Black History in Two Minutes (or so)

Latest Episodes
Oscar Micheaux: The First Black Indie Filmmaker
Transitioning from job to job as a teenager, Oscar Micheaux was able to write a story that was inspired by his experience on a farm. The novel, entitled The Homesteader, was published and later adapted into a silent motion picture. With this project,
W.E.B. Du Bois: The New Negro at The 1900 Paris Exposition
At the turn of the twentieth century, W. E. B. Du Bois curated an exhibit at the Paris Exposition in France entitled “The Exhibit of American Negroes.” The exhibition used photographs to disrupt the negative imagery that was used to depict black Americ...
School Integration
The landmark case Brown v. Board of Education declared that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional. However, for most black and white families, the decision was met with resistance and a court mandate didn’t mean things were going to...
Migrations: From Exodusters to Great Migrations
With the formal ending of slavery in place, many freed black people saw this as an opportunity to start anew. But, for those in the south, things didn’t seem much different. The southern black experience saw more aggression, lynchings and segregation.
The First Underground Railroad
The Underground Railroad for many of us symbolizes the journey African slaves went on in the name of freedom. But, contrary to popular belief, the first path wasn’t south to north. Instead, it was north to south.
The Second Middle Passage
As the United States began to expand, the demand for cotton led to an increase of slave trades in the country. Eager to capitalize, slave owners sold slaves into the deep south and west in the name of expanding the economy.
The Transatlantic Slave Trade
In the early 1500s, the transatlantic slave trade commenced. Europeans invaded west and central Africa, capturing free people, enslaving them, and placing them on ships as cargo. Conditions aboard these slave ships were horrendous,
The Birth of Hip Hop
In 1973, DJ Kool Herc set up his turntables and introduced a technique at a South Bronx house party that would change music as many people knew it. His ability to switch from record to record — as well as isolate and repeat music breaks — led to the d...
Marcus Garvey: Leader of a Revolutionary Global Movement
Be Woke Presents Black History in Two Minutes (or so)