The British almost eliminated the entire aborigine Tasmanian Population of Australia in the 1800s by kidnapping, enslaving, torturing and murdering them.  

A THREAD! Tasmania is an island located about 200 miles off the southeast coast of Australia. Archaeologists estimate that Black indigenous people crossed into the island on an ancient bridge which connected Tasmania to the continent of Australia.

Happy Birthday to Patrice Lumumba, the first legally elected prime minister of D.R Congo.

He was assassinated in 1961 following a military coup supported by U.S.A & Belgian imperialism which was admitted by the State Dept in 2013 authorized by president Eisenhower.

A THREAD For 126 years, the US and Belgium have played key roles in shaping Congo's destiny. In April 1884, seven months before the Berlin Congress, the US became the first country in the world to recognise the claims of King Leopold II of the Belgians to the territories of the Congo.

In Louisiana, black women were put in cells with male prisoners and some became pregnant.

All children born in the penitentiary to blacks were property of the state.

At 10 years, they would be auctioned off. The proceeds were used to fund schools for white children.

-THREAD- Before the Civil War, most prisoners in the South were white. The punishment of enslaved African Americans was generally left up to their owners. Louisiana, however, did imprison enslaved people for "serious" crimes, generally involving acts of rebellion against the slave system.

On this day in 1942, Job Maseko, a WW2 hero, sank a NAZI ship with a bomb made from a tin can with condensed milk. He was denied the highest military decoration, due to his race.  

A THREAD Maseko was working as a delivery driver when he volunteered for service in the South African Native Military Corps during WWII (NMC). Later he was sent to the 2nd South African Infantry Division after finishing basic training in North Africa.

On this day in 1865, enslaved people in Texas were notified by Union Civil War soldiers about the abolition of slavery. This was 2.5 years after the final Emancipation Proclamation which freed all enslaved Black Americans. #Juneteenth 

But Slavery continued…

A THREAD In 1866, a year after the amendment was ratified, Alabama, Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Georgia, Mississippi, Florida, Tennessee, and South Carolina began to lease out convicts for labor.

On this day in 1944, George Stinney, 14, became the youngest person executed in the US in the 20th century. He was so small they had to stack books on the electric chair.

Due to no evidence, his conviction was posthumously vacated 70 years after his execution!

A THREAD! George was accused of killing two white missing girls, 11-Year-old Betty and 7-year-old Mary, their bodies were found near the house where he lived with his parents in Alcolu, South Carolina march 1944.

In 1951, Henrietta Lacks' cells were taken without her knowledge (HeLa Cells) at Johns Hopkins Hospital and they became one of the most important tools in medicine, vital for developing the polio vaccine, gene mapping, vitro fertilization and more...

A THREAD Henrietta Lacks was black woman who unknowingly was the source of cells (from her cancerous tumor) which were cultured by George Otto Gey to create the 1st known human immortal cell line for medical research.

Sarah Saartjie Baartman was cruelly exploited in Europe by being exhibited as a freak show attraction because of her protruding butt. After her death, her body was displayed in a Paris museum for over 100yrs.

The exploitation of Sarah Baartman.

A THREAD! SARAH "Saarjte" Baartman of the khoikhoi people of South Africa was born in 1789 and was one of 2 women put on display as a "FREAK SHOW" act in England and then later France.

On this day in 1790, Jean Baptist Pointe Desable founded the city of Chicago.

A THREAD Jean-Baptiste Pointe DuSable was born in Saint-Domingue, Haiti (French colony at the time) during the Haitian Revolution. At some point he settled in the part of North America that is now known as the city of Chicago and was described in historical documents as "a handsome negro"

On this day in 1852, "Uncle Tom's Cabin," was first published.

Most people have used the term UNCLE TOM to refer to a sell-out.

The real Uncle Tom was a hero, Josiah Henson, was an abolitionist who helped slaves escape among other great things.

A THREAD Josiah Henson was born into slavery in 1789 in Charles County, Maryland. Growing up he watched his father receive beatings for standing up to his slave owner and also witnessed his father's ear being severed as part of the punishment and also his father being sold off.

The Battle of Bamber Bridge, 1943.

Racist US military police attacked black US troops on British soil.

US military authorities demanded the town’s pubs impose a colour bar, the local landlords responded with signs that read “Black Troops Only” which pissed them off.

A THREAD In 1943 Black American soldiers faced off with white American Military police during World War 2 on British soil. Black American soldiers had to fight their own white American soldiers, while in England, where they were fighting the world war.

On this day in 1921, The Tulsa Race Massacre happened in the affluent black community of Greenwood in Tulsa (Black Wall Street)

White supremacists killed more than 300 African Americans and looted & burned to ground homes & businesses.

History of Tulsa before the riot

A THREAD Ottawa W. Gurley created the Black Wall Street, the affluent black community in Greenwood in Tulsa.

The origin of Memorial Day trace back to 1865 when freed slaves started a tradition to honor fallen Union soldiers and to celebrate emancipation and commemorate those who died for that cause.

A THREAD In 1865, black people in Charleston, South Carolina, held a series of memorials & rituals to honor unnamed fallen Union soldiers and celebrate the struggle against slavery. One of the largest memorial took place on May 1st 1865.

In May of 1946, The Fultz Sisters or Fultz Quads, became the first identical Black-American quadruplets on record. The Doctor named them and also put them on display for curious onlookers.

The Fascinating and Tragic story of the quadruplets,

A THREAD The Fultz Quadruplets were born May 23, 1946 at 3 pounds each. Dr. Klenner took the responsibility of naming the children upon himself since the parents could not read. He decided to name them all Mary followed by the names of the women in the Klenner family.

On this day in 1896, the U.S Supreme Court delivered its decision in Plessy v. Ferguson, establishing the “separate but equal” doctrine and authorizing discrimination by states.

This marked the formal beginning of Jim Crow Laws.

THREAD In 1866, a year after the amendment that ‘abolished slavery’ was ratified, Alabama, Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Georgia, Mississippi, Florida, Tennessee, and South Carolina began to lease out convicts for labor.

The black history of Miami, Florida.

A THREAD!

Bahamians were among the first settlers in Miami. The first name on the city charter in 1896, when the city was incorporated, was a Black man named Silas Austin. Out of 368 men who voted to incorporate Miami,162 of them were Black. In 1896 Florida had a state law that required a minimum number of registered voters to incorporate. 368 voters signed to incorporate Miami.

Black people mostly occupied Overtown and Coconut Grove, which is also the oldest inhabited neighborhood in Miami.

On this day in 1985, Philadelphia Police Department dropped a bomb onto a residential home occupied by the MOVE Organization.

The Fire Department let the fire burn out of control, destroying 61 homes over two city blocks. 11 people died including 6 children

THREAD MOVE short for “The Movement,” and it’s largely unclear when it began; however, some people have reported remembering the group as far back as 1968.

On this day in 1862, Robert Smalls stole a Confederate Ship and sailed it to Freedom disguised as a captain, freeing his crew and their families.

A THREAD! In 1862, Robert Smalls was serving as the pilot of a steam powered, Confederate ship, The CSS Planter. It was transporting large guns out of Charleston Harbor and deliver them to Union Navy forces on blockade duty

On this day in 1892, Alonzo Lonnie Clayton became the youngest jockey to ever win the Kentucky Derby.

He won the race at the age of 15 & still holds the record as the youngest winning rider

Did you know a black man won the very 1st Kentucky Derby in 1875?

BLACK JOCKEYS THREAD Did you also know that the very first assembly of photographs to create a motion picture was a two-second clip of a Black man on a horse?

The late Patrice Lumumba was the first legally elected prime minister of D.R Congo.

He was assassinated in 1961 following a military coup supported by U.S.A & Belgian imperialism which was admitted by US State Dept in 2013 authorized by president Eisenhower.

A THREAD

For 126 years, the US and Belgium have played key roles in shaping Congo's destiny. In April 1884, seven months before the Berlin Congress, the US became the first country in the world to recognise the claims of King Leopold II of the Belgians to the territories of the Congo.

65 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.