November 18

Howard Thurman (November 18, 1899 - April 10, 1981) mentored Martin Luther King when King was a student at Boston University's Divinity School and Thurman was dean of Marsh Chapel. Thurman had also been a classmate of Martin Luther King, Sr., at Morehouse College, where Thurman graduated as valedictorian in 1923. He remained a spiritual advisor to King and others in the civil rights movement throughout his life, and his 1949 book Jesus and the Disinherited expresses much of the theology of the movement. Thurman is also known for founding San Francisco's Church for the Fellowship of All Peoples, the first racially integrated, intercultural church in the United States, serving as co-pastor with a white minister, Dr. Alfred Fisk. He held an MDiv degree from Colgate Rochester Theological Seminary and a doctorate from Haverford.

Birthdays

Harry Tyson Moore (November 18, 1905 – December 25, 1951) founded the first branch of the NAACP in Brevard County FL. He and his wife Harriette Vyda Simms Moore were killed by Ku Klux Klan bombers who blew up the Moores' home on Christmas night 1951, their 25th wedding anniversary. The Moores were the first NAACP members to be murdered and have been called the first martyrs of the 1950s-era civil rights movement.

Louis Emanuel Martin, Jr. (November 18, 1912 - January 6, 1997) served  as editor of the Chicago Defender and Michigan Chronicle as well as adviser to U.S. Presidents beginning with FDR. As part of Kennedy's campaign team he was instrumental in securing the African American vote, and after Kennedy's assassination he worked closely with LBJ on civil rights issues. He was a founder of the National Newspaper Publishers Association, a group of black newspaper publishers.

Hank Ballard (born John Henry Kendricks, November 18, 1927 - March 2, 2003) was a rhythm and blues singer and songwriter, the lead vocalist of Hank Ballard and The Midnighters and one of the first rock and roll artists to emerge in the early 1950s. He played an integral part in the development of the genre, releasing the hit singles "Work With Me, Annie" and answer songs "Annie Had a Baby" and "Annie's Aunt Fannie" with his Midnighters. He later wrote and recorded "The Twist" which spread the popularity of the dance and was notably covered by Chubby Checker. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990.

Donald Eugene (Don) Cherry (November 18, 1936 – October 19, 1995) was an American jazz trumpeter. Noted for his long association with saxophonist Ornette Coleman, which began in the late 1950s, Cherry also became a pioneer of world fusion music in the 1960s. During this period, he incorporated various ethnic styles into his playing. After relocating to Sweden in the 1970s, he continued to tour and play festivals throughout the world and worked with a wide variety of musicians.

Johnny DuPree (born November 18, 1953) is an American politician and member of the Democratic Party who currently serves as the mayor of Hattiesburg, Mississippi. He was the Democratic Party for Governor of Mississippi in 2011, but was defeated by Republican nominee Phil Bryant. He was the first African-American major party nominee for Governor in Mississippi since the Reconstruction era.

Michael B Coleman (born November 18, 1954) became the 52nd mayor and first African-American mayor of Columbus, Ohio. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from the University of Cincinnati and a Juris Doctor from the University of Dayton School of Law. He assumed office in 2000 and was re-elected to a fourth term in 2011.

Warren Moon (born November 18, 1956) went undrafted by the NLF despite being MVP of the 1978 Rose Bowl, leading the Washington Huskies to an upset victory over the favored Michigan Wolverines. He signed with the Edmonton Eskimos of the CFL, winning the league championship five straight years and being named league MVP his final season. In 1984 he was signed by the Houston Oilers where he played for 10 years, later playing in Minnesota, Seattle, and Kansas City. He was elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2006, becoming both the first Canadian Football Hall of Famer, first undrafted quarterback, and first African-American quarterback to be so honored; he was elected in his first year of eligibility.


Events

On November 18, 1803, the Battle of Vertières (Northern Haiti) is the last battle of the indigenous army against the powerful French army of Napoleon Bonaparte. It opposed the troops (about 2,000 men) commanded by French General Donatien to the indigenous independentist army of General Jean-Jacques Dessalines (about 27,000 men, including the 9th Brigade of commanded by François Capois), who won the final victory, forcing Rochambeau to capitulate.

On November 18, 1878, Marie Selika Williams (1849-1937) became the first African American entertainer to perform at the White House. She sang for President Rutherford B. Hayes and First Lady Lucy Webb Hayes in the Green Room, and was introduced by Frederick Douglass. Her performance included Verdi’s “Ernani, involami,” Thomas Moore's “The Last Rose of Summer,” Harrison Millard’s “Ave Maria,” and Richard Mulder’s “Staccato Polka.”

On November 18, 1879, the North Carolina Colored Industrial Association Fair opened in Raleigh at the site of what had been a military hospital. It was organized by Charles N. Hunter to showcase of African American achievement, but Hunter emphasized to reporters the importance of the support of prominent white people in bringing the fair about. In the end, however, it was race pride that made the fair an important part of North Carolina's Black community for nearly fifty years.

On November 18, 1977, Robert Chambliss was found guilty of the murder of Carol Denise McNair and sentenced to life imprisonment for her murder. Chambliss did appeal his conviction, citing that much of the evidence presented at his trial—including testimony relating to his activities within the Ku Klux Klan—was circumstantial; that the 14-year delay between the crime and his eventual trial violated his constitutional right to a speedy trial; and that this delay was a tactic used by the prosecution to gain an advantage over his own defense attorneys. This appeal was dismissed on May 22, 1979. Robert Chambliss died in the Lloyd Noland Hospital and Health Center on October 29, 1985, at the age of 81.

Photo Gallery

November 18, 1914. "Mrs. George Creel, baby of, portrait photograph." 

On November 18, 1949, Jackie Robinson was named the National League MVP

On November 18,1978, the NAACP’s Spingarn Medal was presented to
Ambassador Andrew J. Young “in recognition of the deftness with
which he has handled relations between this nation and other countries”

November 18,1972 Katherine Dunham, “The Enchantress,” served as stage director and choreographer of the Midwest premiere of Scott Joplin’s folk opera, Treemonisha, at Southern Illinois University.

On November 18,1980, Wally “Famous” Amos’ signature Panama hat and embroidered shirt were donated to the National Museum of American History’s Business Americana collection. It is the first memorabilia added to the collection by an African American entrepreneur 

November 18,1983 “Sweet Honey in the Rock,” a capella singers, perform their 10th anniversary reunion concert in Washington, DC.

18 November: 2010 - Nelson Mandela meets the South African and American football teams that played in the Mandela Challenge match

First Lady Michelle Obama meets with Harlem children at a
“Let’s Move” event at the New York Police Athletic Center, November 18, 2010

Seeking Humanity in the Barbarity of Brazil’s Slave Past by Jeremy Polacek on November 18, 2013

Publications

Howard University students photographed in their dorm by LIFE magazine in November 18, 1946 issue, page 111.

Howard University student reading, 1946. LIFE photo by Alfred Eisenstaedt. Howard was proud to be “America’s center of Negro learning” (LIFE, November 18, 1946). 

HowardUniversity football team is bolstered by Sophmore Bill Toles, 26, varsity center. Toles is a veteran, one of many on Howard's football team this autumn. - Life Magazine, November 18, 1946, page 114.

Carmen DeLavallade and Alvin Ailey Perform Together - Jet Magazine November 18, 1954

Jet Magazine Cover -- November 18, 1965
Flight attendant and Playboy Club singer Carol DiPasalegne

Wisdom of the Elders by Robert Fleming. $13.16. 368 pages.
Publisher: One World/Ballantine (November 18, 2009)

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