q2K BHP
Black History Portal
THE BHP WIRE —
HIDDEN TRUTHS
GREENWOOD / BLACK WALL STREET WILMINGTON 1898 LITTLE ROCK NINE TUSKEGEE STUDY ROSEWOOD 1923 THE TUSKEGEE AIRMEN SENECA VILLAGE BLACK TOWNS GREENWOOD / BLACK WALL STREET WILMINGTON 1898 LITTLE ROCK NINE TUSKEGEE STUDY ROSEWOOD 1923 THE TUSKEGEE AIRMEN SENECA VILLAGE BLACK TOWNS
What's New!
THE JOURNEY THROUGH TIME
BHP HOME BEFORE AMERICA 1800–1936 1937–1957 1958–1980 1981–2000 2001–PRESENT

Explore Black History

Explore the people, places, events, achievements, struggles and stories that shaped our journey.

✊🏾

Civil Rights

Movements, leaders, victories and the continuing fight for equality.

⚙️

Black Inventors

Innovation, patents, science, technology and world-changing contributions.

🏆

Sports

Pioneers, champions, Negro Leagues, records, activism and excellence.

♟️

People

Meet the people whose lives, choices and achievements shaped the journey.

📍

Places

Black towns, communities, institutions and places where history happened.

📜

Events

Moments that changed communities, movements, institutions and the nation.

Enter a person, place, event, or topic.
MY'STORY

The MOVE Fire

This is a personal recollection on the Move fire on May 13, 1985 Philadelphia police fired thousands of rounds at the MOVE house, city officials approved dropping an explosive device on the roof, the resulting fire was allowed to burn, 11 people—including five children—died, and 61 homes were destroyed. Philadelphia City Council later called it a “brutal attack carried out by the City of Philadelphia on its own citizens” and acknowledged that no individual faced criminal consequences for the bombing. One timeline correction worth preserving for the BHP record: the major previous MOVE-police confrontation was August 8, 1978, about seven years before the bombing, not a year or two earlier. Officer James Ramp was killed, other police and firefighters were wounded, nine MOVE members were later convicted, and television cameras recorded police beating Delbert Africa during his arrest. The 1985 MOVE Commission later specifically criticized city planners for failing to adequately use lessons from that 1978 confrontation. And that actually strengthens the point you’re making: 1985 did not happen without precedent or institutional memory. There had already been a deadly confrontation with MOVE, years of conflict, negotiations and police involvement before Osage Avenue.

MORE →
BLACK FACTS
The Truths They Never Taught You...

Shirley Chisholm — Unbought and Unbossed

In 1968 Shirley Chisholm became the first Black woman elected to the United States Congress. In 1972 she launched a campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination, breaking another political barrier.

MORE →
BHP gathered finds from its connected research sources. Showing the 4 strongest Black History matches.
← BACK TO RESULTS
NMAAHC

Fania Davis, Ph.D., Oral History Interview

Date
November 16, 2023
Created by
National Museum of African American History and Culture, American, founded 2003
Recorded by
Trudy Hutcherson, American
Candace Dane Chambers, American
Interviewed by
Kailyn L. Bailey
Interview of
Fania E. Davis Ph.D., American, born 1947
Subject of
Sallye Bell Davis, American, 1914 - 2007
16th Street Baptist Church, American, founded 1873
Swarthmore Collge, American, founded 1864
Black Panther Party, American, 1966 - 1982
Angela Y. Davis, American, born 1944
University of California, Berkeley, American, founded 1868
California Institute of Integral Studies, American, founded 1968
Jonathan Jackson, American, 1953 - 1970
Vusamazulu Credo Mutwa, South African, 1921 - 2020
Howard University, American, founded 1867
Restorative Justice for Oakland Youth, American, founded 2005
Description
An oral history interview and conversation with restorative justice advocate Dr. Fania Davis. It consists of three versions of a digital video recording, two camera card files (2025.12.10.1.1 and 2025.12.10.1.2, .mxf files) and one edited file (2025.12.10.1.3, .mov file).
Dr. Fania Davis was interviewed by Howard University student Kailyn Bailey on November 16, 2023, as part of the Social Justice Conversations Oral History Project. The interview took place at the offices of Restorative Justice for Oakland Youth in Oakland, California. At the time of the interview, Dr. Davis was 76 years old.
This oral history interview consists of two distinct sections: an “interview” section (part 1) and a “conversation” section (part 2, 00:54:50). In part 1, Dr. Fania Davis describes her early life in Birmingham, Alabama, including living with segregation and the “games of resistance” she and her sister played as children despite the risk of lynchings. She talks about her experiences living with a white family in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, as part of a Quaker program for high school students. Davis recounts learning about the death of two of her friends in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing and what is was like to grow up in “Bombingham” and the racial terror campaigns carried out by the Ku Klux Klan. She also discusses her early activist experiences and her time at Swarthmore College and her move to California before briefly touching on her experience with domestic violence and relating the police shooting in her California apartment and being charged with the attempted murder of a police officer. She discusses her political activism and being a member of the Black Panther Party in California, the Angela Davis case, traveling to Cuba, the Soledad Brothers, and her motivations for becoming a civil rights attorney. In part 2, Dr. Davis reflects on her time as a civil rights lawyer, her transition into graduate school, her time studying in various African countries, and discovering the field of restorative justice. Bailey reflects on her own spiritual journey, African spirituality, and her work with Howard University’s Kwame Ture Society. Dr. Davis and Bailey further discuss tending to relationships, healing circles, possibilities of healing, and the power of love.
Place filmed
Oakland, Alameda County, California, United States, North and Central America
Place depicted
Birmingham, Jefferson County, Alabama, United States, North and Central America
Place captured
Glen Ridge, Essex County, New Jersey, United States, North and Central America
Swarthmore, Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States, North and Central America
Berkeley, Alameda County, California, United States, North and Central America
Cuba, Caribbean, Latin America, North and Central America
San Francisco, San Francisco county, California, United States, North and Central America
South Africa, Africa
Washington, District of Columbia, United States, North and Central America
Oakland, Alameda County, California, United States, North and Central America
Topic
African American
Activism
Baptist
Black power
Civil Rights
Communities
Education
Families
HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Universities)
Justice
Law
Lynching
Police brutality
Prisons
Race discrimination
Resistance
Spirituality
Travel
U.S. History, 1961-1969
U.S. History, 2001-
Violence
See more items in
National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
Collection title
Social Justice Conversations Oral History Project
Classification
Time-based Media - Moving Images
Movement
Civil Rights Movement
Black Power (Black Pride)
African American - Latinx Solidarity
Credit Line
Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
Data Source
National Museum of African American History and Culture
Object number
2025.12.10.1
Type
video recordings
oral histories
digital media - born digital
Restrictions & Rights
© Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
Medium
digital
Dimensions
Duration (2025.12.10.1.3, edited): 1 hr., 53 min., 38 sec.
File size: 184 GB
Title
Title • Fania Davis, Ph.D., Oral History Interview
Record ID
nmaahc_2025.12.10.1
Museum
NMAAHC
Title Sort
FANIA DAVIS, PH.D., ORAL HISTORY INTERVIEW
Source
National Museum of African American History and Culture
Metadata Usage
CC0
Date
2020s • 1940s
Name
Davis, Fania E. • University of California, Berkeley • Chambers, Candace Dane • Restorative Justice for Oakland Youth • Hutcherson, Trudy • California Institute of Integral Studies • 16th Street Baptist Church • Swarthmore Collge • Davis, Sallye Bell • Jackson, Jonathan • Bailey, Kailyn L. • Black Panther Party • Howard University • National Museum of African American History and Culture • Mutwa, Vusamazulu Credo • Davis, Angela Y.
Place
District of Columbia • Alameda County • United States • Essex County • Glen Ridge • Swarthmore • San Francisco county • Berkeley • California • Oakland • Alabama • Birmingham • New Jersey • Washington • Pennsylvania • Latin America • San Francisco • Cuba • North and Central America • Jefferson County • Delaware County • South Africa • Caribbean
Topic
Justice • Description and travel • Spirituality • Activism • Police brutality • Law • Communities • Violence • HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) • Civil Rights • U.S. History, 1961-1969 • Black Power (Black Pride) • Black power • Prisons • Resistance • African American - Latinx Solidarity • Discrimination • Education • Race • Lynching • Family • Civil rights • U.S. History, 2001-
Culture
Baptists • African Americans
Geo Location
City • Oakland • County • Alameda County • State • California • Country • United States • Continent • North and Central America • City • Birmingham • County • Jefferson County • State • Alabama • City • Glen Ridge • County • Essex County • State • New Jersey • City • Swarthmore • County • Delaware County • State • Pennsylvania • City • Berkeley • Country • Cuba • Subregion • Caribbean • Region • Latin America • City • San Francisco • County • San Francisco county • Country • South Africa • Continent • Africa • City • Washington • State • District of Columbia
Type
Video recordings • digital media - born digital • Oral histories (document genres) • Interviews
Online Media Type
Video recordings
Online Media Rights
Copyright Owned

Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture, Smithsonian Institution. Rights and restrictions shown above are supplied by the Smithsonian record.

No preview image
NMAAHC

Fania Davis, Ph.D., Oral History Interview

Date: Date

Description

MORE →
No preview image
NMAAHC

Angela Davis speaks to the press at a press conference following her release on bail during her trial. L-R: Howard Moore (lawyer), Fania Jordan (sister), Angela. Franklin Alexander stands behind Angela, San Jose, February, 1972

Date: Date

Description

MORE →
No preview image
NMAAHC

Angela Davis with her sister Fania Jordan and Fania’s baby, San Jose, 1972

Date: Date

Description

MORE →
No preview image
NMAAHC

Jersey for Women's United Soccer Association All-Star team worn by Briana Scurry

Date: Date

Description

MORE →
TOPIC OF THE DAY

Greenwood / Black Wall Street

Before the 1921 destruction of Tulsa’s Greenwood District, Black residents had created a remarkable center of business and community life. The district included stores, professional offices, entertainment venues and homes owned by Black citizens. Understanding Greenwood means learning what was built—not only what was burned.

MORE →
TRIVIA QUESTION OF THE DAY

Which heavyweight champion was known as the “Brown Bomber”?

Joe Louis.