August 20, 1619

On August 20, 1619, the first 20 Africans arrived at Old Point Comfort in what would become the the United States.on a Dutch ship named the 'White Lion' under the command of Captain Jope and an English pilot named Marmaduke.

Old Point Comfort is now Fort Monroe in Hampton, VA..

The Africans were originally loaded onto a Spanish ship named the Sao Joao Bautista that set sail for Vera Cruz, Mexico.  They encountered the 'White Lion' and an English ship called the 'Treasurer' which robbed the Spanish ship of its cargo and 60 Africans. 

The 'Treasurer' arrived 3-4 days later and attempted to trade their African captives for supplies, but weren't allowed to do so and set sail for Bermuda. 

The arrival of the 'White Lion' was a event that only garnered this line for the journal of colonist John Rolfe, who wrote, "......there came a Dutch man of warre that sold us (20) Negars."

The African arrivals bore Spanish names, such as Antonio, Isabella and Pedro.and were sold to work at plantations up and down the James River.  Only two of the original twenty Africans arrived at Jamestown according to Calvin Pearson, the president of Project 1619, Inc.

Capt. William Tucker, the commander of Point Comfort  purchased Antonio and Isabella, and in 1623 they became the parents of the first African-American child, William Tucker.  The descendants of this child and the Tucker family still live in the Hampton area, and William Tucker is buried there.

Jamestown myth event in Hampton: wavy.com

As part of African Arrival Commemoration Day,  residents of the city of Hampton will mark the occasion of the first Africans arriving in the New World with a candlelight ceremony at Fort Monroe and a free 3:30 PM EDT symposium at the American Theater in Hampton entitled 'Defying The Myth of Jamestown' .  

The Project 1619 group is also trying to raise funds for a permanent memorial so that they can have it erected in time for the 400th anniversary in 2019.

Black Trans History: Lucy Hicks Anderson

One of TransGriot's ongoing missions is to search out, find and post nuggets of our African American trans history.  I discovered this one courtesy of Black Past.org and  BlackAmericaWeb

While living in Kentucky I'd heard multiple stories about James 'Sweet Evening Breeze' Herndon from Dawn since she was from Lexington where 'Sweet Evening Breeze' is a legendary presence in the TBLG community there.  But they may also need to start talking about Lucy Hicks Anderson, who was born in Waddy, KY  where we used to get gas on our I-64 runs between Louisville and Lexington.

Lucy Hicks Anderson was born in 1886 in Waddy as Tobias Lawson.   When Lawson entered school she insisted on wearing dresses to school and began calling herself Lucy.  Since the transgender definition hadn't been coined at that time to diagnose what was going on in her life, her mother took her to a physician who advised her to raise young Lucy as a girl.

Lucy left school at age fifteen to begin doing domestic work and left Kentucky in her twenties to move west.   She settled in Pecos, TX and began working at a hotel for a decade until she married Clarence Hicks in 1920 in Silver City, NM and moved west with him to Oxnard, California.  She divorced him in 1929.   

While in Oxnard she continued to do domestic work but was also saving her money she earned from that job.  She eventually purchased some property near the center of town and later operated a brothel.   She also got married again in 1944 to Reuben Anderson, a soldier who was stationed at Long Island's Mitchel Field.  


It was the second marriage that brought the legal trouble into her life.   When it was discovered that Lucy had been born biologically male, the Ventura County district attorney decided to prosecute her for perjury. He asserted that Anderson committed perjury when she signed the marraige license application and swore that there were 'no legal objections' to the marriage.

Of course Lucy had a dissenting opinion. "I defy any doctor in the world to prove that I am not a woman,” Anderson told reporters in the midst of her perjury trial. “I have lived, dressed, acted just what I am, a woman.”   The jury convicted her of the perjury charge, but the judge sentenced her to ten years probation rather than send her to prison. 

However, Lucy's legal troubles weren't over.  Since she'd received allotment checks as the wife of a US Army soldier, the feds prosecuted her and Reuben Anderson for fraud in 1946.  They were both found guilty and sent to prison . 

After serving her time, she tried to return to her life in Oxnard but  the police commissioner threatened her with prosecution if she returned, so she moved to Los Angeles where lived out the remainder of her life until she passed away in 1954.

The Space Shuttle Program Made Black History As Well

The Space Shuttle program concluded with Atlantis touching down at the Kennedy Space Center earlier this morning in Florida at 5:56 AM EDT to cap a successful STS-135 mission and close out its 30 year run.

During that time 355 individuals from 16 countries flew 852 times on the five shuttles, traveled over 542 million miles, over 20,000 earth orbits and a lot of historical firsts.

We African Americans also played major roles in shaping this part of America's spacefaring history.

In addition to the people who worked in the ground support roles, Star Trek's Nichelle Nichols worked for NASA, helped recruit some of the first class of African American astronauts and lead the charge to get more African American kids interested in science, engineering and math careers.  

There were 20 African American astronauts, and out of the 355 individuals that flew on the various shuttles, 14 of those African American astronauts got to fly into space. We witnessed much African American history being made as the result of those shuttle flights.      


During the launch of the STS-8 mission aboard Challenger the first African American in space, Dr. Guion Bluford on August 30, 1983.  It was the first of his four trips into space, with launches aboard STS-8, STS-61-A in October-November 1985, STS-39 in April-May 1991 and STS-53 in December 1992. 

Bluford however wasn't the first African descended person to go into space. That honor went to Cuba's Arnoldo Tamayo Mendez on September 18, 1980.

Dr. Mae C. Jemison became the first African American woman in space as part of the STS-47 crew on September 12, 1992 aboard Endeavour. 

Frederick D. Gregory became the first African American to command a shuttle flight when Discovery blasted off on November 23, 1989 on the STS-33 mission.  He was also the first to pilot a shuttle when Challenger took off during the STS 51-B mission on April 29, 1985.

Gregory was the deputy administrator of NASA from 2002-2005 and became interim director of NASA covering the period when Sean O'Keefe resigned on February 20, 2005 to Michael Griffin's April 14, 2005 swearing in.


Gen. Charles Bolden was the second African-American astronaut to pilot a shuttle and the first to command a shuttle mission.  He piloted the Columbia during the January 1986 STS-61C mission and Discovery during the STS-31 mission in April 1990.  He was the commander of the STS-45 mission aboard Atlantis from March 24-April 2, 1992 and STS-60 mission aboard Discovery in February 1994 before he became the current NASA administrator on July 17, 2009.  

The first shuttle mission to launch two African Americans simultaneously into space was STS-116 on December 9, 2006.  Aboard Discovery was Robert Curbeam, Jr on his third fight and Joan Higginbotham on her maiden trip into space. 

That Black history milestone was repeated on November 16, 2009 when STS-129 launched with Dr. Robert Satcher and Leland Melvin aboard.

There have been five African-American astronauts who have performed spacewalks in the history of the shuttle program.  The first was by Bernard Harris when he emerged from Discovery on February 9, 1995 during STS-63 to perform his EVA that lasted 4 hours and 39 minutes. 

Astronaut Winston Scott would perform 3 total spacewalks during his STS-72 and STS-87 missions.   Scott's first spacewalk was a 6 hour and 54 minute one on January 17, 1996 and he performed two during the STS 87 mission.  The first was a 7 hour and 43 minute EVA on November 25, 1997.   The December 3 EVA was 4 hours and 59 minutes in duration. 

Robert Satcher would perform two EVA's during the STS-129 mission on November 19 (6 hours and 37 minutes) and November 23, 2009 (5 hours 42 minutes)

But it was Robert Curbeam, Jr. who would become the hardest working man in the spacewalking business, totaling 7 total EVA's across two of his three shuttle missions..

Curbeam performed the first three during his second mission aboard STS-98.   The first on February 10, 2001 was 7 hours and 34 minutes in duration.   The second EVA on February 12, 2001 was 6 hours and 50 minutes long and the third on February 14 lasted 5 hours and 25 minutes.    

Curbeam was even busier during the December 2006 STS-116 mission.  The first EVA was a 6 hour 26 minute one on December 12, followed up by a 5 hour one on December 14, a 7 hour and 31 minute one on December 16 and a 6 hour and 38 minute EVA on December 18 to make up number seven. .   . 

STS-133 astronaut B. Alvin Drew's March 2, 2011 6 hour and 37 minute EVA during Discovery's last mission has the distinction being the last one performed by an African American astronaut   Drew also holds the distinction of being the 200th human to walk in space when he did so for 6 hours and 14 minutes on February 28, 2011.

African-American women aren't left out of this space shuttle program history making either.  As I mentioned earlier, Mae Jemison was the first of three launched into space in 1992 with her historic flight being followed by a long interval until Stephanie Wilson and Joan Higginbotham were launched a few months apart in July and December 2006.  

And for you sorority sisters keeping score, Dr. Mae Jemison is an AKA while Dr. Joan Higginbotham is a member of Delta Sigma Theta.   For you fellas wanting to know what astronaut belongs to your frat, here it is.   Winston Scott is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha,  Bernard Harris is a member of Kappa Alpha Psi,  and Frederick Gregory and the late Ron McNair are members of Omega Psi Phi. 

But back to the spacefaring ladies for a minute. 

Stephanie Wilson would not only become the second African American woman into space when she was launched on July 4, 2006 aboard Discovery as part of the STS-121 crew, she would go into space two more times as part of the STS-120 mission on October 23, 2007 and STS-131 on April 5, 2010.  

Wilson was also part of the historic April 9, 2010 day when four women, the most ever in space at one time, met on board the International Space Station.   STS-131 was also notable because three women were launched and part of a shuttle flight crew.  .

That history also includes the people we tragically lost.   Dr. Ron McNair flew previously on STS-41-B on February 3, 1984 and was part of the ill fated Challenger crew that perished in January 28, 1986 shortly after liftoff.    

Col Michael P. Anderson flew previously on STS-89 but died when the Columbia broke up over eastern Texas on February 1, 2003 during reentry on the STS-107 mission. 

We'll also remember our first ever African American astronaut, US Air Force Col. Robert H. Lawrence, Jr.   Had he lived, it's possible he could have become a shuttle program astronaut.

He was selected in June 1967 to become part of the Air Force's Manned Orbiting Laboratory program.  Unfortunately he was killed in a December 8, 1967 training accident at Edwards Air Force Base in California..

Because of the increasing technical capabilities of spy satellites, the MOL program became obsolete and was canceled in 1969.   Seven of its 14 selected astronauts were under age 35 and given the option to be transferred to NASA.    Those seven accepted the transfer and every one of those former MOL astronauts flew shuttle missions. 

So it's not a stretch to say that had he lived, Lawrence could have had the distinction of becoming the nation's first African-American astronaut launched into space since he was only 32 at the time of his death.   

Discussing our first African American astronaut is a nice segue into discussing the shuttle program's African American astronauts that didn't get an opportunity to be part of a shuttle mission.  


Livingston Holder was a mission payload specialist who was scheduled for an STS mission aboard the Challenger until it was destroyed in 1986 and that mission was subsequently canceled during the 32 month hiatus to investigate the tragedy. 

Astronauts Michael E. Belt, Dr. Yvonne Cagle (astronaut Class of 1996) and Jeannette J. Epps (selected as an astronaut in June 2009) didn't get to fly any shuttle missions.

It's ironic that the NASA Space Shuttle program went out the way the earlier Mercury, Gemini, Apollo and Skylab programs started and ended with predominately white crews since there were no African American astronauts selected for the final STS-134 and STS-135 missions.  

The contributions of African Americans to the success of the shuttle program, in advancing our scientific knowledge, our spacefaring legacy and being integral parts of it are undeniable facts.

We know that if America ignores the parsimonious  neo-Luddites in the Tea Klux Klan and sees the wisdom of remaining a spacefaring nation, there will be African Americans ready and able to make significant contributions toward helping us to keep reaching for the stars and build on the sterling legacy of African descended shuttle astronauts. .

And as we do so, we'll be writing the next chapters of Black history..

Tona Brown Making History At LGBT Gala

Just got the word from Tona about this exciting piece of news I'm about to share with you TransGriot readers.

When she  ascends the stage to sing the national anthem at the LGBT Leadership Gala that takes place on June 23 in New York, she will become the first African descended trans person to perform for a sitting United States president.

Congratulations again sis on this upcoming history making moment, say hello to the POTUS for me, and make sure they take a lot of pictures

And oh yeah, this question will be on next year's TransGriot African American trans history quiz

.

44th Anniversary Of Thurgood Marshall's SCOTUS Appointment

Today is the 44th anniversary of then US Solicitor General Thurgood Marshall becoming the first African American ever nominated to become a Supreme Court justice by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1967.

The conservafools hate Justice Marshall with a passion to the point that duiing the Elena Kagan SCOTUS nomination hearings, Senator Al Franken (D-Minnesota) had to call their behinds out about the 'activst judge' lie they pimp about any judge or rulings they don't like.

Justice Kagan had been one of Justice Marshall's law clerks back in the day, a fact the GOP hated and tried to use to attack her.

Senator Franken tells it like it T-I-S is concerning one of our legal giants and a man Clarence Thomas wishes he could be but tragically isn't fit to shine his shoes.

.

Pimp Slapping The Black Confederate Soldier Myth

As we get closer to the 150th anniversary of the first land battle of the War To Perpetuate Slavery, the First Battle of Bull Run (or Battle of Manassas as the CSA peeps called it) on July 21-24, one myth that needs to be blown up along with the Big Lie that the Confederates weren't fighting to preserve slavery is the myth of the Black Confederate soldier.

According to that getting increasingly debunked myth, anywhere from 10,000 to 100,000 free and enslaved Southern blacks served voluntarily, loyally, consistently and as fully fledged combatants in the South.   The lie is so pervasive that it found its way into Virginia elementary school textbooks.

The lie is also used by Southern 'Lost Cause'  history revisionists to promote the even bigger lie that Southern Blacks supported the Confederacy.

Yeah, right.  If  thousands of Blacks served in the Confederate armies, wouldn't the CSA not only have used that for propaganda purposes to counter what the North was telling the world, but photographic evidence of these Black Confederate units in combat or dead on various battlefields during the war prove it?

Umm hmm.  And don't even try Confederate apologists to use the Louisiana Native Guards as an 'example' of Black Confederate troops.  The only fighting they did was on the side of the Union.

But we have plenty of examples and documentation of the 175 African American units and 200,000 men that fought for the Union in the United States Colored Troops such as the 54th Massachusetts Regiment depicted in the movie Glory.

There isn't any on the Confederate side because CSA President Jefferson Davis repeatedly rejected the idea when one of his generals suggested they emancipate and arm slaves at the start of the war.   They even made it national policy that only white men could become Confederate soldiers.

And Confederate defenders, the CSA leaders blow up your myth for me.  According to historians, John Beauchamp Jones, a high-level assistant to the CSA secretary of war confirmed as much in his diary. "This is utterly untrue," he wrote. "We have no armed slaves to fight for us."

When Confederate Secretary of War James Seddon was asked to double check that assertion, he confirmed that "No slaves have been employed by the Government except as cooks or nurses in hospitals and for labor."   


In the wake of mass numbers of Black men from the North and South  enlisting in the USCT after the Emancipation Proclamation was issued by Lincoln, the Black troops idea was proposed by CSA Major General Patrick Cleburne in 1863 and shot down by Davis once again.


Only when the handwriting was on the wall in 1865 and the CSA was weeks from being defeated did they relent, but it was too late.  

It's ludicrous to believe that a government founded on the proposition that Black people were inferior to whites and was fighting an armed rebellion against the federal government to continue enslaving them would employ them in combat roles that they claimed in their ideology we were not capable of assuming.    It's also the height of idiocy to believe that the Confederate traitors would give Blacks the tools to throw off the yoke of slavery by arming them.

So no, the myth of the Black Confederate soldier is about as accurate as the BS the revisionists peddled that the South seceded over tariffs.