Members of the Negro-Caucasian Club, 1926-27
June 28, 2021
The Negro-Caucasian Club
The Negro-Caucasian Club’s aim was “to work for a better understanding between the races and for the abolition of discrimination against Negroes.”
Every Name Has A Story
We invite you to read stories spotlighting the exceptional men and women whose legacies and accomplishments at U-M have been too long in the shadows.
Black Action Movement demonstration in front of Hill Auditorium, 1970.
Baseball’s Barrier Breaker
Before Jackie Robinson, there was Moses Fleetwood Walker, who would use the racism and discrimination he faced in baseball to fuel a career as an editor, author, and political advocate for Black rights.
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January 28, 2021
An Unwritten Law
In 1930, every one of the 450 women who would be housed in the new Mosher-Jordan dorm would be white. African American students, parents, and alumni carried out a long battle to integrate the dorms, engaging in years of activism.
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Mary Henrietta Graham was likely the first female Black student at U-M.
January 10, 2021
Of Splendid Ability
Mary Henrietta Graham’s accomplishments went far beyond being the first Black woman to enroll at Michigan.
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DeHart Hubbard (23 in the photo) with his teammates on the Michigan track squad, 1925.
January 5, 2021
Lonely as Hell
In a forgotten series of interviews, Black Michigan athletes of the past recalled times when racial lines in sports were firm — then faded.
IN THEIR OWN WORDS
Autobiographies and Biographies
Several African American alumni have published books about their personal stories, both at U-M and beyond.
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Scribner, 1993 James Earl Jones and Penelope Niven:Voices and Silences
James Earl Jones is one of America’s most distinguished and versatile actors with a career in film and theater stretching over more than six decades.
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Michigan Publishing, 2017 James L. Curtis:Memoirs of a Black Psychiatrist: A Life of Advocacy for Social Change
James L. Curtis is an accomplished psychiatrist and was a leading figure in the struggle to end racism and segregation in medicine and particularly medical schools.
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Immortal Investments Publishing, 2005 Dr. Billy Taylor and Kevin AllenGet Back Up: The Billy Taylor Story
One of Michigan’s most celebrated football players, William Taylor was buffeted by numerous personal tragedies and spent nearly 20 years living on Detroit’s streets before rebuilding his life and becoming an educator.
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Orangeburg, South Carolina, 1971 Lawrence Chesterfield Bryant:Autobiography of Lawrence C. Bryant
Lawrence Chesterfield Bryant taught at historically Black colleges across the South and organized the first genealogical programs for African Americans in the Carolinas.
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Howard University Press, 1983 Lyman Beecher Brooks:Upward: A History of Norfolk State University
Lyman Beecher Brooks dedicated his life to education and to historically Black Norfolk State University, which he led for nearly 40 years.
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University Press of Kentucky, 1988 Lyman Johnson and Wade Hall:The Rest of the Dream: The Black Odyssey of Lyman Johnson
Lyman Johnson was an educator and a key leader in the fight for civil rights in Kentucky for more than 40 years.
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University of Georgia Press, 2021 Mary Frances Early:The Quiet Trailblazer
Mary Frances Early was a celebrated musical educator and committed “foot soldier” in the struggle for civil rights, becoming the first Black graduate of the University of Georgia.
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Self-Published, 2013 Sylvia Lash Holman:Being Black, Looking White ... My World
Sylvia Lash Holman’s extraordinary life has taken her from segregated North Carolina to Ann Arbor where she spent decades as a teacher and advocate for educational equity.
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Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2014 Jessye Norman:Stand Up Straight and Sing!
Jessye Norman was one of the world’s most beloved opera singers and recitalists, performing across the globe for nearly fifty years.
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Harlo Press, 1989 Mary Olivia Brookins Ross:From Crumbs to Gravy: The Autobiography of Mary Olivia Brookins Ross
Mary Olivia Brookins Ross was an educator and devout Baptist who led the women’s branch of the National Baptist Convention for more than thirty years.
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Simon and Schuster, 1982 Roger Wilkins:A Man’s Life: An Autobiography
Roger Wilkins was a leader in the fight for civil rights in the Kennedy and Johnson administrations before becoming a Pulitzer-prize winning journalist.
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Xlibris Corp., 2001 William Jimmerson Holloway:The Odyssey of a North American Educator
William Jimmerson Holloway led a long and distinguished career as an educational administrator, first in historically segregated Black colleges and then as part of efforts to end segregation.