When I spoke at book signings for my first book, I found that people, in general, knew very little about many of the African Americans that I had on the display board. Thus, this second book in “The Black History Bowl” series was written to make people aware of the contributions that African Americans have made to American and World history.
The African American history quiz that is included in the book is divided into eight (8) sections. Each section begins with a worksheet. The worksheet is followed by short biographies of the African American history contributors. There is an answer sheet at the end of each section. In addition, note sheets have been included with each biography for you to use to take notes when researching and gathering information. Additional information on each African American can be found on the web site that is listed at the bottom of the page after the biography.
Also, included in this book is information on some points of interest that I think are important to the knowledge base of the average American. The information includes the African American holiday of Kwanzaa, the NAACP’s Spingarn Medal, and information on Juneteenth (the actual day when all slaves were freed). In addition, this book includes a section for Women’s History Month which highlights African American women from my first book. A timeline of African American history is also included.
It is hoped that you will enjoy reading the book as you continue to enrich your knowledge of the contributions that African Americans have made to history.
ISBN: 9781598585490
352 pages
The Black History Bowl - Mini Biographies of African Americans
Summary
The Black History Bowl: A Mini Quiz-Guide through Black History, Vol. II
We, as a race, are starting to lose identity with our past. We have been given one month, February, the shortest month of the year to honor our history. The intent of this book is to tweak the interest of children and adults to study black history twelve months a year.
Unfortunately, with the TV, video game, cell phones, etc. people have lost the art of relaxing by reading books. We live in a fast-paced society where we get our news from the television, internet and radio which give us snippets of information. We have been conditioned that if we want to know more about the topic to go to the website.
That is where this book comes into play. I have provided a few facts about some famous black Americans. It is hoped that today’s African Americans who may have a difficult time identifying with United States history will read a fact about a famous black American from this book and will want to know more about the person. It is anticipated that they will use the internet, a periodical, a newspaper, a biography, an autobiography or another book to learn more.
Perhaps you are thinking, why is the study of black history so important? Well, let’s think for a minute. We take all the things that we enjoy today for granted. We need to make sure that we all know the sacrifices that were made to provide the opportunities that we enjoy today. For example, we have the right to vote; we are able to attend integrated public schools; we are able to eat in any restaurant; and we are able to sit anywhere we want on the bus. Without the efforts of people like Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks, Fannie Lou Hamer, A. Philip Randolph, and Thurgood Marshall, we would not be able to reap the benefits of these rights.
Remember, just because we have certain rights today, we have not always had them. We assume that our right to vote will never be taken away from us. Just recently, it was made public that for us (African Americans) to continue to have the right to vote, Congress must vote and pass the Voting Rights Act to extend it.
Our children are our future. Let's make sure they know their past in order to ensure that they do not “end-up” lost. Marcus Garvey said, “A people without knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots.”
Dr. Cadmus “Sam” Hull