The period of Reconstruction was from 1865 to 1877. This was the time directly after the Civil War, and the North had defeated the South, also known as the Confederacy. African Americans were affected after the war was over because slavery was officially abolished under the Thirteenth Amendment. The Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments followed in the years after bringing African Americans the right to citizenship and the right to vote (men only). African Americans were given many opportunities through these amendments, but more racism was yet to come, including Black Codes and Jim Crow Laws.

This research paper covers some of the historical background and modern challenges associated with the issue of mass incarceration. This project was written by one of our very talented sophomores at CHS, and when asked about the impacts of learning Black history they articulated that "it is extremely important to learn because it is a major part of United States history as a whole . . . we rarely ever discussed any kind of Black history outside of the Civil Rights Movement." This call to action starts with learning about these critical topics.

Bessie Coleman was a pilot born in a one room shack in Texas in 1892. She grew up an intelligent girl who attended school and was active in her Baptist church. She worked as a laundress to save money so she could attend college in Oklahoma. Unfortunately, her money ran out after only one semester of college. She then moved to Chicago to stay with her older brother. Her life became difficult there while she worked as a manicurist. She overheard stories about pilots who had recently returned from World War I. After hearing the stories she made up her mind to become a pilot.

While trying to become a pilot, she was stonewalled by sexism and racism from American pilots. Then a Black newspaperman named Robert Abbott, who was the publisher of The Chicago Defender, encouraged her to go to France to learn how to fly. In 1920, she went to France for 7 months in order to learn how to fly. While there, she was treated with respect despite being the only African American in her class. She earned her international pilot’s license by 1921. When she had came back to America, the newspapers found about her story and she became a celebrity almost overnight.

In the early 1920s, stunt piloting was big hit. Bessie returned to Europe where she became a stunt flier. She became a big hit and was given the nickname “Queen Bess.” In 1923, she ended up in the hospital with a broken leg due to a plane experiencing mechanical failure. 3 years later, she experienced an accident which ended up taking her life. Bess and her co-pilot, William D. Wills, took a plane to survey the ground for a parachute jump they were going to do. The plane failed, which killed both Bessie and William on April 30, 1926. Although she died very young in her career, Bessie Coleman inspired many young Black men and women to take to the skies.

Click through the slideshow to learn more about LeBron James, a major figure in American culture and sports history. We encourage you to think about how figures like LeBron James might be impacted by earlier athletes like Jackie Robinson.

As our CHS Senior who researched LeBron James writes, "without [Black history], American history is incomplete . . . completing this project has impacted me by opening my eyes."

The story of Black Wall Street is often forgotten in today's society due to it being seen as a taboo topic decades ago. However, it was a historic time in American history that not only destroyed stereotypes of African Americans but showed how powerful black business could become in America’s capitalist society.

Originally, Oklahoma was Indian Territory due to Native Americans forced relocation in the 1820s ordered by Andrew Jackson, some former black slaves of the 5 Civilized Tribes that had been integrated into tribal communities, helped spark the economic engines of the Black community in Oklahoma because of their acquiring of land from the Dawes Act. The Dawes Act was a U.S. law that gave land to Native Americans. Within only a few years, Oklahoma had become a safe haven for black people who wanted to escape oppression and segregation.

In 1889, a rush for unassigned Oklahoma land caused many white people to rush to Oklahoma; however, one of the people that would purchase land would be a black wealthy landowner and entrepreneur named O.W. Gurley. Gurley would purchase 40 acres of land in Tulsa, name it Greenwood after a town in Mississippi, and open up the first black business in Greenwood in 1906, from here the story of Black Wall Street began to write history.

Gurley offered money to anyone who wanted to start their own business, and as soon as African Americans heard this they began to flock to Greenwood hearing about the opportunities in the area, and eventually black business began to grow more and more. A newspaper was started called the Tulsa Star in order to inform African Americans about any legal court ruling that would benefit or damage their community.

On Greenwood Avenue in Tulsa, Oklahoma luxury shops, restaurants, hotels, jewelry stores, grocery stores, doctor offices, movie theaters and more began to line the street. Banks, post offices, and even their own school system along with many other businesses would become a part of the nationally renowned entrepreneurial center. Originally coined the name of “Negro Wall Street of America” this entrepreneurial hub soon became known as “Black Wall Street." African American businesspersons compiled their many trades in a segregated Tulsa, catering to a community of people who were often shut out of the Oklahoma economy by racist white people.

Black Wall Street turned segregation, something meant to separate and degrade black people, into a market system that disproved the myth that African Americans were unable to create vast wealth. Although Black Wall Street flourished and most black families living there were making what would be minimum wage today, not everyone would be happy with the race they considered inferior rising from their circumstances and creating a successful entrepreneurial hub.

Poor whites became jealous of how well the African Americans were able to succeed, so they allowed their hatred to fester until it snapped when a 19 year old black boy, Dick Rowland, was accused and later arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting a white woman. After hearing the news that the young boy could possibly be lynched, around 75 armed black people came to the courthouse where they were met by 1,500 white people.

Outnumbered, the men ran back to Greenwood as the mob of white men followed them through Greenwood Avenue looting homes, burning down business, and shooting black people dead on the spot. The police did nothing to help. They allowed the mobs to gather around the courthouse for hours before they finally called for help, they deputized whites without discretion, and arrested blacks and interned them into detention camps meanwhile not arresting any white people.

During this past year, the news and media has been filled with information about riots and protests. However, America’s past has been filled with all different types of riots. For example, the Detroit riots of 1967.

It all started July 23, 1967 on 12^th Street in Detroit. On the corner of 12^th Street a civil rights group, United Community League for Civic Action, used an office which was then used as a club on the weekend. The police often raided places like this and decided to raid this specific civil rights group on July 23^rd. On that warm, humid night, the establishment was hosting a party for several veterans. The bar’s patrons refused to leave.

Out in the street, a crowd began to gather as police waited for vehicles to take the 85 patrons away. An hour passed before the last person was taken away, and by then about 200 onlookers lined up in the street. A bottle crashed into the street. The remaining police ignored it, but then more bottles were thrown, including one through the window of a patrol car. The police fled the scene as a small riot erupted. Within an hour, thousands of people had spilled out onto the street from nearby buildings.

The state police were sent in and still couldn’t stop the rioting from happening. The National Guard then had to be called in to defuse the situation. By the end of Sunday 1,000 people were arrested and five people were dead. The riot continued for five more days. By the end of the riot 43 people were dead, 1,700 store were looted, 1,400 were burned, $50 million in property damage, and 5,000 people were left homeless.

Additionally, the report about the riot stated that “what the rioters appeared to be seeking was fuller participation in the social order and the material benefits enjoyed by the majority of American citizens." This goes to show that violent riots have happened in the past over racial injustice.

The Black Panther Party is a group that is often misunderstood in discussions of historical significance. People often claim to know a great deal about their mission, when in reality there is much to their history that should be understood when looking at the big picture. Read through the slideshow to learn more about the Black Panther Party and why their legacy is significant to this day.

As our CHS Junior who researched the group understands, "Most people are quick to reference Black liberation to the peaceful movements; it waters down the reality of Black people and what they had to deal with. Just learning about sit-ins conveys this thought process that what Black people endured was as harmless as their civil disobedience."

Conway High School Young Democrats wanted to pay tribute to the impact of Black politicians in the Democratic Party. Beyond that, students wanted to present information about the tough issues that we need to learn about with an open mind. Click through the slideshow to learn more about Black political figures, Black issues, and Black activism.

One CHS Sophomore discussed that "It's important for us to be able to discuss hard issues together. That's the only way we actually make any change. Are people ready for that? Because they need to be."

Curtis Flowers was born May 29th, 1970 in Mississippi. Little did Flowers know that he would spend 23 years in prison for a crime he didn't commit. On July 16, 1966 a retired employee of the Tardy Furniture store entered the building and found four bodies lifeless on the ground. One being the owner, the others were employees. Curtis Flowers soon became a suspect for two reasons, one being that he owed his boss $30 and the other being that he had quit his job 13 days prior. Attorney Doug Evans prosecuted Mr. Flowers 6 times.

The first three were overturned by the Mississippi state supreme court because he refused to pick black jurors (1997, 1999, 2004). The fourth and fifth resulted in hung juries (2007, 2008) and the final court ruling resulted in a conviction in 2010. His punishment was the death penalty. Curtis Flowers did not have the funds to spend $250,000 on bail. So, from the time he was put in handcuffs in 1996 he remained in prison. In 2019, the case was revisited by the Mississippi state supreme court and the ruling was overturned due to the District Attorney’s racial discrimination with the jury selection.

The case of Curtis Flowers is important because in history classes we are taught as if the civil rights movement happened a long time ago and in fact we are still living in it. This is just one of many social injustices that we know of. Imagine how many other innocent people have had their lives stripped from them and spent the rest of their days in prison. Or even worse . . . received the death penalty.

We know that education is something everyone values differently, but it is impossible to deny the influence of HBCU's in American history. Read through the research presentation one of our African American History students created to learn more about the origin, significance, and presence of Historically Black Colleges and Universities.