The Rev. Darryl Johnson rejoiced when he received a text message that a deal to sell the remaining 100 acres of the historic Robert Hungerford Preparatory High School property in Eatonville, Florida, fell through a week ago. After hearing the news that a developer dropped out of the controversial plan to buy the land, the […]
History
Posted inCulture, History
Once an ‘All-Black Utopia,’ Eatonville Residents Say New Development Could Erase History
Millard Livatt takes pride in knowing the literary destination he’s called home for more than 50 years is still standing. Made famous by the late Zora Neale Hurston, Eatonville, Florida, is one of the oldest Black-incorporated towns in the U.S. Despite high poverty rates, limited job opportunities and food insecurity, Livatt said he looks beyond […]
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The Black Diaspora’s Complicated Feelings About Queen Elizabeth’s Death
The death of Queen Elizabeth II has evoked mixed emotions in Black communities around the world. Some praised her 70-year reign as a rare woman in the class of predominantly male world leaders, while others celebrated her death and the prospect of Black countries severing their ties to the monarchy. The United Kingdom’s 14 commonwealth […]
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Black History Sites Aren’t Being Preserved. This Historian Wants to Change That.
Saying America has a troubled relationship with the land it seized from Indigenous people would be an understatement. Colonialism, and the taking of land through force and murder, defined the country’s borders. The struggle over terrain continues today with the threat of climate change, an increase in internal migration, and the soaring cost of housing. […]
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‘Don’t Forget About Us’: Generations of Neglect Preceded Attack on Black Buffalo
BUFFALO, N.Y. — One of this city’s main thoroughfares is crossed by a prominent, white archway marked with large black letters: “African American Heritage Corridor.” Michigan Avenue is home to historic buildings and stained-glass chapels, but the most important one sits beside the arch: a 177-year-old, red-brick church, memorialized as the last stop of the […]