First in African American History

Nubianpoets.com presents for your review just a few of the many Firsts in African American History.

In 1896, William Edward Burghardt Dubois, scholar, writer and activist became the first African American to receive a Ph.D. from Harvard University.

Jackie Roosevelt Robinson was the first African American to play Major League baseball in the 20th century.

Marian Anderson was the first African American to sing at the Metropolitan Opera in New York. Prejudice against her angered many people across the country. In 1939, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt arranged for Marian Anderson to perform at the Lincoln Memorial before 75,000 people.

Bill Cosby was the first African American to co-star with a white actor in a hit TV series.

In 1983, Guion Bluford, JR. became the first African American astronaut to go into space.

Dr. Mae Jemison was the first African American woman to go into space. In addition to being an astronaut, she is a chemical engineer, doctor, teacher, and trained dancer.

Thurgood Marshall was the first African American Supreme Court Justice. He served there for 24 years.

Colin Powell was the first African American to serve as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the nation's top military post.

In 1956, Nat King Cole became the first African American to host his own television show.

In 1893, Dr. Daniel Hale Williams performed the world's first successful heart surgery. Dr. Williams was also one of the first black surgeons in America.

In 1966, Lyndon B. Johnson appointed Constance Baker Motley as the first African American female Federal Court judge.

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