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February is Black History Month

02/15/2022 1:58 PM | Anonymous member (Administrator)

Profiles in Black History

Isabel de Olvera, explorer, early 1600s

by Krishna Mann, ideas.ted.com

Isabel de Olvera was born in Querétaro, Mexico, in the late 1500s to an African father and an Indian mother. As a young, unmarried, free mixed-race woman in 1600, she sought permission and protection from the mayor of Querétaro to join an upcoming expedition to New Spain (or present-day New Mexico, Arizona and Florida). Although historians are not sure of her motives — some records suggest that she may have been hoping to assist recently settled families at her final destination — her deliberate preparations for the journey were documented.

de Olvera petitioned the mayor to provide her with written permission proving she was indeed a free woman. Because she was Black, she knew she could be claimed as property by men she encountered on her journey. Her appeal to the mayor ended with this simple but clear declaration: “I demand justice.”

After an eight-month legal process, which included sworn testimony from witnesses to prove her independence and her worthiness, de Olvera was eventually permitted to go on the expedition. The journey covered nearly 1400 miles, crossing multiple rivers, deserts and mountain ranges. While some records of the hardships exist, the exact details of where and when de Olvera went, as well as what happened next in her life, are left to speculation. “I wish we knew more, and we did a whole year of research on her,” says Dr. Berry. “We think about how many miles she might have traveled, and we recognize the bravery of what she did at that time”.

Why her story should be told:

Simply put, Isabel de Olvera’s existence as a free woman in the 1600s challenges the narrative that the Black experience in America began only when Africans were forcibly brought to this country and enslaved. Her journey is also among the earliest recorded instances of Black people fighting for liberty in North America, an act of resistance that is repeated throughout history.

“Freedom is always fraught, and Black women are always demanding justice to be treated like human beings,” says Dr. Berry. “And Isabel is one of the first women that we can identify who is doing just that.”


Barbara Jordan

Politician, lawyer, and professor Barbara Jordan was an outspoken advocate for social equity. As a young Texan lawyer, Jordan volunteered for the Democratic presidential candidate John F. Kennedy and his running mate, Texan Lyndon B. Johnson. Volunteering inspired Jordan to enter politics.

After two unsuccessful campaigns, Jordan won a seat in the Texas Senate in 1966. She became one of two African Americans elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1972. In 1976, she became the first African American woman to deliver a keynote address at the Democratic National Convention.

Jordan retired from politics and became a professor, teaching even after she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and began using a wheelchair. She lived with her companion Nancy Earl for over 20 years.


Harriet Elizabeth Brown

Harriet  E. Brown successfully sued the Calvert County Board of Education for equal pay for African American teachers in 1937. Salaries were equalized across the state as a result.

The case was cited across the nation.

Thurgood Marshall was Miss Brown's attorney for this landmark case.


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