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Comprehensive
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Afro (often l.c.) a hair style, originating among African Americans in the 1960s, in which the hair is worn in a high, rounded style. [1/2 definitions]
black (usually capitalized) a person who has ancestors who came from Africa and who typically has dark skin, eyes, and hair; African American. [2/7 definitions]
blues (used with a singular or plural verb) a style of sad-sounding music with roots in African American folk music. Jazz and rock music developed from the blues. [1/2 definitions]
Civil Rights Movement a movement in the United States particularly prominent during the 1950s and 1960s that sought to end racial discrimination, legal segregation of blacks and whites, and racial barriers to voting. The movement was led by black leaders such as Medgar Evers, Martin Luther King, Jr., John Lewis, and James Farmer. It mobilized tens of thousands of African Americans in protest against existing laws and practices. Activists, both black and white, endured harassment and violence from the police and others as the movement progressed. Eventually, the American civil rights movement brought about the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and other measures. [1/2 definitions]
Congressional Black Caucus an organization composed of African-American members of the U.S. Congress, formed in 1971 to address legislative matters of concern to African Americans and other minority voters.
Harlem a section of northern Manhattan in New York City, mostly African American since the early 1900s and with a substantial Hispanic population, known for both its poverty and its cultural richness.
hip-hop the culture of rap music and its associated styles of dance, dress, behavior, and speech, which originated among young, inner-city African Americans in the 1970s. [1/3 definitions]
Jackie Robinson born Jack Roosevelt Robinson, U.S. professional baseball player who in 1947 became the first African American to play in major league baseball (b.1919--d.1972).
jazz a form of music with strong, complex rhythms that started with African Americans in the late 1800s. Jazz musicians often add notes or make up parts as they play.
Jimmy McDaniel U.S. tennis player, who, in a match against Don Budge in 1940, was the first African American to play a white champion (b. 1917).
Langston Hughes African American writer; born James Langston Hughes (b.1902--d.1967).
NAACP an organization that works for equal rights for African Americans. "NAACP" is the abbreviation of "National Association for the Advancement of Colored People."
Nathaniel "Sweetwater" Clifton U.S. multi-sport athlete, who played with the Harlem Globetrotters prior to becoming the first African American to sign a contract to play in the National Basketball Association (1950) (b.1922--d.1990).
Paul Laurence Dunbar U.S. poet and novelist, noted for his portrayals of African American life in the South (b.1872--d.1906).
Serena Williams U.S. professional tennis player, who in 1999 became the first African American woman since Althea Gibson to win a Grand Slam tournament (b.1981).
Sojourner Truth American evangelist, abolitionist, orator, and women's rights activist. An African American woman, Sojourner Truth had been enslaved before going on to become an evangelist as well as a moving and persuasive speaker on the subject of racial and gender equality; born Isabella Baumfree (b. 1797?--d. 1883).