Breath Of My Ancestors Minute 3-17-17

On this day March 17, 1806 Norbert Rillieux was born free in New Orleans Louisana. He was an African American scientist and engineer who’s patented inventions revolutionized sugar refining. Studying at L’École Centrale, in France, He became the school’s youngest instructor in the field of applied mechanics. Rillieux returned to Louisiana in 1840 and patented the multiple-effect vacuum pan evaporator, which  revolutionized the sugar industry and also escalated production of soap, gelatin, and glue. Some have called Rillieux’s evaporator ‘the greatest invention in the history of American chemical engineering.’ This has been another Breath of My Ancestors Minute w/Ty Gray-EL…

Breath Of My Ancestors Minute 3-16-17

On this date March 16, 1827, the Freedom’s Journal newspaper was founded. It was the first Black-owned and operated newspaper in the United States.

Published in New York City, the paper refuted fake news and racist commentary in the mainstream press. The journal was established the same year that slavery was abolished in New York State. Samuel E. Cornish and John B. Russwurm served as its editors. The Journal provided news of current events, anecdotes, and editorials to encourage Black achievement, it featured biographies of renowned black achievers like Paul Cuffee, Touissant L’Ouverture, and poet Phyllis Wheatley. This has been another Breath of My Ancestors Minute w/Ty Gray-EL…We Must Never Forget

Breath Of My Ancestors Minute 3-15-17

On this day…March 15, in 1738 the first recorded free black African settlement was established at Fort Mose in St. Augustine Florida, one of the original depots on the southern route of the Underground Railroad. Spaniards, Native Americans and Free Black Africans lived in relative harmony with over 100 black people forming the frontier community. More than a century before the Emancipation Proclamation, enslaved Africans from the British colonies were able to travel the original “Underground Railroad” which headed not to the north, but rather south to freedom back when Florida was a Spanish colony. This has been another Breath of My Ancestors Minute w/Ty Gray-EL…We Must Never Forget

Breath Of My Ancestors Minute 3-14-17

On this day…March 14, 1977 the human rights movement lost an icon. Voting rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer passed away from cancer at the tender age of 59. She will always be remembered for her stirring political rhetoric and her tireless efforts in helping the poor of Mississippi. She co-founded the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party in 1964 which was established to challenge Mississippi’s all-white anti-civil rights delegation. She will fondly be remembered for coining the phrase, “I’m sick and tired of being sick and tired.” This has been a Breath of My Ancestors Minute w/Ty Gray-EL…We Must Never Forget.

Breath Of My Ancestors Minute 3-13-17

On this day…March 13, 1773 - Jean Baptiste du Sable established the first permanent American settlement in the area now known as Chicago, Illinois. This courageous African merchant explorer also established trading posts at present day Peoria, Illinois; Port Huron, Michigan; and Michigan City, Indiana. Du Sable's log cabin home, formerly located at 401 North Michigan Avenue, became a national historic landmark and is considered a part of Chicago’s Magnificent Mile. The Native Americans of the area revered him for his superior exploring skills. This has been a Breath of My Ancestor Minute w/Ty Gray-EL …We Must Never Forget.

Breath of My Ancestors Minute 3-12-17

On this day…Mar 12, 1791 - Benjamin Banneker was commissioned to lay out Washington D.C. Most of the credit for the survey, design and construction of our nation’s capital is given to Pierre L’Enfant.

It is a little known fact that a black man of African descent is principally responsible for the layout and construction of the District of Columbia.



Benjamin Banneker was an Astrologer, Astronomer, a Master Mathematician and the first known black man to publicly protest slavery in his prolific letter to then president, Thomas Jefferson. This has been a Breath Of My Ancestors Minute w/Ty Gray-EL…We Must Never Forget.

Breath Of My Ancestors Minute 3-11-17

On this day March 11, 1959 Lorraine Hansberry’s landmark play “A Raisin In the Sun” opened on broadway. The title of the play comes from the seminal poem by Langston Hughes called “Harlem”. He ask, ‘What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore and then run? Does it stink like rotten meat or crust and sugar over like a syrupy sweet? Maybe it just sags like a heavy load or does it just explode? 

Its time to redeem our deferred dreams…this has been a Breath of My Ancestor Minute w/Ty Gray-EL …We Must Never Forget