The Journey to Freedom Podcast
Journey to Freedom serves as an exclusive extension of the Living Boldly with Purpose podcast series—a platform that inspires powerful transformation and growth. Journey freedom is a podcast hosted by Brian E. Arnold. The Journey to Freedom is an our best life blueprint exclusively designed for black men where we create a foundational freedom plan. There are five pillars: Identity, Trust, Finances, Health and Faith.
The Journey to Freedom Podcast
Dr.Carl Mack talks to us about Pioneers of Freedom and Empowerment in America
Uncover the compelling journey behind Black History Month and the trailblazers who paved the way for its significance today. Dr. Carl Mack promise us that we will gain insight into the life of Dr. Carter G. Woodson, a visionary whose commitment to education and cultural preservation led to the inception of Negro History Week in 1926. As we explore the evolution of this pivotal tradition into Black History Month, we delve into the significance of its February timing, honoring figures like Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass while challenging harmful narratives within the Black community.
Join us as we navigate the intricate tapestry of patriotism and freedom through the lens of Black history. By examining events such as New York's abolition of slavery and the Confederate surrender at Vicksburg, we uncover their profound implications for Black Americans. We offer a nuanced understanding of the Emancipation Proclamation's limitations and celebrate the contributions of Black soldiers to the Union Army, reshaping the narrative of American independence. Our exploration doesn't stop there; we shine a light on the crucial yet overlooked roles of Black patriots in the American Revolution, bringing their stories to the forefront.
Finally, we celebrate the groundbreaking achievements of Black women from the Pacific Northwest, whose legacies have etched an indelible mark across numerous fields. From pioneering physicians to trailblazing artists and educators, their stories inspire and demand preservation within historical narratives. We discuss the importance of teaching and preserving Black history, sharing strategies for combating its erasure and expressing gratitude to those who champion these efforts. With heartfelt appreciation, we look forward to future gatherings, inviting our community to join us in honoring our collective history.
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And so, just like the calendar that you all have, there's a page, there's a table of contents, four pages of table of contents, and so these are the women that are featured in this calendar. So now I want to take this time and I want to talk about how did February become Black History Month, because, again, I'm not taking it for granted that some people still. I just got off the phone with a brother who I think is a very socially conscious brother, and we were talking about it and he said, yeah, but they gave us the coldest. You know, when they talk about February, there used to be a joke in our community that they gave us the coldest and shortest month out of the year. When we say they gave us, that implies that white people gave us February because it's the coldest and shortest month out of the year. So I want to talk to you about how did February become Black History Month.
Speaker 1:So there was a child born in New Kent, virginia, and for the first 20 years of his life he couldn't go to school. He had no formal education because his parents had just come out of slavery and so he had to work along with them. So at the age of 20, he finally got an opportunity to start his education, and he was self-taught Up until that point. It took him less than two years to graduate high school, and so in 1912, he got a PhD from Harvard University, and this marked the first time in the history of Harvard that a person who was a direct descendant of slaves ever received a PhD in this country. Now, the first Black to ever get a PhD from Harvard was WEB Du Bois. So what Woodson understood was the importance of our history. So in 1915, he founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History. 1921, he founded a group called Associated Publishers. Now these two organizations under Woodson. They had four goals. One was to promote the writing and research of African-American history, which is what I did with the Black History Calendar. Number two was to promote the publishing of quality Black information Again what I did with the calendar. Then he wanted to promote the collection of Black history, which is what all of us now have. So for all of you who have it, you've now collected a piece of Black history. And then he wanted to promote the study of Black history, which now is what you all are in the midst of doing, as you're going around to these historical sites. You're studying our culture through travel. So these are the four things that Woodson wanted us to do.
Speaker 1:The first observance of what we now know as Black History Month occurred in 1926. At the time it was called Negro History Week. They replaced the word Negro with the word Black and it became Black History Week all the way up until the mid-1970s. During that time, you had students who were socially conscious who were celebrating Black History Month for the whole month. Instead of celebrating Black History Week, they were celebrating the month of February for the entire month. In the mid-70s, president Gerald Ford designated February as Black History Month.
Speaker 1:Now, the reason Woodson chose the second week in February is in honor of these two men Abraham Lincoln, who was born on February 12, 1809, and Frederick Douglass, who was born on February 12, 1809, and Frederick Douglass, who was born on February 14, 1817. Now you see that little question mark I have by Frederick Douglass's birth date, because many of our enslaved ancestors didn't know the act and sometimes they didn't know the year and in some cases they didn't know the actual date. But Frederick Douglass's mother used to call him my Little Valentine. So Frederick Douglass chose February 14th as his birthday.
Speaker 1:So it was in honor of these two men that Dr Carter G Woodson, the founder of Black History Month. This is why he chose February and in particular in 1926, this is why he chose the second week in February, in honor of those two men. So if you hear somebody make the joke, they gave us the coldest and shortest month out of the year. Now that we are learning about it, I want you to now teach others, and so you will find the history of Black History Month on February 12th in your calendar when you see the page on Dr Carter G Woodson. Now, one of the things I want to flip to, I want to skip to, is this you all are getting ready to go to the. Which museum are you going to?
Speaker 2:It's the Equal Justice Museum, the Bryan Stevenson Museum.
Speaker 1:You're going to the Equal Justice Museum with Bryan Stevenson, so I want to take you through something that I want you to resonate with this. So at this point, you can see this page, right, yes, we can see it. Okay. Now, when you go to the Equal Justice Museum, you're going to see a lot of folks. You're going to see a lot of pictures of lynchings. You're going to understand what was happening to Black folks in this country around lynching and abuse.
Speaker 1:Now, I'm sure that if I was amongst you and I asked the question how many of us have used the term nigger or niggers, most of us are probably going to raise their hand present, company included. When I grew up in Mississippi, I used to use the word nigger like the word the nigger. Please, that nigger, crazy, fuck that n that nigga, nigga, nigga. I said all any way that you could say the word, I used it. But what I didn't understand is why I was using this term, because the word nigga was invented by America and it was invented to insult us, to degrade us, all of these. They didn't use it, and so now we're trying to say that we use it as a term of endearment, which is nonsense, right, because nine times out of ten. When we do use the term, it's in a negative way. Fuck that, nigga. I'll kill you, nigga. It's always that way. But, more importantly, we would spend a whole lot of time trying to justify the use of a term that was invented by America to insult us and to degrade us. And so inside your calendar there's a page on that word. So when you go to the Equal Justice Museum, you're going to see images like this, and I want you to ask yourself what do you think? The last term that these brothers heard before they were lynched? Believe me, they weren't calling them by their names, they weren't calling them brothers, they were calling them niggas. This is what this word has been associated with to downgrade us, to dehumanize us.
Speaker 1:And now, because we don't have this culture which again is why I'm so proud of you, dr Arnold, and why I'm so proud of each and every one of you who are taking part of this because the importance of history is not that you can spew little trivial facts to anybody. It's like when you go to church, you look at the Bible. The Bible is not a nonfiction book. I mean, it's not a fiction book, it's a nonfiction book. It's a history book about the Trinity the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. So why do you study the Bible? It's so that you can become more Christ-like, not that you can just start quoting scripture, but if you don't live by that, you're not growing by that. So it's the same with history. We want to understand the culture, the history, so that we can be better, and one of the ways that I'm asking all of us to be better is don't use this word, don't tolerate the use of the word around you, and to teach others not to use the word, because, again, this was something that was invented by America to degrade us. You take a look at that brother's back. What do you think they were saying to him with every lash that went on him?
Speaker 1:So here's a picture of Walter White, who was the second black executive director of the NAACP. Don't get confused about his skin complexion. He was very much a Black man, but because he looked almost white, he used to go deep in the South and investigate atrocities committed against us, and so one of the stories he talks about was this story of Mary Turner, who was a Black woman in Valdosta Georgia, not far from where you are, and in this story. He tells how Mary Turner was eight months pregnant and they killed her husband, looking for somebody to justify something that happened in the community. And when they killed her husband, she cried out at this injustice. And then this mob turned their attention to her so they decided to go after her. She tried to escape. They caught her. She's eight months pregnant. They tied her up to a tree, doused her with motor oil and gasoline and they set her body afire. And as her body stopped smoldering, they also placed 200 bullets into her body. But a man walked up to Mary Turner with a butcher knife and he carved her from her womb upwards and the unborn fetus fell out still alive. And as it cried out, a man crushed the skull of this fetus with the heel of his boot.
Speaker 1:Now, if that story sounds horrific to you which it is you got to ask yourself what were they calling Mary Turner before they killed her, because I guarantee you they weren't calling her by her name. They were calling her with the terms that we still use today to insult our women and insult each other Nigga, bitch, hoe. This is the way that this country dealt with us, so it's one of the most horrific stories that you can imagine the same with Emmett Till. What do you think they was calling that brother, that little child? So every time you see these images, you have to imagine. What do you think they were saying before their lives was taken. What was the last word that they ever heard?
Speaker 1:As we're taking these beatings and these are pictures from the places that you're at now in Montgomery, in Birmingham. This is what was happening you just went to. If you were in Birmingham, then you went to the 16th Street Baptist Church where these four little girls were murdered as a result of it. But I want you to understand what was said. This is a white supremacist named Connie Lynch, and this is what Connie Lynch said. He found nothing wrong with that, and what he said was about these four children. They were just little niggas, and if there's four less niggas tonight, then I say good for whoever planted the bomb. He knew who planted the bomb. They planted the bomb, you know this. So this is the way that this term is being used. And so because now normally unless there's certain presentations that I'll talk about this, but because you all are going to the Equal Justice Museum, you're going to see these atrocities that were committed against us. I want this planted in your head every time you see one and ask yourself what do you think the last term that they heard before their lives were taken from them? Right? So, and inside of your calendar, if you go to September 19th, here's the page that you'll see, and what I said in this is I'll leave you with this Saying and embracing the word nigger or niggas is like eating X-Lax and acting as though you're eating a candy bar.
Speaker 1:All we can say is it's bitter and messy, right? So there's nothing good about using the word, and I hope that that can resonate with you as you go through and you see these levels of atrocity. So I'm going to step out of there and I want to go back a little bit up here and I'll ask you all let me come with this, I'm going to come with this. Okay, I want to come with this and this will be. This will be, brian, you know I'll make this the last lesson that I want to. I want to give to you and I want to ask you all this so how many of you and Brian, since your mic is on for those who are riding with Brian how many of us feel patriotic about the 4th of July. So, brian, I don't think I've ever asked you this question Do you feel patriotic about the 4th of July?
Speaker 2:Sometimes yes and then sometimes no.
Speaker 1:Okay, so for those in the car with you kind of get a feel for what their thoughts are.
Speaker 2:Do you guys feel patriotic about it? I do, yeah, we got mixed here too, where, for some parts of it, yes, because we're here in what we consider a great country, but sometimes, you know, no, because of what we're celebrating.
Speaker 1:Okay. So now think about it. What you're celebrating and that's a great lead in, because this is what the 4th of July represents. The 4th of July represents independence, freedom, and that freedom is from the tyranny of King George III. That's what the 4th of July represents.
Speaker 1:Rarely, I mean really, if I talk to 1000 people, maybe three of them say that they feel patriotic, but they don't know why they feel patriotic. And then, when you ask why they don't feel patriotic, they'll say something similar to you, brian, is that they don't see our freedom and independence in this situation. And so what I want to say to you all is this Black history matters and Black history controls. When you go through history, the thing that you got to understand is understanding history controls how you think today and how you act today. Case in point the N-word. If you don't understand history, you don't see nothing wrong with the N-word and you can justify to yourself using it. So I'm saying to you that I want to give you three reasons why I feel extremely patriotic about the 4th of July. Ok, now I want any of you, when you get a chance, I want you to Google what I have in there Black freedom, july 4th 1827. Now, if you were to Google black freedom, july 4th 1827, this is what's going to come up that it was on July 4th 1827, that the state of New York abolished slavery. If that be in the case, does that represent freedom for Black folks on the 4th of July? Absolutely it does. My second example is this If you do a Google search on July 4th 1863, what's going to come up is this that on July 4th 1863, the Confederate General Pemberton surrendered to Ulysses S Grant in one of the most major battles during the Civil War. That was the Battle of Vicksburg. Now, when Pemberton surrendered to Grant, over 20,000 of our ancestors were freed on that day. Now, why were they freed on that day? They were freed on that day because of what Abraham Lincoln did on January 1st 1863.
Speaker 1:You have some folks who will tell you that the Emancipation Proclamation didn't free anybody. So let's talk just briefly about the Emancipation Proclamation. The Emancipation Proclamation, who does it apply to? Now, if I were present with you, most of you would say well, the Emancipation Proclamation applies to everybody. No, the Emancipation Proclamation is an executive order. No, the Emancipation Proclamation is an executive order. An executive order only roll back the 1964 Civil Rights Act.
Speaker 1:So what Trump now? What the 1964 Civil Rights Act said was, as the federal government awards federal contracts, this amount of money, they're saying I want you to take an affirmative act of trying to include qualified people of color as part of this contract. So if you're doing a construction project and you can find an African-American, a woman-owned business, asian, whomever that has qualifications to do this work, I want you to include them in this taxpayer contract. And Trump, on the other hand, is saying no, don't promote diversity, don't promote anything.
Speaker 1:So that means that if a contract is being won by the majority of whites and they decide not to give any work or any opportunity in that contract for people of color, they simply won't do it. Opportunity in that contract for people of color, they simply won't do it. So the executive order applies to the agency that is going to award those contracts. So in this case of the Emancipation Proclamation, lincoln, the commander in chief, issued an executive order called the Emancipation Proclamation. So he was talking to his federal employees and in this case, as the commander in chief, he was talking to his military. And what we have to remember is that the Emancipation Proclamation did three things.
Speaker 2:There we go, I'm good.
Speaker 1:The Emancipation Proclamation did three things. It said for those Blacks enslaved in states and rebelling against the Union, in effect the 11 Confederate states he's saying to his military as you fight this battle from this day forward because remember now the Civil War started on April 12, 1861. This is now January 1, 1863. Two and a half years later, lincoln is saying as you fight this war going forward and you win, I want you to free all the Black folks. The second thing it said was to those states that didn't leave the Union in which slavery is practiced, and it was four of them at the time Maryland, missouri, kentucky and Delaware. Now, later, west Virginia became the fifth border state. That was a slave state. What's that, and the way that West Virginia became a slave state, is that the 48 counties in the Western part of the state were pro-slavery but they were not pro-secession. So when Virginia seceded from the Union, those 48 counties was like, hey, that's a bridge too far, we're not leaving the Union. So they applied for statehood. So West Virginia became a state in 1863, and it became the fifth border state. So what Lincoln said is slavery in those states those five states now is still legal. The third thing that the Emancipation Proclamation said was now Black folks, you can now fight for the union in the Civil War, and there was over 200,000 Black folks that fought in the Civil War fighting for our freedom. So those are the three things that it said. He said to his military as you win these battles, I want you to free black folks. And it cannot be more clear than what happened in my home state of Mississippi, in Vicksburg, mississippi, just right down the road from Jackson, that when Ulysses S Grant defeated Pemberton, it meant freedom for 20,000 plus of our ancestors. That's my second reason for feeling patriotic about the 4th of July. Now, my number one reason for feeling patriotic about the 4th of July is this when we think about the 4th of July, we think about when America declared its independence. It made its declaration for freedom on July 4th 1776.
Speaker 1:Now here is a commonly known fact out of Black history and what we're going to do. We're going to look at five textbooks and in these five textbooks we're only going to look at one issue. If I ask you who was the first person to die in defense of this country, the answer that most of us know is it was Chris Posadix, on March 5th 1770, in an event known as the Boston Massacre. So we're going to look at this singular event in these textbooks and I'm going to show you what America has been doing for a long time. And now under Trump, you see it ramped up.
Speaker 1:So if you look at the book in 1863, it is very clear. There is no ambiguity in it. It says very clearly Crispus Attucks was the first to fall. The book in 1950 says, again very clear the first civilian killed was Crispus Attucks. Now look at the book in 1990, slick, very sly. Among those who fell was Crispus Attucks. They're not saying definitively that he was first, they're saying among those. Now look at the book in 1994. Five men, including Attucks, was killed. 1994, five men, including addicts, was killed. So now Crispus Attucks, this black man who was the first to die in defense of America, is now maybe he's number five.
Speaker 1:And then when you look at the book in 19, I mean 2000, it says look at the last line on March 5th 1770. Correct, british troops fired into a mob, correct, killing five people. Correct, the incident known as the Boston Massacre, correct. Where is Crispus Attucks' name in this history book? Now I went into the index of this book. You go into the index, you can find almost every word in the book, and if your name ain't in the index, you ain't in the book. Now they say a picture is worth a thousand words. When you go back to the book in 1950, they clearly said Crispus Attucks was the first to die. In this picture you see who the central character is. It is Crispus Attucks. There's the British mob firing into the crowd against the colonists and the central figure is Crispus Attucks. There's the British mob firing into the crowd against the colonists and the central figure is Crispus Attucks. He is the first to die.
Speaker 1:Now I want you to pay attention. The British troops are on the right, the colonists are on the left. You got the buildings where this plaza is. Here's the picture in the book of 2000 that does not have Chris Posadik's name. You got the buildings, you got the smoke. You got the British troops on the right, you got the colonists on the left. The only person you see that died is the white man. You even got a dog in the picture, but you don't have nothing that resembles a black man.
Speaker 1:This picture speaks volumes for the way that our history is being taught and the way that we're being rolled out of it. So do I feel patriotic? Is Christmas Addicts? One drop of blood? Is that enough to make me feel patriotic about the 4th of July? Absolutely, it is. However, history runs a little deeper than that, and so inside of your calendars, if you flip to March 5th, you're going to see the page on Christmas Addicts.
Speaker 1:But now let's go a little bit deeper about the American Revolution, because this is the war that established America when we fought against England. Now again, a picture's worth a thousand words. Now, in this picture you don't see nothing about Black folk, but when you go to the bottom down here, where my cursor is rolling, what it says is Peter Salem, a Black soldier, became a hero at this battle when he killed the British commander. So wouldn't it make sense that if you're going to talk about the Battle of Bunker Hill, this would be the picture? If he is a hero, then illustrate him as a hero. So this is the picture of Peter Salem shooting the British commander, ping Karn, who foolishly leaped to the wall to claim victory at the Battle of Bunker Hill. And again, on August 16th in your calendar, you will find this story of Peter Salem. Now, on April 19th in your calendar.
Speaker 1:We all remember when we learned about the American Revolution, hearing about the Minutemen, when you hear the British are coming, the British are coming. One if by land, two if by sea, ring the bell, the British are coming, the British are coming. These men, they got one minute to get ready. They called them the Minutemen. Well, one of the Minutemen was Lemieux Haynes, who fought at the Battle of Lexington, and I know what you're probably thinking, brother Mack he don't look like a black man. Well, what is black? But we can get into that conversation later. The fact of the matter is his mama was white, his daddy was black and this child was raised by a man of the ministry, so he became one of the black minute men. Now, the other thing that happened is, after the American Revolution was over, he returned to the ministry and became the first black to lead an all-white congregation.
Speaker 1:If you go to the Battle of Groton Heights in Connecticut, you will find a plaque. So if you all were in Connecticut and you were going to that park, you would see this plaque in that park, the same way that you'll see the other things that you're seeing now in that park, the same way that you'll see the other things that you're seeing now. This is a plaque of Jordan Freeman, a Black man at the Battle of Groton Heights who speared another British commander, but along with Jordan Freeman there was Lambeau Latham and there were other Blacks who fought at the Battle of Groton Heights. You go to the Battle of Brandywine. Here's a plaque commemorating a hero at the Battle of Brandywine, a guy named Edward Hector. So as the American forces are engaged in this fight against the British, american soldiers started retreating. Edward Hector was in charge of an ammunitions wagon. He kept the wagon there, everybody else there, saying retreat, retreat, leave everything. He stayed with his wagon and brought it to safety and had the audacity to stop his wagon and pick up other weapons to put them on the wagon so that the American colonists would still have ammunition. He is cited as a hero at the Battle of Brandywine.
Speaker 1:James Robinson fought at the Battle of Yorktown when he fought at the Battle of Yorktown and he was enslaved at the time. So what happened during the American Revolution is that many times the enslavers didn't have the courage to fight and instead they would send the enslaved to go fight in their place and in exchange for that the enslaver would get paid not only more money, but in certain cases they would get land. And so what was promised to James Robinson is that if you go and fight, we will grant you your freedom. When the fighting was over, he was returned to slavery and then moved down into New Orleans. When he got down in New Orleans, now we're engaged in the War of 1812. And Andrew Jackson arrived in New Orleans and said to those enslaved if you fight for this country, we'll promise you your freedom. When the fighting was over, andrew Jackson reneged on that, saying well, I'm not the owner of you, so I really can't promise you your freedom. And James Robertson said in his book had his weapon been loaded, he would have shot Andrew Jackson dead right where he stood. So once again, he was returned to slavery. James Robertson finally got to live as a free man, I think at the age of 87, but he lived to be 115 years old. Now, this is what I want you to pay attention to as well. Now, this is what I want you to pay attention to as well.
Speaker 1:When England fought against the American colonists, king George III hired German soldiers. Those German soldiers are called Hessians. So here is an excerpt from the diary of a Hessian officer. So I wasn't there, none of us were there. All we could do is take the word, the written word, of somebody who was there. So this Hessian officer this is what he wrote in his diary. He said the Negro. If you take a look at what's in italics here, the Negro can take the field instead of his master, and therefore no regiment is to be seen in which there are not Negroes in abundance, and among them are able-bodied, strong and brave fellows.
Speaker 1:Now, what we just went through is absolute proof of what he just said. We have gone to regiment after regiment and we have seen Blacks who were heroes in the American Revolution. The question that you should be asking yourself right now why didn't I see these Black patriots in my history book? Well, let's go back to what we saw happen with Christmas addicts. They began to whitewash history and write you right out of history. So if you were to do a search and simply Google this question, how many Blacks fought in the American Revolution? The answer is going to be between 5,000 and 8,000 Black folks fought in the American Revolution.
Speaker 1:Now, between 15,000 and 20,000 fought for the British, and the reason they did that was because of Lord Dunmore's proclamation and Lord Dunmore was the governor of Virginia. So when the American colonists, they first allowed blacks to fight and then they realized the hypocrisy of it. Now wait a minute. We're asking black folks to fight and we got them enslaved. I'm not sure that that's a good idea to give them guns like that, all right. All right, let's run all the Blacks out.
Speaker 1:So Black folks couldn't fight for the American colonists during the American Revolution. We were engaged and then they took us out. George Washington in Continental Congress said no, let's take them out. So at the time they did that, lord Dunmore of Virginia said through his proclamation hey, black folks, if you come fight for us, we'll give you your freedom. You insane to think that black folks were not smart to go fight for the British. If you promise me my freedom, damn America. Damn America's fighting for her freedom. What makes you think I'm just going to fight for your freedom so that I can keep you enslaved? What makes you think I'm just going to fight for your freedom so that I can keep you enslaved? As a matter of fact, you saw that during the Civil War, when the South now and I think inside of your calendar you'll see a page I want to say it's March 13th in your calendar. You'll see where the Confederates passed a law allowing blacks to fight and then said to Black folks, if you fight for us, that don't guarantee you nothing in regards to your relationship between the enslaved and the enslaver. So, in effect, the Confederacy was asking Black folks to fight to remain enslaved. We were fighting for white supremacy. You done lost your rabbit-ass mind with that thought, but anyway. So between 5,000 and 8,000 blacks fought in the American Revolution.
Speaker 1:So when I say to you that I feel patriotic, I'm not trying to say to you I feel patriotic because quote-unquote I'm just in love with America. Yeah, I love America, make no mistake about it. But America's got its issues. What I am saying to you? That it is a truism of history that people react on what they think happened than what actually happened. So if we go back and graphically try to look at it this way, there's a delivery room. In that delivery room, america's trying to beat birth. We're in that delivery room pulling America out to give birth to it. If I ask you, did we help build this country? The one answer that you all are going to say to me is absolutely. I ask you if you feel patriotic about the Fourth of July because, in effect, what I'm asking you is did we give birth to America? And you ain't quite sure and most of us are like no. The reason we are like no is because we don't know this history. We don't know that we were in the delivery room pulling America out. So not only did we help build the country, we helped give, gave birth to the country, we were the first ones to sacrifice blood for the birth of this country. That's why I feel patriotic about the 4th of July. So, with that being said and I know we kind of went, we went through a little bit of a lot of stuff, but that's, that's a little bit. But you know, I will show you this and if you don't I'll, before we end, I'll give you some insight on the Black History Calendar. So I'm getting ready to go to Seattle.
Speaker 1:So a lot of the women that you'll see highlighted are women from the Pacific Northwest. And so this is Dr LaVizzo, who became the first Black woman pediatrician in the state of Washington in 1956. This is Cheryl Glass, and again, this is typical of the 366 Black women that I have featured in Black Heritage Day 5. So this is Cheryl Lynn, and she became the first Black woman professional race car driver in America. This is Constance Rice. She is the wife of the first Black man to become mayor of Seattle, but she's also the first Black woman ever to earn a PhD from the University of Washington in the College of Education, from the College of Education. This is Gloria Hewitt. Gloria Hewitt is the fourth Black woman in the history of this country to ever receive a PhD in math, and she received her PhD from the University of Washington. This is Janet Collins. Janet Collins was the first Black woman ever, the first Black ballerina ever, to perform on stage at the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City, and she was in 80th. And after her career as a ballerina, she moved to Seattle and lived out the rest of her life in Seattle and died on May 28, 2003, in Seattle, seattle, and died on May 28, 2003 in Seattle.
Speaker 1:This is a young sister by the name of Janae Bridges, and I knew Janae when she was in high school and today Janae is one of the world's foremost operatic mezzo-sopranos. So when I say I knew her when she was in high school, this is when I was president of the NAACP in Seattle, kwaizi Mfume, who was then the national president of the NAACP came to our community to speak at our 90th anniversary. Janae's mother, a week before the program, asked if I would allow Janae to perform to play a piece because she also plays classical piano, asked me if I would allow her to play. Now the program has already said I ain't never heard this child play. But I said oh, absolutely, and it was the largest audience that she had ever performed in. So she goes from there to now she's an operatic diva, singing in some of the world's greatest opera houses.
Speaker 1:This is Dr Maxine Mims, who died this year. She was the founder of Evergreen State College in the Hilltop area of Tacoma. This is Dr Miller, who was the first Black woman licensed dentist in the state of Washington. This is Sophia Dannenberg. Now Sophia Dannenberg is the first Black woman ever to climb Mount Everest Today, and she's a graduate of Harvard, graduated cum laude, magnum cum laude, and today she now works as the Washington State Park Commissioner, assigned that role by the current governor of the state of Washington, jay Inslee, and she'll be in that role until December 31st 2026.
Speaker 1:This is Zoe Duzan, and she helped put the Pacific Northwest on the map with their artists. Life Magazine ended up doing an article. She was the one that convinced Life Magazine to focus on artists from the Pacific Northwest. This is Lodi Biggs. And what I love about Lodi Biggs is she was the third Black woman ever to graduate from the University of Washington. She got a bachelor. It had gone defunct and she resurrected the branch and from 1928 to 1930 served as president of the Seattle King County NAACP. If you go to Seattle you would hear the term the Odessa Brown Clinic. That clinic is named after this advocate, who was born in Arkansas and when she was in Chicago she became a licensed beautician working in the business of Madam CJ Walker's beauty school. Keep in mind, madam CJ Walker has since passed, but then, when she moved to Seattle, she became a real staunch advocate of bringing healthcare inside the community, and so, upon her death, when they built a medical facility in the community, they named it in honor of Odessa Brown.
Speaker 1:And the women's calendar is dedicated to two women the sister on the right, along with the three boys, that's me and my two brothers, bug and Goldfish. So I dedicate the calendar to my mother. The sister on the left is Ms Johnson, her husband. Along with her husband, they were my mentors when I was in the NAACP. So she was always willing to give me that quiet voice and reassure me that the way that I fought for the culture she was in approval of. But she was just a very calm and force. I always say she was my true north. So I dedicated the calendar to her. So, with that being said, I'm gonna shut this thing down. And so, dr Arnold, if any of you have any questions or comments, I'll entertain them. No questions over the top. So anything that I can help with, I'm more than happy to try and do that.
Speaker 2:Thank you so much. Does anybody have any questions that they have right now Just have to come off and mute? Yes, any questions we had. One person had a question about if you're willing to share a few of your slides.
Speaker 1:Yes. The answer is yes. I'm not quite sure what that means. I'm assuming they mean if I could send them to you and then you could share.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that would be perfect, Absolutely. Is there anybody we particularly should look for while we're in the museum to understand more about that you can think of, or is there? You know, we just find everybody and spend the time.
Speaker 1:Now you know, what I'm hoping is that when you go to the museum, you kind of keep in mind what we're talking about here and again. So the answer is no, I don't think that there's anybody in particular. But since I talked about Mary Turner, it would be kind of interesting if you all can see if there is a dedication or if she's recognized in the museum. I'd be hard pressed to believe that she isn't. I think the work that Bryan Stevens has done is phenomenal.
Speaker 1:When you all go there, just keep in mind the courage, the amount of research it takes to bring this up. And again, when you look at this, it just should instill something into you about what it was like, because many times what we think is, once slavery ended, we're now in a meritocracy. You got to understand it was still some absolute and crazy things going. And the other thing that I want you to look at I'm not I think I have it in your calendar now it's a page in your calendar called Red Summer, and Red Summer was the summer I want to say in either the summer of 1818 or the summer of 1919, where you just saw so many race riots throughout America. So look for Red Summer to look to see. So there's two things I actually look for Look for anything around Mary Turner and then look for something on Red Summer so you can see what was happening all across this country in the midst of racial riots and racial protests. So those two things.
Speaker 2:Thank you, I guess. The last question I would just like to since our election and since we are, you know, we have a country that seems to be super divided. What are your thoughts about making sure we preserve history and understanding it so that we can move forward with all the things that are happening, where this stuff seems to be starting to be pulled away a little bit?
Speaker 1:No, you know, I think those kind words that you say it seems to be starting to be pulled away a little bit. No, you know, I think those kind words that you say it seems to be enough. You know, I think that what each of you are doing, whether you recognize it or not, is heartwarming to me. To be able to take some time, fly down to these places and physically see these things is amazing. And so I want to say it may have been two summers ago I did something similar. I was asked to speak by the AME Church, one of the bishops in the AME Church in Birmingham and so when I went there normally I just go to a city and all I do is I go, do my presentation, I get on the road, I come home. I made it a point to go to the 16th Street Baptist Church, and I think that if you all have gone there, I'm guessing that somebody would have shown you the blast marks that they say still, sit on the side of the building. At least that's what was explained to me, right. Sit on the side of the building, at least that's what was explained to me, right. So I think it's important that we absolutely you know, one of the best ways we can preserve our history is to do what you all are doing.
Speaker 1:I'm from Jackson, lived there my whole life before I left to move to Seattle. Well, one of our civil rights heroes who was killed, who in his death led to a lot of the civil rights legislation that was being passed, is the late great Medgar Evers. Medgar Evers was killed in Jackson, mississippi. My whole life I never, ever, knew exactly where his home was. So when I went back to Mississippi two summers ago, I made it a point to go and find the home of Mega Evers and I found that they just placed his home on the National Registry and so I got a chance to see it.
Speaker 1:When I got to Mississippi, I had read about Mount Bayou, which is one of the oldest cities in America. It's either the second or third oldest city in America that was founded completely by Blacks, governed completely by Blacks. I needed to go to Mount Bayou, so I got in my car, left Jackson and drove up to the Delta so that I can go visit Mount Bayou. And I went, found the grave site of the founders of Mount Bayou and it's just heartwarming.
Speaker 1:So it's one thing to read about history for you to listen to what I'm saying. It's quite another for you to go and do what you all are doing. So, dr Arnold, I'm so proud of you and for every one of you that is on this journey inside of our culture, just know that you've warmed my soul. So, and I thank you all so much for doing that and then continue to read. You know the calendar is not a be all to end all. I'm hoping that it'll stimulate you, because how do I sum up somebody's life in 330 words, right? I'm just hoping that it will give you, become a catalyst for you to go a little bit deeper with some other folks uh, become a catalyst for you to go a little bit deeper with some other folks.
Speaker 2:I think somebody said that there was a question in the chat. I can't see it because I'm driving, but do you see one in the? Zoom chat would you say oh yeah, we got that right. Yeah, okay, okay. So the question in the in the chat was what does dr clark do to stay healthy and effective in the midst of this work? It's family, community, justice work, um, especially when discouraged and tired, does this work? It's better when the third's entire Did you?
Speaker 1:hear that question. I'm looking at the chat now.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:What do you?
Speaker 2:do to stay healthy.
Speaker 1:That's what they're asking in the midst of all this. I got it. So it's Carl, not Clark. It's Carl, don't worry about it, doctor, I'm just a regular brother. So it's Carl.
Speaker 1:So so so I'm going to interpret healthy two ways physically healthy and mentally healthy. So physically, you know, I mean I still got my vices, things I do, things I eat. But you know I try to get a little workout in on most days. So that's what I do, that way. And it gets challenged when I'm into my research because I could go days with very little sleep. As a matter of fact, last night was the first time that I got some decent rest, and the reason that is I want to share this new opportunity that came up with me. I was on a radio program out of Chicago about a month ago and I was talking about the all women's calendar and they were just fascinated at the amount of research that I had pulled together. And so, about four days ago, the brother who is the host of the show asked me if I would do a one minute snippet from on this day in black history for the entire month of February. So I, for the last four days I haven't gotten much sleep because I've been recording these one minute snippets out of black history. So on their program every day. They're going to play on this day in black history with Dr Carl Mack. They're going to play on this day in Black history with Dr Carl Mack. So trying to get them out of rest Now mentally, as far as staying healthy mentally, this invigorates me to be able to talk with you all as you, because right now I just I've been retired since 2013.
Speaker 1:With you all as you, because right now I just I've been retired since 2013. And I feel like my calling is to help promote the study of our culture, to be a griot, to carry on the legacy of Dr Woodson. I believe that that's what this phase of my life is about. So, to see what you all are doing and for Dr Arnold to reach out to me and allow me to bea part of your journey, to help you better understand, to help teach, this keeps me healthy. This warms my soul. So, mentally, to continue this.
Speaker 1:I'm not worried about what Trump doing. I'm going to tell you why I'm not worried about the all-out assault against our history, what Trump do, and I'm going to tell you why I'm not worried about the all-out assault against our history, because there's a saying you don't miss your water till your well runs dry, and I hope like hell that they try to eliminate everything around Black history so that we can now go whoa, hold up. Brother Mac's been trying to tell us this and it's going to push us closer and closer to it. So, physically, that's what I do. Mentally, you all have been food for my mind, food for my soul, so I want to thank you all again for allowing me to be a part of this, but that's what I do. So I see another.
Speaker 1:Is there anything we could do to respond to Black people being stripped from history, from history books? What are personal and institutional steps you would recommend? I think what our brother did with this museum is an institutional step. There's very few of us that are going to be able to run in circles to be able to build a museum like that or to build a museum like the African American History Museum. All of us are going to find some way to do this.
Speaker 1:Now, my way of doing it is, and so I'm not, you know. The question becomes how do you eat an elephant? And the answer is one bite at a time. So everybody has a different bite. My bite was to be able to take these Black history you know, to take Black history and put it in a form. Now, most Black history calendars that you've seen are 12-month Black history calendars and usually they feature the same 12 people and the other days are without substantive knowledge. So my resolution to that was to make the Black History Calendar in the form that you have it in. That was my contribution. Now my other part of my contribution is to try and teach, which is what we're doing today. So I'm not worried about trying to go in and get some author who is a historian to write us into the history. That's asinine. Instead, we teach our own history.
Speaker 1:There is not an institution in this country that can stop Dr Arnold, that can stop all of you and can stop me from getting together and studying Black history. Now let me say this to you I can't tell you the number of Black history programs that I've done right, but what I can tell you is that up until last year I had never been asked to do a Black History presentation that wasn't in the month of February. I would dare say that none of you have ever gone to a Black History program that wasn't in the month of February. So when we talk about what we can do, what's going to stop you all from getting back going to your churches and saying, hey, pastor, let's bring Brother Mac in and let him do a Black History presentation in this April? It's sometime outside the month of February. The only time we think about Black History is during the month of February. We have to build on the legacy of Dr Carter G Woodson. So that is part of what I'm trying to do now.
Speaker 1:And I will say this when I went to Birmingham, when I went to Tupelo, mississippi, when I went down to Jacksonville, florida, to do these Black History presentations, what I do not do is I never charge Black people to teach Black people about Black people. I don't do that. So only thing I said to people is if you want me to come to like right now, I'm getting ready to go to Seattle. The only thing that people had to do was pay for my plane ticket. I know enough people in Seattle, so I don't even need a hotel. I prefer not to have a hotel.
Speaker 1:You let me sleep on your couch and give me a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Only thing we got to do is get me there and get me home, get me a place to stay, give me your couch, feed me peanut butter and jelly, I'll do just fine. So is there something that you can do? Yes, now that you're learning, now you begin to teach, and I'm always available. So from the moment that I met Dr Arnold, he stayed in contact with me, and whenever Dr Arnold needs me on this tip to try to teach Black history ain't much convincing that he has to do. All he has to do is ask and the answer is yes, so the same with you all. Learn our history and then begin to teach our history.
Speaker 2:Well, thank you. Thank you so very much. This has been incredible, amazing. We will be in touch with you again. We're going to try to do this trip again, maybe in the fall. We got people excited about what they've learned, what they've seen, and the more folks that we can get down here to start seeing it, the more difference we can make. So, oh man, what a great trip. I don't know if we could have found a better way to go from Selma to Montgomery, but I've been thoroughly enjoyed. You today, you guys the same.
Speaker 1:Hang on one second. I got another question that came up.
Speaker 2:All right, we'll answer that first. That'll be perfect.
Speaker 1:Let's do this. Hang on one second here. Hang on one second. Just give me a second, sis. Hang on one second. All right, hang on, I'm coming right back to you. Hang on one second, I'm right there. I'm getting there. I promise you I'm right there. I'm getting there. I promise you, I'm so close. Hang on one second. Okay, all right, let me get back to Zoom Share share. Okay. So so, um, christine, you asked me, have I considered Justina Ford?
Speaker 2:uh, for my calendar? No, I didn't consider her. There she is.
Speaker 1:Awesome, thank you.
Speaker 2:You're welcome, you're welcome.
Speaker 1:I was so impressed with her story of how she was denied, denied, denied, and she was like look, and the thing I like about Dr Ford was she was a socially conscious physician. She understood poverty people couldn't afford. But she also understood the need of quality health care for our community and she just said forget it, I'm going to just go inside of our community and do it. And then now, and everybody's coming to her Black, white, hispanic, they don't care, they just come into Sister Ford.
Speaker 1:And now she gets a car she hires one of her relatives to drive the car you know.
Speaker 2:I think that's right. Yep, she delivered my dad and my uncles, so I want you to pay attention to this.
Speaker 1:I see it right here Her expertise, the overwhelming need and the lack of medical attention of blacks and the poor resulted in Dr Ford delivering more than 7,000 babies. And now you telling me that your dad it was my soul is on fire. I love it. So yes, and so again.
Speaker 2:I love that, christine. Yeah, so, yes and so again.
Speaker 1:I love that, christine. This is so these. Right now, what you see me do is I'm just scrolling through the month of January on the black women's calendar. So again, there's three hundred and sixty six black women featured in this calendar. And yes, justina, for you know when you just asked me that question about.
Speaker 1:So it's like, oh my god, very few people know about it so I I got um and so I'm gonna try to get see if I can get to the to the um. Let me just get to the table of. Let me move this over and get to the table. So well, you know I showed so like this is this you know she's the first black to get a phd in chemical engineering from mit. This is the first black to get a PhD in chemical engineering from MIT. This is the first black woman zookeeper in America. So the Black Women's Calendar is, as a matter of fact, I am far more proud of the Black Women's Calendar than I am any other ones that I've done. So there you go, christina. You have ooh y'all. Thank you, christina.
Speaker 2:Well, thank you, can't wait to see the winner. You're not timed on eating, you're just talking about eating, sorry.
Speaker 1:Okay, we're good, oh, we're good. So, scott, thank you, you're most welcome. It's been my honor, so if any of you are grateful for me being a part of this, the man that has put this together, dr Arnold, you are an absolutely beautiful, loving brother. I love you. We are there. From the moment I met you, it's easy to see that you're good people, your heart's in the right place. It's another, you know, it's one thing for people to talk about doing it, it's another when you get out there and do it. And, man, the moment I met you, you've been about that action boss. So, thank you, thank you.
Speaker 2:Well, you have a wonderful rest of your Sunday. We appreciate you. We'll be, we'll figure out another time. We'll get you out so you can definitely sleep. We actually have a guest room so you can sleep in the actual bed when you come on out. And we feed you more than peanut butter and jelly, that's for sure.
Speaker 1:All right, Okay, did I get all the questions in all the comments? I think you did.
Speaker 2:I think you did, and we just arrived at the museum, so we'll let you know. I'll send you some pictures and stuff of what we're doing. So thank you again. Appreciate it. Have a wonderful rest of your day, all right, no-transcript.