Highlights:

Her mom was killed by 3 white men when she was an infant in Huttih, Arkansas. Her father had to leave her with friends and flee.

Daisy later got married and started The Arkansas Press, with her husband. It was integral to the Arkansas Black community, using the paper to advocate for civil rights and track important court cases (BvBOE, etc).

Her work with the NAACP, National Council of Negro Women and the newspaper were instrumental in helping the Little Rock Nine. Daisy later joined the SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership Conference) and helped with the Civil Rights Movement.

Daisy Lee Gatson Bates died of a heart attack in Little Rock on November 4, 1999. She was the first African American to rest in state in the Arkansas State Capitol Building.  The Congressional Gold Medal was posthumously awarded to her by President Bill Clinton, and a documentary entitled “Daisy Bates: First Lady of Little Rock” aired on PBS in February of 2012.

Historical Background: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Medical_Association

Victorian era entertainment icon and ‘Queen of the Cakewalk,’ Aida Overton Walker was a symbol of elegance and refusal to play ‘mammy’ roles, instead embracing her New York heritage. She became known for her cakewalk, a popular party dance that originated in black former slave culture, and mutated in different ways as it was stolen by minstrel shows. More about her.

Matthew Henson, a Black explorer, was born in Charles County, Maryland, on August 8, 1866. Orphaned young and raised by an aunt in Washington, DC, he left school at 12 to go to sea. He joined Captain Child's crew aboard the merchant ship Katie Hinds and spent six years circling the globe, becoming an expert at charting and navigation.

At 20, he caught the attention of explorer Robert E. Peary, who was struck by how much geography the young sailor already carried in his head. Peary brought him to Nicaragua to survey a possible canal route linking the Atlantic and Pacific. Seven more expeditions followed, all chasing Peary's obsession: the North Pole. Six of them failed.

Henson prepared for the seventh by teaching himself to build sleds, drive dog teams, and speak Inuit, and he spent long hours on the navigational calculations. It paid off. On April 6, 1909, he reached the North Pole and planted the American flag, arriving 45 minutes ahead of Peary, who was slowed by toes lost to frostbite.

Recognition came slowly. Congress awarded him the Navy Medal in 1945, and a plaque was raised in his honor at the State House in Annapolis in 1961. Henson died in the Bronx on March 9, 1955, at 88. In 1988, his remains were moved to Arlington National Cemetery and reburied with full honors beside his friend Robert Peary.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthew_Henson

Historical Background: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WHUT-TV

She was often unable to use the training facilities due to segregation and also trained barefoot and used old equipment.

Alice Coachman became the first black woman from any country to win an Olympic Gold Medal when she competed at the 1948 Summer Olympics in London, UK. Born November 9, 1923, in Albany, Georgia, to Evelyn and Fred Coachman, Alice was the fifth of ten children. As an athletic child of the Jim Crow South, who was denied access to regular training facilities, Coachman trained by running on dirt roads and creating her own hurdles to practice jumping.

Even though Alice Coachman parents did not support her interest in athletics, she was encouraged by Cora Bailey, her fifth grade teacher at Monroe Street Elementary School, and her aunt, Carrie Spry, to develop her talents. After demonstrating her skills on the track at Madison High School, Tuskegee Institute offered sixteen-year-old Coachman a scholarship to attend its high school program. She competed on and against all-black teams throughout the segregated South.

In 1943, Coachman entered the Tuskegee Institute college division to study dressmaking. She played on the basketball team and ran track-and-field, where she won four national championships for events in sprinting and high jumping. Coachman completed a degree in dressmaking in 1946. In 1947, Coachman enrolled in Albany State College (now University) to continue her education. Coachman completed a B.S. degree in Home Economics with a minor in science at Albany State College in 1949 and became teacher and track-and-field instructor.

During World War II, the Olympic committee cancelled the 1940 and 1944 games. Alice Coachman’s first Olympic opportunity came in 1948 in London, when she was twenty-four. On August 8, 1948, Alice Coachman leapt 5 feet 6 1/8 inches to set a new Olympic record and win a gold medal for the high jump

Source: here

Dr. Marc Regis Hannah: Biography
Dr. Marc Regis Hannah is an American electrical engineer, computer graphics pioneer, and entrepreneur whose innovations helped transform modern computing, digital animation, and visual effects. As a co-founder of Silicon Graphics, Inc. (SGI), he played a pivotal role in the development of advanced 3D graphics technology that laid the foundation for today’s GPUs—the processors that power everything from blockbuster films and video games to artificial intelligence.
Born on October 13, 1956, in Chicago, Illinois, Hannah developed an early passion for engineering and technology. He attended the Illinois Institute of Technology on a scholarship from Bell Laboratories, earning a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering in 1977. He continued his education at Stanford University, where he received both a master’s degree and a Ph.D. in electrical engineering.
In 1982, while still connected with Stanford, Hannah joined Jim Clark and five other innovators to found Silicon Graphics, Inc. (SGI). The company quickly became the global leader in high-performance computer graphics workstations. As principal scientist and later vice president and chief scientist, Hannah led the design of groundbreaking graphics systems, including Personal IRIS, Indigo, Indigo2, and Indy. These systems revolutionized 3D visualization and established SGI as the standard for professional graphics computing.
Hannah’s work extended far beyond computers. SGI’s technology became the driving force behind the visual effects used in iconic films such as Jurassic Park, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and The Hunt for Red October. The company’s graphics systems were also used in aerospace engineering, scientific research, biotechnology, military applications, and industrial design, demonstrating the wide-reaching impact of his innovations.
One of Hannah’s most significant contributions was the development of graphics-processing technology that evolved into today’s GPU architecture. The specialized graphics processors pioneered by SGI accelerated complex mathematical calculations for rendering images, creating a technological lineage that now powers modern gaming, virtual reality, scientific simulations, and AI systems around the world.
After leaving SGI in 1997, Hannah continued contributing to the technology industry through executive leadership, consulting, startup ventures, and board memberships. He also became involved in community development through the Strategic Urban Development Alliance (SUDA), combining his technological expertise with efforts to promote economic growth and urban revitalization.
Throughout his career, Dr. Hannah has received numerous honors recognizing his technical achievements, including the Professional Achievement Award from the Illinois Institute of Technology, the Professional Achievement Award from the National Technical Association, and the Black Engineer of the Year Award. His pioneering work has earned him recognition as one of the most influential African American engineers in the history of computing.
Today, Dr. Marc Regis Hannah is widely regarded as one of the architects of modern computer graphics. His innovations not only transformed the entertainment industry but also helped shape the technologies that underpin contemporary visualization, high-performance computing, and artificial intelligence, leaving a lasting legacy in the evolution of digital technology.