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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
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THE JOURNEY THROUGH TIME
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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...

Katherine Johnson — Mathematics to the Moon

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.

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

Pink floral drop waist dress with belt and fabric scrap

Date
late 1920s
Created by
Unidentified
Subject of
Black Fashion Museum, American, 1979 - 2007
Description
A pink floral drop waist dress (a) with a belt (b) and fabric scrap (c). The dress (a) features a rounded neckline with a scalloped yoke made from two panels of blond lace – one for the front and one for the back. The yoke extends to the armscye, and neckline is edged with pink floral silk. One panel of pink floral silk chiffon makes up the front bodice, which has a U-shaped drop waist. Each sleeve is made from one panel of fabric, sewn to itself at the inner arm and has a single metal snap and a 2.75” vent at each sleeve end. Each sleeve also has a single fin-like extension made from one 9” panel of blond silk bobbin lace.
The skirt is composed of one panel of fabric seamed to itself at the center front. On top of the straight skirt panels are three tiers of scalloped pink floral silk chiffon. The top tier is 8.75” wide, the second tier is 10”, and the bottom layer, which is sewn to the bottom skirt hem, is 12” wide.
Inside of the dress, is a light pink silk crepe slip, and the construction of the slip mirrors that of the dress. Each strap (two on each side) is .75” wide, and the slip is machine stitched to the inside of the dress at the drop waist seam. Two panels of blond bobbin lace are sewn along the bottom slip hem and at the understand of the hem [WASHABLE CREPE] is stamped in black block letters. There is no brand label inside of the dress.
The matching belt (b) is made from one .75” panel of pink silk chiffon fabric which is about 44.5” long.
The pink silk chiffon floral fabric scrap is made from selvedge fabric and has unfinished edges. It’s about 40” long and 7” at the widest point.
Topic
African American
Clothing and dress
Design
Fashion
See more items in
National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
Collection title
Black Fashion Museum Collection
Classification
Clothing - Fashion and Historical
Credit Line
Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of the Black Fashion Museum founded by Lois K. Alexander-Lane
Data Source
National Museum of African American History and Culture
Object number
2007.3.856abc
Type
dresses
Restrictions & Rights
No known copyright restrictions
Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
Medium
silk chiffon, silk bobbin lace, silk georgette, and metal
Dimensions
Length (center back to hem): 51 in. (129.5 cm)
Width (shoulder to shoulder): 12 in. (30.5 cm)
Chest (full): 33 1/2 in. (85.1 cm)
Waist (full): 33 1/2 in. (85.1 cm)
Title
Object Name • Pink floral drop waist dress with belt and fabric scrap
Record ID
nmaahc_2007.3.856abc
Museum
NMAAHC
Title Sort
PINK FLORAL DROP WAIST DRESS WITH BELT AND FABRIC SCRAP
Source
National Museum of African American History and Culture
Metadata Usage
CC0
Date
1920s
Name
Black Fashion Museum
Topic
Design • Clothing and dress • Fashion
Culture
African Americans
Type
Dresses (garments)
Online Media Type
Images
Online Media Rights
No Known Copyright Restrictions

Media

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

NMAAHC

Broadside offering reward for the capture of Maria, Susan, and Harriet Johnson

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NMAAHC

Pink floral drop waist dress with belt and fabric scrap

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Description

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NMAAHC

Girl at Gee's Bend, Alabama

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Copy of press release for Scream music video

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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

Which Supreme Court case ruled state-sponsored public-school segregation unconstitutional?

Brown v. Board of Education in 1954.