The 1980s recognized a global emergence of a new generation of Black youth who interpreted the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s…
The Black Atlantic is a network of cultures spanning Africa, North and South America, the Caribbean and Europe forged, in the first instance, by the transatlantic slave trade. This timeline records some of the political, intellectual, aesthetic and activist work done in this transnational cultural formation since 1945.
1989
1988
01
Aug
Unrest in LA
Over the course of August 1988, “Operation Hammer” resulted in in dozens of families being left homeless after more than 80 officers raided apartment buildings in South LA. This event solidified…
1985
16
Dec
The Colour Purple
The Colour Purple, directed by Steven Spielberg, based on the Pulitzer Prize Winning novel by Alice Walker, is released to box office success…
1981
10
Apr
Brixton Riots
The Brixton Riots were a series of violent confrontations between police and protestors as a result of increased police presence in the community that was already tense due to being disproportionately…
1978
22
Apr
Bob Marley’s “One Love” Benefit Concert
After Jamaica declared independence from Britain, Jamaica experienced a civil war between the Jamaican Labour Party and the People’s National Party as both fought for control over Jamaica. At the same time…
1977
11
Aug
Police Murder Steve Biko
South Africa’s apartheid government began to see Biko as a threat, placing him under a banning order in 1973. He was arrested in 1977 and beaten to death by state security officers…
18
Feb
Fela Kuti Releases “Zombie”
Inspired by The Black Panther party while travelling in the United States in 1969, Fela Kuti released the album Zombie that attacked the corrupt Nigerian…
1974
12
Sep
The Zaire ’74 Music Festival
Originally conceived as a promotional event for the championship match between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman. After Foreman was injured…
1970
15
Aug
FBI’s Most Wanted: Angela Davis
Angela Davis was placed on the FBI’s Most Wanted List for her involvement in purchasing weapons for fellow Black Panther activists…
1969
09
Sep
1968
30
Mar
1968 University Protests
In Spring 1968, protests began to erupt at Columbia University in New York in retaliation of the university and institutions’ general support of the United States’ involvement in the Vietnam War and…
1965
30
Mar
The Black Arts Movement
In 1965, Amiri Baraka founds the Black Arts Repertory Theatre School in Harlem and sparked the Black Arts Movement in Harlem. Throughout his life, Baraka collaborated with artists across the Black Atlantic to bring Black artists together….
21
Feb
Assassination of Malcolm X
Malcolm X, a leader and minister in the Nation of Islam in Harlem was assassinated on February 21, 1965 at the Audubon Ballroom in Washington Heights. Often contrasted with…
1964
02
Jul
Civil Rights Act
President Johnson pushes the Civil Rights Act through Congress that prohibited discrimination in public places, gave the Justice Department permission to sue states that discriminated against women and minorities and promised equal opportunities…
1963
21
Dec
Sam Cooke Records “A Change is Gonna Come”
Inspired by Bob Dylan’s “Blowin’ in the Wind” and after his tourmates were arrested for trying to book a ‘whites only’ hotel, Cooke recorded and released the song which became a massive success in the Black community…
28
Aug
March on Washington
200,000 people congregated in Washington DC for the peaceful march advocating for civil and economic rights and freedoms of African-Americans where Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his legendary “I Have a Dream Speech”.
1961
15
Mar
Ray Charles Refuses to Play for Segregated Audience
When it was announced that Bell Auditorium in Augusta, Georgia, would be segregating Ray Charles’s show, Charles immediately cancelled his appearance. This came after a refusal to include Augusta in his tour for “What’d I Say”…
1960
23
Sep
Kwame Nkrumah Addresses the United Nations
Nkrumah’s address called for an end to white supremacy and discussed Africa’s role in the world and the future role of the world in Africa…
21
Mar
Sharpeville Massacre
The Sharpeville massacre occurred after a day of demonstrations against pass laws when South African police opened fire on a crowd, killing 69 and injuring 180. It triggered mass underground resistance and international solidarity…
01
Feb
Greensboro Sit Ins
The Greensboro sit-ins were a series of nonviolent protests led by university students that occurred between February and July 1960 to challenge the segregation of local department stores with segregated lunch counters…
01
Jan
The Year of Africa
Referred to as the Year of Africa due to a number of events, mainly the independence of 17 African nations and Africa’s emergence as a major force in the United Nations.
1959
17
May
Murder of Kelso Cochrane
Kelso Cochrane, a young Black man, was stabbed to death in Golborne Road by white youth who were never apprehended. His murder sparked a new era of community race relations in Britain thanks to the lack of…
1958
29
Aug
Notting Hill Race Riots
Between August 29 and September 5, 1958, there were a series of racially motivated race riots in Notting Hill between ‘Teddy Boys’ and Caribbean Immigrants. Some of these riots included…
1957
06
Mar
Ghana Obtains Independence
Kwame Nkrumah, a renowned pan-Africanist, leads Ghana to independence as Britain’s first African colony to obtain majority-rule independence. Ghana stood, as Nkrumah stated, as proof that “Africans conduct their own affairs…
1955
28
Aug
1950
30
Mar
Apartheid in South Africa
The South African government refuses to place South-West Africa under UN Trusteeship and passes multiple acts which officially divide South Africans into ‘White’, ‘Coloured’, ‘Asian’ or ‘Native’, formalizing apartheid…
1948
10
Dec
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights became the foundation for human and civil rights movement after WWII. For the Black Atlantic, the Declaration emphasized the recognition of fundamental rights and freedoms by their colonial leaders…
21
Jun
The Empire Windrush
The Empire Windrush’s docking at Port of Tilbury in 1948 marked the starting point of West Indian migration to Britain as a result of the British Nationalist Act of 1948 that granted citizenship to citizens of the…
11
Jun
1945
15
Oct
The Fifth Pan-African Congress Demands the End of Colonialism
After an 18 year hiatus, the Pan-African Congress reconvened for the fifth time after WWII in 1945 in Manchester, England. This Congress was…
1941
14
Aug
The Atlantic Charter
Developed between President Roosevelt and Prime Minister Churchill, the Atlantic Charter was widely acclaimed due to…