Politicians & Revolutionaries

Question 1

● In 1872, he became the first African American governor
of a U.S. state ever - in Louisiana.
● He was appointed governor for a short time, then was
elected to the state legislature.
● There would not be an African American governor of a
U.S. state again until 1990.

Answer 1

PBS Pinchback Govenor of Louisiana

Question 2

● In 2008, he became the first African American elected

President of the United States.
● Prior to that, he was only the fifth black U.S. senator in
history.
● Was the first black president of Harvard Law Review.

Answer 2

Barack Obama US President

Question 3

● Haitian general who fought various battles again the
French, Spanish and British empires
● Inspired Haiti to achieve independence from France, the
first and only successful slave revolt in modern history
● In 1804, they created the second independent republic in
the America’s

Answer 3

Touissant Louverture

Question 4

● Served as an army chaplain for

● In 1870, he became the first black Senator in U.S. History
● Was the first black senator of the state of Mississippi

Answer 4

Hiram R. Revels

Question 5

● The First African American woman to own and run a newspaper, California Eagle
● In 1952, she ran for vice president of the United States
● She is the first black woman to be nominated/ run for political office

Answer 5

Charlotta Bass

Question 6

● First African American to receive Ph. D from Harvard in Political Science
● From 1948 to 1971, he worked to restore peace in the Middle East, Yemen, the Sinai, the Congo, Yemen, Cyprus and Bahrain
● In 1950, he became the first African American to receive the Nobel Peace Prize

Answer 6

Ralph. J. Bunche

Question 7

● In 1965, she was made the envoy to Luxembourg, the first black woman to be an envoy
● In 1977, she became the first African American woman to become a cabinet member, heading the Department of Housing and Urban Development
● In 1979, first black woman named head of the Department of Health, Education and Welfare, at the time the largest cabinet agency in United States

Answer 7

Patricia R. Harris

Question 8

● Served as the first (black) United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (H.U.D.)
● First African American to become a US cabinet member

Answer 8

Robert C Weaver

Question 9

● Venezulean military and political leader who rebelled against the Spanish empire
● Started independence movements that lead to the creation of Venezuela, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Panama

Answer 9

Simon Bolivar

Question 10

● Became the head of the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party in 1967 and as a result the FBI began investigating him
● Managed to secure a nonaggression pact between several Chicago street gangs
● In 1969, the Chicago Police assassinated Fred Hampton in his home

Answer 10

Fred Hampton

Question 11

● Known as “Fundi” - Swahili for “person who teaches a craft to the next generation”
● In 1957, Baker helped launch the Southern Christian Leadership Conference
● In 1960, Baker was influential in the creation of SNCC with focused on actively voter registration and civil disobedience

Answer 11

Ella J Baker

Question 12

● In 1966 with Bobby Seale he founded the Black Panther Party
● Encouraged Black Americans to exercise their right to self - defense especially from police brutality
● Also helped to create the Ten - Point program document, to highlight the goal of the party and the needs of black people in the U.S.

Answer 12

Huey. P Newton

Question 13

● Since the 1940’s, Bayard Rustin campaigned for Civil Rights specially against Black Americans and Japanese Americans
● In 1956, he began working and advising Martin Luther King Jr. behind the scenes on non - violent solutions during the Civil Rights Movement yet parted ways when influential people did not approve of a gay man’
involvement in the movement
● In 1964, he organized a non - violent citywide boycott of segregated schools in New York City

Answer 13

Bayard Rustin

Question 14

● Born as Malcolm Little, and after converting to Islam he changed his name to Malcolm X
● Believed that black people should fight against racial discrimnation by “Any Means Necessary” and clashed with figures like Martin Luther King Jr. as a result
● Converted to Sunni Islam after falling out with the Nation of Islam and advocated racial integration
● In 1965, he was assassinated by members of the Nation of Islam over his public disagreements with their leader Elijah Muhammad

Answer 14

Malcolm X

Question 15

● Was the lawyer during the Brown v Board of Education Supreme Court case which made racial segregation in public schools illegal
● Won a total of 29 out of 32 cases that he argued before the Supreme Court
● First African American United States Solicitor General ● First African American Supreme Court Judge

Answer 15

Thurgood Marshall

Question 16

● She was the first black woman elected to the U.S. Congress, in 1968.
● In 1972 she ran for President, becoming the first black candidate for a major party presidential nomination.
● The first woman to run for the Democrat Party’s nomination.

Answer 16

Shirley Chisholm US Congresswoman

Question 17

● In March 1955, she was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama. (15 years old)
● She was part of the court case Browder v. Gayle, the case that challenged bus segregation laws in Alabama

Answer 17

Caludette Colvin Civil rights activist

Question 18

● In 1949 he became the first African American to be a federal judge.
● He was also the first African American governor of the Virgin Islands, in 1946.

Answer 18

Willliam Henry Hastie us federal judge

Question 19

● In 1896, she was the first president of the National Association of Colored Women (NACW), a black women’s political organization.
● She was one of the first African American women to earn a college degree.
● Was a founding member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)

Answer 19

Mary Church Terrell civil rights and voting activist

Question 20

● In 1989, he became the first African American ever elected governor of a U.S. state (Virginia).

Answer 20

L douglas Wilder govenor of virginia

Question 21

● He was the first African American four star general in the military.
● In 2001, he became the first black Secretary of State.

Answer 21

Colin Powell us secretary of state

Question 22

● She was the first black woman to become Secretary of State, in 2005.

Answer 22

condoleeza rice

Question 23

● She was the first black woman to become U.S. Attorney General, in 2014.

Answer 23

loretta lynch us attorney general

Question 24

● He was the first African American to ever hold the office of U.S. Attorney General, in 2009.

Answer 24

eric holder us attorney general

Question 25

● In 1966, he was the first African American popularly elected to the U.S. Senate.
● He served two terms in the U.S. Senate representing Massachusetts.

Answer 25

edward brooke us senator