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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
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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.

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BLACK FACTS
The Truths They Never Taught You...

The Violence That Helped Spark the NAACP

In August 1908, a white mob attacked Springfield, Illinois’s Black community, destroying homes and businesses and lynching two Black men. National outrage over the violence helped spur the movement that created the NAACP the following year.

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BHP gathered finds from its connected research sources. Showing the 4 strongest Black History matches.
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NMAAHC

Brown fringed suede jacket worn by Arthur Lee

Date
ca. 2000
Created by
Unidentified
Worn by
Arthur Lee, American, 1945 - 2006
Description
This western-style brown fringed suede jacket was worn by Arthur Lee. The single-breasted jacket has full-length sleeves and a standard collar. The front opening is folded and pressed to create a lapel. The jacket closes at the center front with four (4) black plastic buttons. Black leather strips are braided and sewn through the brown suede in a chevron pattern across the front chest and back shoulders. Brown suede fringe hangs from the braided design on the front and back, and is attached at both sleeves around the inset shoulder seam and along the outer sleeve seam. There are two (2) diagonally set welted pockets, one at each front waist. Triangular black fabric patches with white and black triangular beaded designs are sewn at the top and bottom edge of each pocket opening, totaling four (4) triangular patches. Rectangular black fabric patches with a rectangular beaded geometric design in black and white are attached with black braided leather sewn through the brown suede at each shoulder, totaling two (2) rectangular patches. Circular black fabric patches with a circular beaded geometric design in black and white are attached at each outer sleeve near the wrist with black braided leather sewn through the brown suede, totaling two (2) circular patches. There is a third circular patch of the same design and attachment method at the center back shoulders above the fringe.
The jacket is fully lined in a gold synthetic fabric. There is one (1) interior welted pocket at the proper left breast with the welts made from the tan suede. A black fabric label is sewn at the interior center back neck with a logo in the upper right corner of a green "W" outlined in silver thread and silver embroidered text reading "REAL LEATHER". A size tag is attached to the bottom of the larger label.
Topic
African American
Clothing and dress
Instrumentalists (Musicians)
Rock and roll (Music)
Singers (Musicians)
See more items in
National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
Classification
Clothing - Costume
Credit Line
Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of Diane Lee in memory of Arthur Taylor Lee
Data Source
National Museum of African American History and Culture
Object number
2014.41.2
Type
jackets
Restrictions & Rights
No Known Copyright Restrictions
Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
Medium
suede, leather, glass beads, and plastic buttons
Dimensions
H x W x D (On form): 34 1/4 × 21 × 13 in. (87 × 53.3 × 33 cm)
Title
Object Name • Brown fringed suede jacket worn by Arthur Lee
Record ID
nmaahc_2014.41.2
Museum
NMAAHC
Title Sort
BROWN FRINGED SUEDE JACKET WORN BY ARTHUR LEE
Source
National Museum of African American History and Culture
Metadata Usage
CC0
Date
2000s • 1990s
Name
Lee, Arthur
Topic
Rock and roll (Music) • Clothing and dress • Instrumentalists (Musicians) • Singers (Musicians)
Culture
African Americans
Type
jackets
Online Media Rights
No Known Copyright Restrictions

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

NMAAHC

Harmonica used by Arthur Lee

Date: Date

Description

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NMAAHC

Straw cowboy hat with feathered hat band worn by Arthur Lee

Date: Date

Description

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NMAAHC

Brown fringed suede jacket worn by Arthur Lee

Date: Date

Description

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NMAAHC

Portrait of Annie Lee Taylor holding Geneva Taylor

Date: Date

Caption

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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.

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TRIVIA QUESTION OF THE DAY

Who was the first African-American woman millionaire in the United States?

Madam C.J. Walker