This Week In Black History

March 31, 1988

Toni Morrison wins Pulitzer Prize for Beloved. April 1, 1950 – Charles R. Drew, who developed techniques for processing and preserving blood, died.

April 2, 1984

Georgetown coach John Thompson becomes first Black coach to win NCAA basketball tournament.

April 3, 1826

Poet-orator James Madison Bell, author of the Emancipation Day poem “The Day and the War”, born.

April 4, 1968

Martin Luther King, Jr. assassinated.

April 5, 1951

Washington, DC Municipal Court of Appeals outlawed segregation in restaurants.

April 6, 1909

Matthew A. Henson reaches the North Pole, 45 minutes before Commander Peary