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Movements, leaders, victories and the continuing fight for equality.
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Explore the people, places, events, achievements, struggles and stories that shaped our journey.
Movements, leaders, victories and the continuing fight for equality.
Innovation, patents, science, technology and world-changing contributions.
Pioneers, champions, Negro Leagues, records, activism and excellence.
Meet the people whose lives, choices and achievements shaped the journey.
Black towns, communities, institutions and places where history happened.
Moments that changed communities, movements, institutions and the nation.
Katherine Johnson’s mathematical calculations helped guide some of America’s most important early space missions while she confronted the racial and gender barriers faced by Black women in twentieth-century America.
MORE →Reflects the personal views, recollections, and perspective of the author, Mike Davis.
This is a personal recollection on the Move fire on May 13, 1985
The Nissan GT-R (Gran Turismo–Racing; model code: R35; Japanese: 日産・GT-R; Nissan GT-R) is a sports car, built by Japanese marque Nissan from 2007 to 2025. It has a 2+2 seating layout and is also considered a grand tourer. The engine is front-mid mounted and drives all four wheels. It succeeded the Nissan Skyline GT-R, a high-performance variant of the Nissan Skyline. Although this model was the sixth-generation to bear the GT-R name, it was no longer part of the Skyline line-up. The car was built on the PM platform, derived from the FM platform used in the Skyline and Nissan Z models. Production was conducted in a shared production line at Nissan's Tochigi plant in Japan. As per Nissan's intention of creating a world beating sports car, the GT-R brand was revived as part of the Nissan Revival Plan. Overall development began in 2000, following seven years of development and testing, including the introduction of two concept models in 2001 and 2005. The production version of the GT-R was unveiled at the 2007 Tokyo Motor Show. The GT-R was a brand-new car built on the PM platform, and featured innovative concepts and technologies, such as advanced aerodynamics, the VR38DETT engine, an active suspension system and the ATTESA E-TS Pro all-wheel-drive system; it is the first ever rear mounted independent transaxle all-wheel-drive vehicle. It was one of the first production cars to feature launch control and a dual-clutch transmission. The overall body was made out of steel, aluminium and carbon-fibre. Unlike its predecessors, the GT-R was offered worldwide. It received various facelifts and updates comparable with the competition, and several special editions were offered during its prolonged production span. The car is used in motorsports, notably winning championships in the FIA GT1 World Championship, Super GT and in various GT3 racing series, including the GT World Challenge. It is well received among enthusiasts and automotive publications, British motor magazine Top Gear claimed it as "one of the most incredible cars of any kind ever built", due to its exceptional performance and practicality given at an affordable price. Listed among the fastest production cars—as it set the record for the fastest accelerating four-seater production car—it has won numerous notable accolades such as the World Performance Car of The Year among many others. In 2021, sales in the Australian market were discontinued due to new side impact regulations. The European market, including the United Kingdom, were also suspended, with new noise regulations. Followed by the suspension of sales in North America in 2024, sales in Japan and other markets remained until late-August 2025, ending production of the GT-R after 18 years and around 48,000 units were produced.
The Nissan GT-R LM Nismo is a sports prototype racing car built by the Nissan Motor Company and their motorsports division Nismo. Designed for the Le Mans Prototype 1 (LMP1) regulations of the FIA World Endurance Championship and the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the GT-R LM was unique amongst Le Mans Prototypes at the time for utilizing a front-wheel drive, front mid-engine layout for its internal combustion engine, as opposed to the rear mid-engine layout used by nearly all other competitors in the category. In addition to the engine's drive to the front wheels, a powerful flywheel-based kinetic energy recovery system regenerated energy from front wheel braking, which could be fed to a complex auxiliary rear-wheel drive system. The GT-R LM Nismo was Nissan's first prototype chassis since the R391 in 1999, although the company had developed engines in recent years. The car was branded after the Nissan GT-R road car and shares similar engine and drivetrain configurations, but is not related to the sports car. The GT-R LM Nismo program was announced on 23 May 2014, while the car was publicly shown for the first time in a Nissan commercial during Super Bowl XLIX on 1 February 2015. It was retired from competition at the end of 2015, after having only competed unsuccessfully at the 2015 24 Hours of Le Mans.
The Nissan GT-R has established notable success in global motorsport, continuing its predecessor's motorsport pedigree, with success across various racing disciplines—most notably in Super GT, FIA GT1 World Championship, and across various Group GT3 competitions. It has achieved multiple championship victories, across various formats, with support from both manufacturer and customer teams worldwide. In Super GT, the GT-R made an immediate impact upon its 2008 debut in the GT500 class, winning seven of nine races and securing the drivers' championship in its debut season. Momentum continued with back-to-back titles in 2011 and 2012, followed by further championship triumphs in 2014 and 2015. Having retired from the series in 2021, the GT-R still holds the record for most titles and race wins in Super GT/JGTC history. In the GT300 class, the GT-R Nismo GT3 has proven to be equally successful, earning a record three championship doubles (drivers’ and teams’ titles) in 2015, 2020, and 2022 seasons. It continues to compete actively through customer teams. Internationally, the GT-R achieved notable success in the FIA GT1 World Championship, debuting in 2009 and gaining further success in the following seasons. The car claimed the 2010 RAC Tourist Trophy and secured the 2011 drivers’ championship with JR Motorsports before the series folded in 2012. Success continued with the GT-R Nismo GT3 in Group GT3 racing, notably capturing GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup titles in 2013 and 2015, before concluding its international campaign in 2017. Domestically, in Japan’s Super Taikyu Series, the car holds a record six championships. It remains actively campaigned in the GT World Challenge Asia and the SRO Japan Cup through customer racing teams. Beyond these series, the GT-R has competed across a wide range of motorsport arenas. It has achieved class wins at events such as Targa Tasmania and Targa West, and also won the One Lap of America in 2009, finishing second in 2010. The car has appeared in regional GT championships and global endurance events, notably winning the 2015 Bathurst 12 Hour, 2011 and 2012 24 Hours of Nürburgring races in the SP8T class. The GT-R has a renowned aftermarket tuning community. Its superior tunability has led to record-setting performances across various disciplines, including notable successes in drag racing and international drifting events.
The Nissan Skyline GT-R (Japanese: 日産・スカイラインGT-R, Hepburn: Nissan Sukairain GT-R) is a Japanese grand tourer based on the Nissan Skyline range. The first cars named "Skyline GT-R" were produced between 1969 and 1972 under the model code KPGC10, and were successful in Japanese touring car racing events. This model was followed by a brief production run of second-generation cars, under model code KPGC110, in 1973. After a 16-year hiatus, the GT-R name was revived in 1989 as the BNR32 ("R32") Skyline GT-R. Group A specification versions of the R32 GT-R were used to win the Japanese Touring Car Championship for four years in a row. The R32 GT-R also had success in the Australian Touring Car Championship, with Jim Richards using it to win the championship in 1991 and Mark Skaife doing the same in 1992, until a regulation change excluded the GT-R in 1993. The technology and performance of the R32 GT-R prompted the Australian motoring publication Wheels to nickname the GT-R "Godzilla" in its July 1989 edition. Wheels then carried the name through all the generations of Skyline GT-Rs, most notably the R34 GT-R, which they nicknamed "Godzilla Returns", and described as "The best handling car we have ever driven". In tests conducted by automotive publications, the R34 GT-R covered a quarter of a mile (402 metres) in 12.2 seconds from a standing start time and accelerated from 0–100 km/h (0–62 mph) in 4.4 seconds. The Skyline GT-R became the flagship of Nissan performance, showing many advanced technologies including the ATTESA E-TS all-wheel drive system and the Super-HICAS four-wheel steering. Today, the car is popular for import drag racing, circuit track, time attack and events hosted by tuning magazines. Production of the Skyline GT-R ended in August 2002. The car was replaced by the GT-R (R35), an all-new vehicle based on an enhanced version of the Skyline V36 platform. Although visibly different, the two vehicles share similar design features and are manufactured in the same factory. The Skyline GT-R was never manufactured outside Japan, and the sole export markets were Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand, in 1991, and the UK (in 1997, due to the Single Vehicle Approval scheme). They are also popular across the world as used Japanese imports. The Skyline GT-R has become an iconic sports car as a grey import in the Western world (mainly the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Ireland, Canada, and the United States). It has become notable through pop culture such as The Fast and the Furious, Initial D, Shakotan Boogie, Tokyo Xtreme Racer, Wangan Midnight, Need for Speed, Forza, Driving Emotion Type-S, Test Drive, and Gran Turismo. In 2019, Nismo announced that it would resume production of spare parts for all generations of the Skyline GT-R, including body panels and engines.
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 →Brown v. Board of Education in 1954.