Category: Black Excellence

He brought dance music to the Empire Rollerdrome in Brooklyn, and taught generations of skaters how to roll, bounce and be jammas.   —  Julia Carmel, The New York Times When Grace Jones was strutting around Studio 54 and Donna Summer records were playing at New York clubs, Empire Rollerdrome was hitting its stride in Brooklyn. It […]

This op-ed celebrates the life and legacy of economist, attorney, and civil rights advocate Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander.   —  Anna Gifty Opoku-Agyeman, Teen Vogue The reckoning on race in the field of economics began around 100 years ago. To put that in perspective, white women had only recently been granted the right to vote, and, […]

  — Susanna Forrest, The Paris Review Selika Lazevski exists in six black-and-white photographs and nowhere else. I first saw her when those six studio portraits appeared on Tumblr in 2012. They quickly spread around the Internet as readers asked, Who is she? But although I’ve searched for years, every pin I place to try to […]

A 12-year-old from Georgia has been accepted as a sophomore aerospace engineering major at Georgia Tech.   — Scott Stump, Today A 12-year-old prodigy has been accepted as a student at Georgia Tech as he pursues his dream of becoming an aerospace engineer. Before Caleb Anderson is old enough to get his driver’s license or vote […]

— Black Enterprise Editors, Black Enterprise   Dr. Dale Okorodudu, an African-American doctor and the founder of Black Men in White Coats, aims to make an impact on the world by helping develop future leaders in medicine. He recently organized a youth summit with a goal to inspire Black boys to pursue the career of becoming a […]

  — Sponsored by Nissan, Atlas Obscura CARNIVAL AUDIENCES IN THE FIRST half of the 20th century gathered around the Wall of Death to watch the fearless Bessie Stringfield ride her Harley-Davidson up its cylindrical wooden walls. Stringfield would take off at high speeds, riding practically on her side, round and round the silo-shaped contraption while spectators […]

  — Francis Akhalbey, Face2Face Africa Christophe Maleau, a 12-year-old swimming prodigy from Martinique, achieved yet another historic feat over the weekend after he successfully swam from neighboring island, Saint Lucia, to his native country in a challenge that has been attempted by just a few people who were older than him. The challenging endeavor across the channel […]

Ariel Investments co-CEO would be among most prominent Black leaders of U.S. corporate boards   — Heather Haddon, The Wall Street Journal Starbucks Corp. appointed investor Mellody Hobson as its next chairwoman, positioning the coffee chain to be among the biggest U.S. companies with a Black person leading its board. Seattle-based Starbucks said Wednesday that Ms. […]