On This Day: February 1st in Black History

February 1st in Black History

Welcome to Black History Month! February 1st kicks off this annual celebration and marks one of the most significant days in civil rights history.

The Greensboro Four

1960 - Four Black college students—Ezell Blair Jr. (Jibreel Khazan), Franklin McCain, Joseph McNeil, and David Richmond—sat down at a whites-only Woolworth's lunch counter in Greensboro, North Carolina. They were refused service but remained seated until the store closed.

This simple act of courage sparked a movement:

Within days, hundreds of students joined the sit-ins
By April, sit-ins had spread to 78 cities across the South
On July 25, 1960, Woolworth's integrated its lunch counters
The sit-in tactic became a cornerstone of civil rights activism

Other Notable Events

1865 - President Abraham Lincoln signed the Thirteenth Amendment, abolishing slavery throughout the United States. The amendment was ratified later that year on December 6th.

2003 - The Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during re-entry, killing all seven crew members, including Michael Anderson, an African American astronaut and mission payload commander.

2004 - Janet Jackson's Super Bowl halftime show sparked national controversy, but also highlighted the double standards applied to Black artists in American media.

Births on This Day

1902 - Langston Hughes, poet laureate of the Harlem Renaissance, was born in Joplin, Missouri. His work celebrated Black culture and spoke truth to the struggles of African Americans.

1901 - Clark Gable was born, but let's honor Eubie Blake (February 7, 1887), the ragtime and jazz composer who lived to 96 and saw Black music transform America.

Langston Hughes: The People's Poet

"I, too, am America." — Langston Hughes

Hughes gave voice to the Black experience with poems like:

"The Negro Speaks of Rivers"
"Harlem" ("What happens to a dream deferred?")
"I, Too"
"Let America Be America Again"

His work remains essential reading in understanding American literature and the African American experience.

Did You Know?

February 1st, 1978, saw the U.S. Postal Service issue its first Black Heritage stamp, honoring Harriet Tubman. This began an annual tradition of honoring Black Americans on postage stamps.

Happy Black History Month! Explore our directory to discover historical figures from around the world, or check the calendar to see what happened on any day in Black history.