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Learn more about the lives of African-Americans who have made extraordinary achievements in their fields, with our collection of Black History Groups.
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Watch full episodes of Black History icons, record-breakers and leaders. See how famous figures like Barack Obama, Abraham Lincoln and Jackie Robinson changed history. See all videos.
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Black History Timeline
Celebrate the historical icons of America's black community through this interactive journey.
1 / 10 photos African-American Expats
There were four all-Black regiments during World War I: the 9th and 10th Cavalry and the 24th and 25th Infantry. The men who served in these regiments were considered heroes in their communities, sewing the seeds for equality in the U.S. military. However, still facing insurmountable segregation in the United States at the time, many soldiers opted to remain overseas where they experienced greater freedom and acceptance.
(Getty Images)
A self-educated social activist, Marcus Garvey left his birthplace of St. Ann's Bay, Jamaica, to promote Black separatism in America. While in the U.S., he founded several black-owned businesses before being deported back to Jamaica for fraud. From Jamaica he continued to work for black repatriation to Africa.
(Getty Images)Marcus Garvey
Known as one of the founding fathers of the Harlem Renaissance, Langston Hughes continuously fought for social justice and racial equality through his literature. To support himself throughout his early writing career Hughes worked odd jobs in West Africa, Paris, and Rome, before resettling in the U.S. in 1924.
(Getty Images)Langston Hughes
Charlie "Bird" Parker is considered one of the most influential jazz musicians. The saxophonist played a leading role in the development of bebop, which eventually became an international movement. In 1949 Bird left the U.S. and toured Europe, where he popularized jazz and earned the nickname 'Zoizeau.'
(Getty Images)Charlie Parker
A talented dancer and entertainer, Josephine Baker became the first African-American female to star in a motion picture. She gained international success in France during the 1920s with her performances at the Folies Bergère music hall. She became a French citizen in 1937, and her assistance in the French Resistance during World War II earned her the Croix de Guerre French military award - the first American-born woman to ever receive the honor.
(Redferns)Josephine Baker
Best known for his autobiography, Black Boy, Richard Wright is regarded as an inspirational African-American author. Exhausted with communism and white American ideals, he traveled to Mexico before expatriating to Paris, where he became friends with Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus. He earned his French citizenship in 1947, and continued to travel throughout Europe, Asia, and Africa for the remainder of his life.
(Getty Images)Richard Wright
American bob tenor saxophonist, Dexter Gordon became a world-famous entertainer by touring Europe for 14 years. He also acted in a few films, one of which - Round Midnight - landed him an Academy Award nomination in 1986.
Dexter Gordon
Celebrated singer, actor, and activist, Paul Robeson traveled to the Soviet Union in 1934 to pursue his strong left-wing commitments, along with his musical career. After refusing to dissociate himself from the Communist Party, he left the U.S. to live in Europe, where he continued to travel throughout the Soviet Bloc.
(Getty Images)Paul Robeson
Classical pianist and singer Nina Simone revolutionized American jazz. In search of a more racially equitable music scene and culture - and to avoid unpaid taxes - Simone traveled to Liberia, Switzerland, and Barbados before settling in the South of France in 1992. She lived in Aix-en-Provence until her death in 2003.
(Redferns)Nina Simone
Born in Harlem, NY, James Baldwin was known for his essays on the black experience in America. In 1946 he moved to Paris on a fellowship, which allowed him to relay the message of the black experience overseas. Baldwin soon became a transatlantic commuter, traveling back and forth from Europe to the U.S. until his full expatriation to France.
(Getty Images)James Baldwin
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