins had wax heads made in the likenesses of Harriet Tubman, Frederick Douglass, Mary McLeod Bethune, and Nat Turner, then used department store mannequins for the bodies.

They originally presented the figures at schools and community centers in Baltimore, Maryland but after garnering donations and grants, the figures were upgraded, expanded in number, and permanently installed at the Great Blacks in Wax Museum in 1983.

Just over two decades later, in 2004, the Great Blacks in Wax Museum was recognized by the United States Congress and designated The National Great Blacks in Wax Museum. If you want to learn more about the Martins and the Great Blacks in Wax Museum, check out the links provided in today’s show notes.

This has been a daily drop of Good Black News, based on the “A Year of Good Black News Page-A-Day Calendar for 2022,” published by Workman Publishing, and available at workman.com, Amazon,Bookshop and other online retailers. Beats provided by freebeats.io and produced by White Hot. For more Good Black News, check out goodblacknews.org or search and follow @goodblacknews anywhere on social.

GBN Daily Drop Podcast: Carter G. Woodson – “The Father of Black History” (LISTEN)

GBN Daily Drop Podcast: Carter G. Woodson – “The Father of Black History” (LISTEN)

By goodblacknews on February 2, 2022

by Lori Lakin Hutcherson (@lakinhutcherson)

Here is GBN’s Daily Drop for Wednesday, February 2nd on Carter G. Woodson, “The Father of Black History” (transcript below):

SHOW TRANSCRIPT:

Hey, this Lori Lakin Hutcherson, founder and editor in chief of GoodBlackNews.org, here to share with you a daily drop of Good Black News based on the “A Year of Good Black News” Page-A-Day Calendar published by Workman Publishing. This is Wednesday, February 2nd, 2022.

Known as “The Father of Black History,” author and historian Carter G. Woodson was born in 1875 to formerly enslaved parents who were never taught to read and write. To make ends meet, Woodson often had to forgo school for farm or mining work, but he was encouraged to learn independently and eventually earned advanced degrees from the University of Chicago and Harvard.

In 1915 he helped found the Journal of Negro History, then in 1926, he began promoting the second week of February as Negro History Week. This holiday led to the month of February officially becoming Black History Month in 1976.

Additionally, Woodson wrote and published The Mis-Education of the Negro in 1933, which is now available for free download in the public domain. This collection of articles and speeches became a classic touchstone for educators, as Woodson advocated for excellence in the education of Black students and demanded that school systems across America eliminate curricula designed deliberately to “mis-educate” Black children and promote the fallacy of white supremacy.

To learn more about Carter G. Woodson, check out articles on him at history.com and biography.com, or pick up the full-length biography published in 2014 called, Carter G. Woodson in Washington, D.C.: The Father of Black History. Links to all of these sources are provided in today’s show notes.

This has been a daily drop of Good Black News, based on the “A Year of Good Black News Page-A-Day Calendar for 2022,” published by Workman Publishing, and available at workman.com, Amazon,Bookshop and other online retailers. Beats provided by freebeats.io and produced by White Hot. For more Good Black News, check out goodblacknews.org or search and follow @goodblacknews anywhere on social.

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Follow or subscribe to the Good Black News Daily Drop Podcast through Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, rss.com or create your own RSS Feed. Or just check it out every day here on the main website.

MUSIC MONDAY: MLK DAY – The Ultimate Civil Rights Soundtrack (LISTEN)

MUSIC MONDAY: MLK DAY – The Ultimate Civil Rights Soundtrack (LISTEN)

By goodblacknews on January 17, 2022

by Marlon West (FB: marlon.west1 Twitter: @marlonw IG: stlmarlonwest Spotify: marlonwest)

Hello on this MLK Day Monday! Hope this missive finds you all well. I put together this collection of tracks to celebrate this day. I’ve included songs that speak directly to the struggle for Civil Rights.

Some of these tracks were favorite songs of Dr. King’s and other leaders of the movement. While other tracks both classic and new are inspired by their efforts and sacrifice.

I have also included a few excerpts for the great man’s speeches as well. Mahalia Jackson, Sam Cooke, Gil Scott-Heron, and Nina Simone are all present. Though so are Common, Steel Pulse, Killer Mike, and others that came in their wake.

Hope you enjoy the collection of soul, jazz, gospel, reggae, and hip-hop track to celebrate the King Holiday.

As always, stay safe sane, and kind. “See” ya soon!

Marlon West (photo courtesy Marlon West)
R.I.P. Sidney Poitier, 94, Legendary Actor, Director, Author and Ambassador

R.I.P. Sidney Poitier, 94, Legendary Actor, Director, Author and Ambassador

By goodblacknews on January 7, 2022

Sidney Poitier, whose portrayal of self-possessed, unapologetic and dignified characters in films such as To Sir With Love, In the Heat of the Night and Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner established him as Hollywood’s first Black box-office star and Academy Award winner for Best Actor (for Lilies in the Field), has died at 94.

Though born in Miami, FL ,Poitier grew up primarily in the Bahamas. As an adolescent he returned to the U.S., eventually making his way to New York, washing dishes as he struggled to become an actor. He soon landed theatre roles but broke through as an emerging talent primarily in film.

Breakout movie dramas like No Way Out, Blackboard Jungle and The Defiant Ones set the stage for Poitier’s superstardom. In 1959, Poitier returned to New York theater to star in the Broadway production of Lorraine Hansberry‘s A Raisin in the Sun and its 1961 film adaptation.

Movies especially beloved starring Poitier were the ones he also directed, such as the action comedies Uptown Saturday Night, Let’s Do It Again, and A Piece of the Action. Poitier also scored a massive hit as director of the classic Richard Pryor 1980 comedy Stir Crazy.

To see Poitier’s extensive filmography, click here. And to see one of the most iconic film moments ever delivered by Poitier, check out the clip from In The Heat of the Night below:

In April 1997, Poitier was appointed ambassador from the Bahamas to Japan, a position he held for a decade, until 2007.He was also the author of his highly-regarded 2000 autobiography, The Measure of a Man, 2009’s Life Beyond Measure: Letters to my Great-Granddaughter and his 2013 fiction foray Montaro Caine: A Novel.

Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/07/movies/sidney-poitier-dead.html

https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/07/entertainment/sidney-poitier-death/index.html

(paid links)

Happy New Year and Congratulations to January Winners of “A Year of Good Black News” Page-A-Day® Calendar 2022!

Happy New Year and Congratulations to January Winners of “A Year of Good Black News” Page-A-Day® Calendar 2022!

By goodblacknews on January 1, 2022

First and foremost, Happy New Year 2022! Congratulations on the perseverance it has taken to make it to another year during such challenging times.

Secondly, we’d like to congratulate the January winners of our “A Year of Good Black News” Page-A-Day® Calendar for 2022!  As a thank you for your readership and support, GBN has selected not one, not two, but five winners for December!

Congratulations to Sheila Collins, Fenesha Hubbard, William Walters, Charlotte White and Carla Brown! We will be contacting you each shortly via email to arrange delivery of your free calendars.

Thank you to everyone who entered the GBN Page-A-Day® calendar giveaway, and we hope our upcoming giveaways in the coming months will inspire you to do so again.

A Year of Good Black News for 2022 is filled with facts, history, bios, quotes, jokes and trivia in easy-to-read entries delivered on the daily, and if you still want to buy it for yourself, your family, children, friends, teachers or loved ones, use code: YAY21 at Workman.com to receive 25% OFF until January 3.

Or, if you prefer, you can also order from the retailers below:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1523514299?tag=goodblacknews-20

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/9781523514298

Books-A-Million: http://www.booksamillion.com/p/9781523514298

Bookshop: https://www.bookshop.org/a/368/9781523514298

IndieBound: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781523514298?aff=workmanpub

Because interest in the calendar was high but not all who want it can win or by it, GBN is offering it in audio form day by day as Good Black News: The Daily Drop:

Good Black News: The Daily Drop is on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Soundcloud, Google Podcasts and rss.com. Or you can subscribe by the rss feed via any platform you like.

Onward and upward… and thank you for your support!

(paid links)

“America ReFramed” Doc Series Launches Tenth Season with “Fannie Lou Hamer’s America” on WORLD Channel and PBS in February 2022

“America ReFramed” Doc Series Launches Tenth Season with “Fannie Lou Hamer’s America” on WORLD Channel and PBS in February 2022

By goodblacknews on December 8, 2021

The award-winning documentary series America ReFramed, a co-production of WORLD Channel and American Documentary, Inc., launches its landmark tenth season with the world premiere of Fannie Lou Hamer’s America, a portrait of the fearless Mississippi sharecropper-turned-human-rights-activist.

The season begins with a special presentation on PBS on Tuesday, February 22, 9:00 to 10:30 p.m. ET, followed by its broadcast on WORLD Channel on Thursday, February 24.

Fannie Lou Hamer’s America focuses on the incredible life of one of the Civil Rights Movement’s greatest grassroots leaders, Fannie Lou Hamer, and the injustices that made her work essential.

Airing during Black History Month, the film is produced by Hamer’s great-niece Monica Land and Selena Lauterer and directed by Joy Davenport. This special is a copresentation with PBS and Black Public Media.

“Fannie Lou Hamer’s America is a powerful film, one that illustrates the challenges and sacrifices so many faced in fighting for the right to vote,” said Sylvia Bugg, Chief Programming Executive & General Manager at PBS. “We are excited to work with WORLD Channel to bring this exceptional America ReFramed documentary, that highlights contributions of women of color both on screen and behind the camera, to audiences.”

This marks the weekly series’ move to its new Thursday time slot, with many titles available to stream beginning February 22 on worldchannel.org, WORLD Channel’s YouTube Channel and on all station-branded PBS platforms, including PBS.org and the PBS Video app, available on iOS, Android, Roku streaming devices, Apple TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV, Samsung Smart TV, Chromecast and VIZIO.

GBN Giveaway: Congratulations to December Winners of “A Year of Good Black News” Page-A-Day® Calendar 2022!

GBN Giveaway: Congratulations to December Winners of “A Year of Good Black News” Page-A-Day® Calendar 2022!

By goodblacknews on December 3, 2021

In celebration of our “A Year of Good Black News” Page-A-Day® Calendar for 2022, as promised, GBN has selected not one but two winners for December!

Congratulations to Ora Chamberlin and Diedra Lipscomb! We will be contacting you each shortly via email to arrange delivery of your free calendars.

Thank you to all who have entered so far – and you are still in the running as we will announce one more winner in January 2022. To those who have yet to enter – it’s not too late!

For a chance to win, send your first name, last name and email address with the subject heading “A Year of Good Black News Giveaway” to goodblacknewsgiveaways@yahoo.com from now until December 31. One entry per email, and we will continue to choose at random one winner per month and announce their names here.

Already a Top 5 release in Multicultural Calendars on Amazon, A Year of Good Black News is filled with facts, history, bios, quotes, jokes and trivia in easy-to-read entries delivered on the daily.

If you want to buy copies as gifts for family, friends, teachers or loved ones,  use the code: GOODBLACKNEWS at Workman.com to receive 20% OFF site-wide, plus Free Shipping on orders over $45.

Or, if you prefer, you can also order from the retailers below:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1523514299?tag=goodblacknews-20

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/9781523514298

Books-A-Million: http://www.booksamillion.com/p/9781523514298

Bookshop: https://www.bookshop.org/a/368/9781523514298

IndieBound: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781523514298?aff=workmanpub

Onward and upward… and good luck!

(paid links)

“A Year of Good Black News” Page-A-Day® Calendar for 2022 Available for 30% Off Now Through November 30

“A Year of Good Black News” Page-A-Day® Calendar for 2022 Available for 30% Off Now Through November 30

By goodblacknews on November 26, 2021

In case you missed it, earlier this fall A Year of Good Black News, the Page-A-Day Calendar for 2022 we’ve done in partnership with Workman Publishing, is now available online and in select stores for purchase! And from now until November 30, it’s available for 30% off at workman.com Code: CYBER2021 with free shipping on orders over $20.

A Year of Good Black News is filled with facts, history, bios, quotes, jokes and trivia in easy-to-read entries delivered on the daily, and is a great gift for family, loved ones, teachers, friends, and pretty much anyone from 3rd grade on who wants to learn a lot of great stuff about us in the U.S. (and beyond)!

Good Black News is also giving away two free copies of the calendar in December — thank you to all who have entered so far – you are still in the running as we will continue to announce winners through  January 2022. To those who have yet to enter – it’s not too late!

For a chance to win, send your name and email address with the subject heading “A Year of Good Black News Giveaway” to goodblacknewsgiveaways@yahoo.com from now until December 31.

One entry per email, and we will continue to choose at random and announce the winners’ names here.

A Year of Good Black News is also available at the online retailers below:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1523514299?tag=goodblacknews-20

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/9781523514298

Books-A-Million: http://www.booksamillion.com/p/9781523514298

Designer Debra L. Mars Offers HBCU Santas and Black Nutcrackers for the Holidays

Designer Debra L. Mars Offers HBCU Santas and Black Nutcrackers for the Holidays

By goodblacknews on November 26, 2021

Designer and long-time Black Santa collector Debra L. Mars has added her own contribution to the canon by partnering with several HBCUs to offer Black Santas this holiday season.

The Inglewood, CA resident and entrepreneur has created Black Santas repping Howard University, Morehouse College, Grambling and FAMU, in addition to offering Black nutcrackers, Santa-themed bracelets and other holiday swag through her etsy.com store, Restore The Hope.

Mars, who has worked in marketing and supplier diversity for Frito-Lay, began collecting Black Santas over 35 years ago.

“I traveled the country and would pick them up whenever I saw them, especially in the Southern states,” Mars said. “My fascination came about when I reflected on how my mother only had one childhood toy; it was a white doll that looked nothing like her—that was triggering for me.”

Debra L. Mars (photo courtesy Debra L. Mars)

Designing and selling Black Santas is about more than the bottom line for Mars.”[It’s] more about storytelling than the product itself. They are designed as triggers to hopefully remind people what a precious gift they are to this world,” Mars said.

“The Santa to me is symbolic of spiritual gifts and talents rather than what’s in the box under the tree. It saddens me that so many people feel worthless and undervalued. That is why our branding tagline for the Black Santa Cause Collective is ‘unwrap your gifts’.”

Mars also has a goal to align and partner with other creators to tell the Santa “Cause” story.

“I am most proud of a woman I found who is exclusively making Black Santa leather bracelets for our line,” Mars stated. “Each one is hand crafted and features a lighter skinned and darker skinned Black Santa in the design to communicate the variety of melanin in the African American race. This alliance with her has created a stream of supplemental income for her and more importantly, a clear validation of her gifts and talents.”

Even though she’s had to work through several obstacles and supply chain challenges, Mars feels she is finally dwelling in her passion.

“This dream was planted in me over 25 years ago to create this line. This has been a master class on perseverance. Having the opportunity to represent our sacred jewels: The HBCUs is an honor that I do not take lightly,” Mars said.

“When I did the research on the game changers that attended these iconic institutions from Thurgood Marshall to Kamala Harris to Spike Lee and Samuel L. Jackson, I am so proud and a little remorseful that I did not attend a HBCU.”

VETERANS DAY: Honoring WW II Sgt. Isaac Woodard, Whose Beating and Blinding by a South Carolina Police Chief Lead to the Desegregation of the U.S. Armed Forces

VETERANS DAY: Honoring WW II Sgt. Isaac Woodard, Whose Beating and Blinding by a South Carolina Police Chief Lead to the Desegregation of the U.S. Armed Forces

By goodblacknews on November 11, 2021

by Lori Lakin Hutcherson (IG: @lorilakinhutcherson; Twitter: @lakinhutcherson)

Sgt. Isaac Woodard enlisted and fought in World War II, defending democracy as part of a segregated combat support unit. During his time in the army, Woodard earned a battle star, the Good Conduct Medal as well as the Service Medal and World War II Victory Medal.

As he headed home to North Carolina by bus in 1946, hours after being honorably discharged, Woodard was beaten and blinded by police chief Lynwood Shull in Batesburg, South Carolina after a dispute with the bus driver over stopping for the restroom.

Thrown in jail and fined for being “drunk and disorderly,” the NAACP took up Woodward’s case, and national publicity followed, including radio programs by Orson Welles and songs by calypso artist Lord Invader (“God Made Us All”) and folk artist Woody Guthrie (“The Blinding of Isaac Woodard”).

The incident and outcry led to the U.S. Justice Department trying the case in federal court, where Shull was acquitted even after admitting to blinding Woodard.

Afterwards, President Harry S. Truman met with the NAACP and formed a Council on Civil Rights and established the Civil Rights Commission by Executive Order 9808 to study racial injustice and inequity and the need for civil rights to be enforced by the federal government.

This lead to Truman introducing the 1948 civil rights bill and issuing Executive Order 9981 to desegregate the Armed Forces. To learn more about Woodard, you can read Unexampled Courage: The Blinding of Sgt. Isaac Woodard and the Awakening of President Harry S. Truman and Judge J. Waties Waring (2019) by Richard Gergel, or check out the PBS American Experience film The Blinding of Isaac Woodard, which aired earlier this year. You can watch the teaser above and see the full film here.

(paid link; featured image via pbs.org)