History

Rev George Bourne: The American Preacher Kicked Out of His Church for Preaching Against Slavery in 1815

In 1815, when slavery was still widely accepted in American society and often ignored by the church, George Bourne spoke out against it. He was the first American pastor to be removed from his position for opposing slavery and...

Christiana Uprising of 1851: The Day Freed and Enslaved Africans Stood Up Against Slave Catchers

In the early hours of September 11, 1851, long before the first rooster crowed over Christiana, Pennsylvania, a group of armed white men climbed the hill to William Parker’s home. They came with warrants. They came with chains. They...

A Narrative of the Most Remarkable Particulars: The First Autobiography Published by a Former Slave

In 1772, a groundbreaking publication quietly emerged in England: A Narrative of the Most Remarkable Particulars in the Life of James Albert Ukawsaw Gronniosaw, An African Prince, as Related by Himself. It was the first known autobiography published by...

The Untold Story of Henrietta Duterte: The Woman Who Used Her Mortuary to Help Enslaved Africans Escape Slavery

Henrietta Smith Bowers Duterte was a pioneering African-American funeral home owner, philanthropist, and courageous abolitionist from Philadelphia who turned her profession into a powerful tool of resistance, smuggling freedom through the very rituals meant to honor the dead. She...

Forbidden Sermons: How Black Ministers in America Risked Death to Preach the Gospel During Slavery

During slavery in America, one of the most dangerous acts for a Black person, especially an enslaved one, was to preach the gospel without white supervision. While Christianity was widely promoted among enslaved Africans by white slaveholders, it was...

Babemba Traoré: The African King Who Died Defending His City Against French Colonial Forces in 1898

In the late 19th century, as the French empire aggressively expanded across West Africa, one Malian king refused to bow to colonial subjugation. His name was Babemba Traoré, the last ruler of the Kénédougou Kingdom. Revered today as a...

Shelburne Riots: The 1784 Race Riot That Targeted the Homes of Formerly Enslaved Africans in Canada

In the summer of 1784, the quiet town of Shelburne, Nova Scotia, was thrown into chaos, not by war or natural disaster, but by a violent, racially charged riot led by white Loyalist settlers. Over several days, mobs looted,...

The Great Hanging of Moshi: How Germany Executed 19 Tanzanian Leaders Who Refused to Bow to Colonial Rule

The Great Hanging at Old Moshi, also known as the Great Chagga Conspiracy, was a mass execution that took place on March 2, 1900, under German colonial rule in what is now northern Tanzania. Nineteen local leaders and noblemen...

Rev Basil Manly Sr.: The 19th-Century Pastor Who Used the Bible to Justify White Ownership of Black Bodies

Basil Manly Sr. was more than a Southern preacher, he was one of the most vocal and influential theological defenders of American slavery. A prominent Baptist minister, university president, and the author of the infamous Alabama Resolutions, Manly’s beliefs...

The Battle of Annual: How Spain Lost Over 13,000 Troops in Its Worst Military Defeat in Africa

On 22 July 1921, in the mountainous terrain of northeastern Morocco, the Spanish Empire suffered its most devastating military defeat in modern history, the Battle of Annual. Fought between the Spanish Army and the Riffian Berbers during the Rif...
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Seneca Village: The Thriving Black Settlement in New York That Was Demolished to Build Central Park

Long before Central Park became New York City’s most iconic green space, its land was home to a thriving,...
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