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John Wesley Gilbert
Gilbert (July 6, 1864 – Nov. 19, 1923), an archaeologist born in Georgia, faced extreme racism and prejudice, but that did not stop him from being the first Black professor at Paine College and the first Black person to earn a master’s at Brown University in 1891. Gilbert is also the first person to map the ancient Greek city-state of Eretria where, from 1890-1891, he conducted archaeological excavations with Professor John Pickard.
Kara Walker (Nov. 26, 1969)
Walker is a painter and printmaker who has become famous for her paper silhouettes. Her work addresses race, gender, stereotypes and Black history. Walker has made a career out of controversial works that force people to see the ugliness of the world. In 1997, the painter won the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation “genius grant.”
Gwendolyn Bennett (July 8, 1902- May 30, 1981)
Sadly, Bennett was an overlooked poet, painter and writer from the Harlem Renaissance. She was multi-talented in a variety of areas. Bennett worked alongside intellectuals like Alain Locke. In addition to writing and painting, she served as a journalist working for the New York Herald Tribune, The New Republic and the New York Amsterdam News.
There are thousands of species of animals that are unique to the African continent that exist nowhere else on Earth. Sadly, most of these beautiful creatures are being hunted by poachers and big game enthusiasts. So their populations are dwindling at record numbers. Here are only a small sampling of the exclusive African wildlife that are still living today.
Ethiopian Wolf
This type of wolf is an endangered species that has had declining numbers for decades. It is estimated that the wolf only has a population of 500. The Ethiopian wolf is a canine and native to the Ethiopian highlands.
Giraffe
This animal is the tallest living animal. Giraffes are herbivores and have been targeted by poachers for decades. In the above photo, two male giraffes are competing for dominance.
Samuel Massie Jr. (July 3, 1919–May 9, 2005)
Massie attended Fisk University. He earned a master’s degree from the university and went on to earn a doctorate in organic chemistry from Iowa State University. Massie is a pioneer in this field because he was the first African-American to teach at a U.S. military academy. In 1966, he became a professor at the U.S. Naval Academy, where he would become chairman of the chemistry department.
Titan
Saturn’s largest moon has hydrocarbon lakes that could support life. Out of all the celestial bodies in our solar system, Titan has a makeup that could give potential alien life a chance at existence.
Europa
Europa is one of Jupiter’s many moons and has enough water to support life. Underneath an icy surface is an extreme cold reservoir of water that may contain a variety of bacteria. As of this year, the Obama administration has provided $15 million in funding for an expedition to the moon. There is also a probe called the Europa Clipper in the works.
The Early Days
At 10 years old, Octavia Butler (June 22, 1947-Feb. 24, 2006) was dead set on becoming an author. As a young child, she had dyslexia and an unwavering love for books.
The Patternmaster
Butler started her career at Pasadena City College, where she earned an associate’s degree. She later moved on to UCLA, where she finished her education. In 1976, she wrote her first book “Patternmaster” which is part of her Patternist Series. The book focus on a group telepathic individuals in a sci-fi setting.
Many People Don’t Know What Open Source Projects Are
Open Source is a development model that allows for free license and universal access. In layman’s terms, the source code for software is made free for people to modify and distribute. For example, photo editing software like GIMP is a free open source alternative to Adobe Photoshop.
Science-fiction can take the average person to awesome unexplored worlds or strange dimensions with different life forms. It can introduce new species and new ideas about the universe we all share and visions of the future we would like to see and what we wouldn’t want for humanity. Surprisingly, sci-fi also is a great way to infuse a variety of people in these new and interesting stories that other genres fail to do. Black actors have gained great notoriety for their roles in these types of films.
‘Book of Eli’ (2010)
This neo-Western takes place in a post-apocalyptic world where a book is the most prized and sought-after object. Denzel Washington is the star and portrays Eli, the protector of the book. Washington’s intensity is what makes this film worthy of watching.
‘Star Wars: Episode V — Empire Strikes Back’ (1980)
Lando Calrissian aka Billy Dee Williams is the leader of Cloud City and a close friend to Han Solo. He was a vital role player in episode six when the Rebel Alliance launched a final attack on the Empire. Calrissian had nuance and a swagger that could not be replicated.
The First Black Comic Convention in Philadelphia
The ECBACC was created in 2002 in Philadelphia to serve as a place for Black comic creators and fans to meet and network. This was back when Facebook, YouTube and Twitter didn’t exist so people had to meet face to face. The convention founder and president is Yumy Odom. He is a strong advocate for Black creators, and that is why he founded the convention. For more information on the leadership board, visit the ECBACC website.
After the success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, every major studio wants to copy that model. There have been rumors of a Ghostbusters Universe, Transformers Universe and more Star Wars. Universal Studios was hoping to launch a new Monsters Universe beginning with 2014’s Dracula Untold, but that is in limbo. However, that is just the tip of the iceberg and the beginning of the mimicry. The biggest threat comes in the form of a massive experiment from Warner Brothers. DC Comics and Warner Brothers appear to be the only forces that could come close to dethroning Marvel. With the slew of announcements, the DC Cinematic Universe could be a breath of fresh air or a beautiful disaster with merit.
Diversity
From the beginning, DC and Warner Brothers announced that the Justice League would be replacing founder Martian Manhunter with Cyborg. This minor change was just the beginning to something bigger when we learned that Jason Momoa was Aquaman. Stage actor Ray Fisher will portray Cyborg and also star in the solo film, which was announced before Black Panther. The interesting aspect to this is who will direct the film. Let’s look at other directing choices:
Patty Jenkins will direct Wonder Woman after only directing one real hit film, 2003’s Monster.
James Wan who is of Malaysian and Chinese descent will direct Aquaman. Wan has directed countless hits including Furious Seven (2015), which is one the highest grossing films of all time and one of the most diverse.
There is a strong chance Antoine Fuqua or someone else could direct Cyborg’s film.