Enslaved Black people are mostly depicted as very docile and didn't fight back. However, this was not the case and there were numerous slaves rebellion. #BlackHistoryMonth
A THREAD!
The Stono Rebellion, the largest slave rebellion in South Carolina, 1739.
On September 9th 1739 Jemmy aka Cato and 20 core group of warriors, who had been stolen from Kongo region of Central Africa.
The group gathered near the Stono River in a region that is now Hollywood, SC about 20mins from Charleston. The rebellion was planned to take place on a Sunday due to most of the white men in the town being at church.
this coupled with a malaria outbreak which resulted in less white people on the streets, created the perfected conditions from a planned uprising. The goal was to fight their way to Spanish controlled Florida where enslaved folk were guaranteed freedom.
This was the region where Gullah Wars aka Seminole Wars were fought from 1817-1858. The Stono Rebellion was the 1st documented mass attempt of Gullah-Geechee people to push into the Florida territory.
The group marched down the main road of St.Paul's Parish killing slavers and their families as well as ransacking homes and businesses. They also recruited the further down the road they went.
Around 10 miles into the march the numbers swelled from about 20 to around 60-100 Africans fighting for their freedom.
Their march tallied up to 2 shopkeepers killed with ammo, guns, and provisions being expropriated, 6 plantations being burned down, and almost 30 whites dead.
The 1st half of a letter penned by then Lieutenant Governor William Bull detailed the damage he saw "I beg leave to lay before your Lordships an account of our Affairs, first in regard to the Desertion of our Negroes.... On the 9th of September last at Night a great Number of
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67 years ago today, Mack Parker was murdered by a white mob. It’s considered one of the last civil rights era lynchings.
THREAD
Mack Charles Parker was a 23-year-old truck driver who had returned to his hometown of Lumberton, Mississippi, after receiving a general discharge following two years in the Army.
On the morning of February 24, 1959, Parker was awakened by Marshal Ham Slade and several deputies, who alleged that he had raped a young white woman, June Walters, the night before.
Akua Njeri, born Deborah Johnson, was a Black Panther activist and Fred Hampton’s wife. On Dec 4, 1969, she survived the Chicago Police raid that killed her husband. 8 and a half months pregnant, her story of survival is unforgettable.
A THREAD
At 4 AM, Chicago Police broke into Akua and Fred’s apartment. Bullets hit their bed as they slept. Fred Hampton, Black Panther leader, age 21, was shot and killed beside her.
Akua, hands raised, walked through lines of cops. One mocked, “A pregnant broad.” Another grabbed her hair, pushed her to the kitchen. She saw Ron Satchel and Verlina Brewer wounded, bleeding on the floor.
In 1904, The Battle of Waterberg known as the Herero and Namaqua Genocide, occured between the Herero people and German imperialists in German Southwest Africa (present-day Namibia), following the Germans occupation to steal their land and resources.
A THREAD
The German colonization of South-West Africa began in 1883, two years before the official Partition of Africa.
When the German settlers arrived, they expropriated land, cattle, and water rights from local peoples, including the Herero and by 1903, the Herero had ceded over 50,000 square miles of land to the GermansSome resisted the settlers encroachment and engaged in periodic battles.
On this day in 1939, Billie Holiday recorded the first great protest song of the Civil Rights Movement, 'Strange Fruit’
The Chilling Story of Strange Fruit and Billie Holiday.
A THREAD!
"Strange Fruit" was originally a poem written by Jewish-American writer, teacher and songwriter Abel Meeropol, under his pseudonym Lewis Allan, as a protest against lynchings and later set it to music.
The song soon came to Billie Holiday's attention & after so many frequent requests of that song, she closed out EVERY performance with it. The waiters would stop serving ahead of time for complete silence, the room would darken, a spotlight would shine on Holiday's face…
To combat the high rate of death among enslaved people, plantation owners demanded females start having children at 13.
By 20, the enslaved women would be expected to have about five children.
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An enslaved woman was a sex tool beneath the level of moral considerations.
She was an economic good, useful, in addition to her menial labor, for breeding more slaves. To attain that purpose, the master mated her promiscuously according to his breeding plans.
The Master ,his son(s) and other members of his family took turns with her to increase the family's fortune & to satisfy his extramarital sexual desires. Guests and neighbors were also invited to this luxury.
41 years ago today, singer, songwriter and Motown legend, Marvin Gaye was shot and killed by his father, a day before his birthday.
A THREAD!
On April 1, 1984, Marvin was fatally shot by his father in their Los Angeles home. On the day of the murder, Marvin and Marvin Senior were arguing about a misplaced insurance policy document.
At this point, the relationship between Marvin and his father was as heated as ever- Marvin’s sister had moved out of the house just to avoid the conflict