Africana Studies at Penn

06/17/2026

- 2007: Super Bowl XLI championship game marked the first time in National Football League history that two African American head coaches faced each other on the sport's biggest stage; Ghana celebrated 50 years of independence from British colonial rule with civil rights veterans, artists, and heads of state from across the African Diaspora; Corresponding with Slavery Remembrance Day, the International Slavery Museum opened its doors in Liverpool, England; In Jena, Louisiana, a series of racially charged altercations at a local high school led to the arrest and excessive charging of six Black teenagers, known as the "Jena Six", local activists used early internet blogs, Black radio networks, and campus organizing to amplify the case. 🗣️

These important moments in Black American History took place in 2007, what others would you spotlight?

06/17/2026

In her new book, media scholar Sarah J. Jackson () highlights how Black writers, filmmakers, and journalists have pushed America to live up to its ideals of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all. - read this from Penn Today

06/17/2026

In her new book, media scholar Sarah J. Jackson highlights how Black writers, filmmakers, and journalists have pushed America to live up to its ideals of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all. - read this from Penn Today

In her new book, Annenberg School for Communication professor Sarah J. Jackson traces how historical and contemporary writers, journalists, and filmmakers have strengthened the promise of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

06/16/2026

- 2006: Tarana Burke, who coined the phrase "Me Too" in discussing sexual violence, founded the nonprofit organization Just Be Inc.; the Fannie Lou Hamer, Rosa Parks, and Coretta Scott King Voting Rights Act Reauthorization and Amendments Act is signed into law; Harvard-educated economist Ellen Johnson Sirleaf took the oath of office as the President of Liberia; Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie published the epic historical novel Half of a Yellow Sun; and African American and Black immigrant activists founded the Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI) in Oakland, California. ✊🏽

These important moments in Black American History took place in 2006, what others would you spotlight?

06/16/2026

Vaughn A. Booker, Associate Professor of Africana Studies, investigates the history and diversity of 20th-century African American religions. Learn more about his working exploring, "What does it actually mean to believe in something?” in the new Spring/Summer 2026 issue of OMNIA by Penn Arts & Sciences

Vaughn A. Booker, Associate Professor of Africana Studies, investigates the history and diversity of 20th-century African American religions.

06/15/2026

- 2005: Condoleezza Rice sworn in as the 66th United States Secretary of State; the day the levees broke- Hurricane Katrina made landfall on the US Gulf Coast, breaching levees and flooding historic Black neighborhoods like the Lower Ninth Ward; pioneering civil rights activist Rosa Parks died at the age of 92 and was buried in the US Capitol Rotunda.

These important moments in Black American History took place in 2005, what others would you spotlight?

06/14/2026

- 2004: Afro-Latina swimmer Maritza Correia McClendon becomes first African American woman to secure an Olympic medal in swimming history, The release of Hotel Rwanda sparks global acclaim and lasting historical debate, Kenyan environmentalist and political activist Wangari Maathai accepts Nobel Peace Prize, Illinois State Senator Barack Obama delivered a historic keynote speech titled "The Audacity of Hope", and Bill Cosby delivered his controversial "Pound Cake" speech during an NAACP awards ceremony that was set up to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision.

These important moments in Black American History took place in 2004, what others would you spotlight?

06/14/2026

- 2003: The African Union formally integrates global communities of African descent into its governance structure, The United States Supreme Court issued a landmark 5–4 judicial ruling in Grutter v. Bollinger, Atlanta Hip-Hop duo OutKast released Speakerbo###/The Love Below which resulted in a commercial and artistic peak for Southern hip-hop and an Album of the Year award, a major rebellion erupts in the western Darfur region of Sudan, and Edward P. Jones published The Known World, a vast novel exploring the complex social structures of antebellum Virginia.

These important moments in Black American History took place in 2003, what others would you spotlight?

06/12/2026

- 2002: OAU dissolves and the African Union is launched with stronger mandates to enforce economic integration, intervene in regional conflicts, and coordinate continental public health campaigns; and Halle Berry became the first Black woman to win the Academy Award for Best Actress.

These important moments in Black American History took place in 2002, what others would you spotlight?

06/11/2026

- 2001: The Durban Conference, Ghana-born Kofi Annan accepts Nobel Peace Prize, the effects of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and sustained protests and economic boycotts for justice on behalf of Amadou Diallo.

These important moments in Black American History took place in 2001, what others would you spotlight?