Despite slavery, discrimination and other undeserved treatment, African Americans have found a way to excel and emerge as innovators and groundbreakers. Classified according to fields, here are some famous firsts by African Americans.

*Arts & Humanities

The first African American to have a symphony performed by the Rochester Philharmonic, an all-white orchestra in 1931, is William Grant Still. (Stewart, 2006)

Their Eyes Were Watching God” penned by Zora Neale Hurston, is documented as the twentieth century’s first feminist novel in 1937. (Stewart, 2006)

“Carmen” star Dorothy Dandridge was nominated for Best Actress in 1954. In the same year, Dandridge became the first, single black person to be on the cover of “Life” magazine. (infoplease.com)

Marian Anderson was the first black member of the Metropolitan Opera Company in 1955. (Stewart, 2006)

“Raisin in the Sun” was written by Lorraine Hansberry. This Broadway play later won the New York Drama Critics Award in 1960. It was the first play by a black writer to win this award. (Stewart, 2006)

In 1963, Sidney Portier won the Academy Award for Best Actor in “Lilies of the Field”. (Stewart, 2006)

Alex Haley, author of “Roots”, was the first black person to rectify America’s views on the horrific reality called slavery. His miniseries, also called “Roots” debuted in 1977. (Stewart, 2006)

Actress Halle Berry won Best Actress in the movie “Monster’s Ball” in 2001. (infoplease.com)

Actress Phylicia Rashad won the Broadway theatre’s Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play in 2004. Rashad portrayed Lena Younger in the play “Raisin in the Sun”. (query.nytimes.com)

Making her acting debut in the movie “Dreamgirls”, Jennifer Hudson went on to win Best Supporting Actress at the 2007 Academy Awards. She was the first black female to win for this category. (tvsquad.com)

*Education

Wilberforce College was the first college in 1856 to be owned and ran by black people. (Stewart, 2006)

Howard University’s law school, the country’s first black law school was started in 1869.

The first black medical school in the country was Meharry Medical College. It was founded by the Freedman’s Aid Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1876. (Stewart, 2006)

1876 was also the year that Edward A. Bouchet received a Ph.D. in physics from Yale University. In 1921, three black women earned Ph.D.s: Georgiana Simpson (University of Chicago); Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander (University of Pennsylvania); and Eva Beatrice Dykes (Radcliffe College). (Stewart, 2006)

Spellman College, the first all female college for black women, was started by Sophia B. Packard and Harriet E. Giles College in 1881. (Stewart, 2006)

Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity, Inc (founded in 1904); Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc (founded in 1906); and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc (founded in 1908) are all black established. (msuspokesman.com)

The Little Rock Nine, nine black students in Little Rock, Arkansas, were the first black students to attend Central High School in 1957.

In 1962, James Meredith became the first black student at the University of Mississippi.

*Entertainment

Ethel Waters, of “Beulah” fame, became the first African American star of a network TV show in 1950.

Donyale Luna was the first notable black Supermodel (b. 1945). Other supermodels such as Beverly Johnson, Veronica Webb, Tyra Banks, Naomi Campbell, Iman, Naomi Sims, and Alek Wek followed suit. (aceshowbiz.com)

The music video format, popular with rap, R&B, and pop artists, was developed by international superstar Michael Jackson, born in 1958. (Stewart, 2006)

The first black Bond girl was Gloria Hendry in 1973 in “Live and Let Die”. She played Rosie Carver. (ropeofsilicon.com)

“The Oprah Winfrey Show” debuted in 1986. Oprah Winfrey becomes the first black female TV host. (themusichotspot.blogspot.com)

*Science & Medicine

James McCune Smith, the first black man to obtain a M.D. degree, graduated from University of Glasgow in 1837. (infoplease.com)

Rebecca Lee Crumpler became the first black woman to graduate with a M.D. degree in 1864. She attended the New England Medical College. (Stewart, 2006)

Ben Carson, a black neurosurgeon, successfully separated Siamese twins connected at the head. His operation was the first successful separation in 1987. (Steward, 2006)

Born in 1919, David H. Blackwell, the first black mathematician, was nominated to the National Academy of Sciences. Awarded a Von Neumann theory prize in 1979, Blackwell is recognized for his studies on mathematical game theory. (Stewart 2006)

In 1980, Dr. Levi Watkins Jr. became the first doctor to surgically implant an “automatic implantable defibrillator in the human heart”. Arrhythmia is corrected by this device. (Stewart, 2006)

Sources:

Stewart, J. C. (2006). 1001 Things Everyone Should Know About African American History. New York: Gramercy Books.