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BlackFacts Minute: January 23

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Black Facts for January 23rd

1998 - Wilson, Lionel (1915-1998)

Lionel Wilson, lawyer, judge, and politician, was born in New Orleans, Louisiana on March 4, 1915 to Jules and Louise Wilson.  In 1918 the family moved to Oakland, California, where his parents believed a smaller and less-noticeable black community would afford them greater freedoms and less discrimination.  Following his elementary schooling Wilson attended McClymonds High School in Oakland, a predominantly white institution. After graduating with honors in 1932 he took a position at a local newspaper.

In 1939 Wilson received a Baccalaureate degree in Economics from the University of California at Berkley.  During and after his undergraduate education he worked as a porter, sugar-factory laborer, and dishwasher, while pursuing a career in athletics.  Standing only five feet, five inches tall and weighing a diminutive 130 pounds, Wilson nonetheless quickly distinguished himself as a gifted tennis, basketball, and baseball player.  His athletic prowess attracted talent scouts, and soon followed a short-lived semi-professional baseball career.  He retired in 1943 however, as racially exclusionist policies in professional sports precluded his further advancement. 

Disappointed, Wilson enlisted in the United States Army and served in a combat unit in Europe during the last two years of World War II.  By the end of the war he was promoted to First Sergeant.  Upon his return in 1946 Wilson was accepted at Hastings School of Law in San Francisco, where he received a law degree in 1949.  Immediately following graduation he began working in civil law.  Specializing in civil rights cases, he regularly offered pro bono work to low-income individuals. 

Lionel Wilson first ran for the Berkeley City Council in 1953 and later in 1955, but was not elected on either occasion.  In 1960, however, he became the first African American judge of Alameda County when he was appointed to the Oakland Municipal Court by Governor Edmund G. Brown, Sr.  Four years later he was appointed to the Alameda County Superior Court by Brown.  In

1989 - Tone Lōc

Tone Lōc is an American rapper and actor who is best known for his song “Wild Thing”. He was born Anthony Terrell Smith on March 3, 1966 to Margaret Smith, who was the manager of a retirement home and James Smith. During his youth, Smith was a member of a street gang called SouthSide Compton Crips. He was named after his father, and his middle name was given to him in honor of his grandfather James Smith. One of his siblings, a brother named Johnny Gadberry died in a car accident in April 2006.

Smith left gang life in order to focus on his career in music. He became a rapper and was known for his deep throaty voice. The first album he released was called “Lōc-ed After Dark” which was released on January 23, 1989. It was released by the label “Delicious Vinyl” and reached No. 1 on the US charts, No. 3 on the US R&B charts, and also gained prominence on international charts such as No. 21 on the UK singles chart as well as reaching top spots in Australia, New Zealand and Switzerland. It was eventually certified 2X Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America.

The best selling song on this album was “Wild Thing” which was written by the rapper Young MC. The song was produced by Mario Caldato, Jr. who stated that the phrase was inspired by a dialogue from Spike Lee’s 1986 film “She’s Gotta Have It”. The song reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also inspired a parody by “Weird Al” Yankovic, called “Isle Thing” which was based on the American sitcom “Gilligan’s Island”. There was also another parody called “Child King” by the band ApologetiX. The song caused some controversy because it sampled a portion of Van Halen’s song “Jamie’s Cryin”. At the time the song was released, Val Halen asked for a flat fee but later, when the song became an unprecedented hit, they settled for a much larger sum out of court. Another prominent hit from the album is “Funky Cold Medina” which reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100, and sold over one million copies. Another one of his songs “Ace Is In The House” is

1943 - World War II: Battle of Kasserine Pass - North Africa

The Battle of Kasserine Pass was fought February 19-25, 1943, during World War II (1939-1945).

Armies & Commanders:

In November 1943, Allied troops landed in Algeria and Morocco as part of Operation Torch. These landings, coupled with Lieutenant General Bernard Montgomerys victory at the Second Battle of El Alamein, placed German and Italian troops in Tunisia and Libya in a precarious position.

In an effort to prevent forces under Field Marshal Erwin Rommel from being cut off, German and Italian reinforcements were quickly shifted from Sicily to Tunisia. One of the few easily defended areas of the North African coast, Tunisia had the added benefit of being close to Axis bases in the north which made it difficult to for the Allies to intercept shipping. Continuing his drive west, Montgomery captured Tripoli on January 23, 1943, while Rommel retired behind the defenses of the Mareth Line (Map).

To the east, American and British troops advanced through the Atlas Mountains after dealing with the Vichy French authorities. It was the hope of the German commanders that the Allies could be held in the mountains and prevented from reaching the coast and severing Rommels supply lines. While Axis forces were successful in halting the enemy advance in northern Tunisia, this plan was disrupted to the south by the Allied capture of Faïd east of the mountains.

Situated in the foothills, Faïd provided the Allies with an excellent platform for attacking towards the coast and cutting Rommels supply lines. In an effort to push the Allies back into the mountains, the 21st Panzer Division of General Hans-Jürgen von Arnims Fifth Panzer Army struck the towns French defenders on January 30.

Though French artillery proved effective against the German infantry, the French position quickly became untenable (Map).

With the French falling back, elements of the US 1st Armored Division were committed to the fight. Initially halting the Germans and driving them back, the Americans took heavy losses when their tanks were lured into an

1976 - Robeson, Paul (1898-1976)

Paul Robeson is best known as a world famous athlete, singer, actor, and advocate for the human rights of people throughout the world. Over the course of his career Robeson combined all of these activities into a lifelong quest for racial justice. He used his deep baritone voice to communicate the problems and progress associated with black culture and community, and to assist the labor and social movements of his time. He sang for multiracial and multiethnic peace and justice in twenty-five languages throughout the United States, Europe, and Africa.

Robeson was born in Princeton, New Jersey on April 9, 1898, to Reverend William Drew Robeson, the pastor of Princeton’s Witherspoon Street Presbyterian Church, and Maria Louisa Bustill Robeson.  His mother was from a prominent local mixed-race family and his father was a former slave who escaped from a plantation before the Civil War. Robeson was the youngest of four children.

Robeson’s mother died when he was six and his father struggled to care for the two youngest children. By 1912 the family had moved to Somerville, New Jersey where the young Robeson already was a standout athlete and stage performer.  He also preached in his father’s church.

In 1915 Robeson became the third African American student to enroll at Rutgers University.  There he became an All-American Football player, received a Phi Beta Kappa key for his scholarship, and graduated as class valedictorian. Robeson entered the New York University Law School in 1919 and while there supported himself by serving as the assistant football coach at Lincoln University where he joined Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity. 

Robeson left New York University Law School in 1920, moved to Harlem, and transferred to Columbia University Law School.  He graduated from that institution in 1923 while playing professional football for the Akron Pros coached by Fritz Pollard.  Robeson ended his professional football career in 1922.  After getting a J.D., he briefly practiced law but decided to focus his career on the stage and

1976 - Paul Robeson

Paul Robeson was an American singer, actor, civil rights activist, and college football player. He was exceptionally famous for his political views on anti-imperialism, communism, and the United States Government.

Paul Leroy Robeson was born on April 9, 1898 in Princeton, New Jersey. His mother died when he was six and he was forced to live in an attic of a store in New Jersey due to financial difficulties. Robeson attended the Somerville High School where he found great success in whatever endeavors he pursued there; he sang in the chorus for “Julius Caesar” and “Othello”, and was also a part of the basketball, baseball, and track teams. Robeson also won a statewide academic competition for a full scholarship to Rutgers College, where he enrolled in 1915.

Robeson was the third African American to be enrolled at Rutgers; he immediately signed up for football tryouts where he was tested with excessively aggressive play, which many people attributed to racism. Despite having a broken nose and a dislocated shoulder after the tryouts, Robeson made the Rutgers Scarlet Knights Football team. He also joined the Rutgers Debate Team, and for spending money, he would sing off-campus at various gigs. Robeson’s presence at the campus was not devoid of controversy; for instance, he could not officially sing for the college’s glee club, furthermore, he was benched in a football game in his sophomore year as a Southern Team refused to play with a Negro on the field. Even so, Robeson played spectacularly to earn All-American Team Selections in both his Junior and Senior Years; he was also voted Class Valedictorian. Even his singing skills were recognized in “The Crisis”.

After a short stint at the New York University School of Law, Robeson enrolled at the Columbia Law School in 1920. In 1921, he also played Football for the Akron Pros; he then played for the Miluakee Badgers in 1922. During his time at Columbia, Robeson also performed for the Harlem YWCA. He also started portrayed Simon in Ridgely Torrence’s “Simon of Cyrene”.

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