African American Rulers

12" Wooden Ruler made in U.S.A of American-grown basswood. The contribution of African-Americans to United States history is not confined merely to the Abolitionist Movement of the mid-19th century and the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950’s and ‘60’s, but we must recognize the importance of those movements. Sojourner Truth (1797-1883), an escaped slave, spoke out against slavery and for women’s rights. Medgar Evers (1925-1963), Army veteran and first state field secretary of the NAACP in Mississippi, organized voter-registration efforts and economic boycotts, and investigated crimes perpetrated against blacks. African-Americans excelled in other areas. In sports, Jesse Owens (1913-1980) won 4 gold medals in Nazi Germany at the Berlin Summer Olympics of 1936. In music Billie Holiday (1915-1959) touched hearts when she sang the blues. In literature Toni Morrison (1931-2019) won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1993. And Barack Obama (1961- ) became the first black President of the Uni