Susan Taylor becomes the Publication Director of Essence Communications after being the Editor in Chief since 1981.

Augusta Clark retires from the Philadelphia City Council.

The Honorable Ann Williams is inducted as a Circuit Judge for the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals.

Co-founded by Hana Stith, the African/African American Historical Museum opens its doors in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

Chicago broadcaster Russ Ewing receives the Silver Circle Award from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.

NBA and ABA great Julius Erving reported his son, Cory Erving, missing on this date. Cory's body was found in a car submerged in a pond. He accidentally drove his car into the pond and drowned

Artist Jacob Lawrence died on this date in Seattle, Washington. Lawrence depicted moments in African American history in his abstract principle paintings such as the Great Migration. Some of his other paintings include The Wedding, Tombstones, and Pool Parlor.

Former slave Maria do Carmo Jeronimo died on this date in Rio de Janeiro. She was 129 years old. She was 17 when slavery was abolished in Brazil.

17-year-old Raynard Johnson was found by his father hanging from a tree in his yard on this date in Kokomo, Mississippi. Johnson's death was ruled a suicide by local officials, but family members, local and national civil rights leaders believed it was a lynching.

Tiger Woods won the U.S. Open Golf Championship at Pebble Beach on this date. He dominated his competition, winning by 13 strokes.

NBA All-Star Shaquille "Shaq" O'Neal won the NBA Finals MVP Award on this date in Los Angeles, California. O'Neal and his L.A. Lakers defeated the Indiana Pacers to win the NBA Championship. He went on to win two more championships with the Lakers, winning Finals MVP two more times.

George Campbell is named president of Cooper Union, a private university in New York. He is the first African American to serve in this capacity.

The Confederate flag was removed from the Capitol Dome in Columbia, South Carolina.

Tap-dancer Harold Nicholas, the youngest brother of the "Nicholas Brothers", died of heart failure on this date in New York City. Nicholas' acting and dancing career spans sixty years. Some of his film credits include Uptown Saturday Night, Taps, and The Five Heartbeats.

Tennis pro Venus Williams won the singles tennis championship at Wimbledon in England on this date. She became the first Black woman to win this event since Althea Gibson.

Tennis pros Venus and Serena Williams won Wimbledon's doubles tennis championship on this date in England. They became the first sisters to win this championship.

NAACP leader Kweisi Mfume criticized South Carolina lawmakers on this date for the compromise made over the Confederate flag. It was removed from the state capitol building and allowed to hang on the lawn in front of the building. Mfume felt that the new position for the flag was still too prominent and should be taken down all together.

Rev. Dr. Vashti Murphy McKenzie was elected bishop on this date in Baltimore, Maryland. McKenzie was the first woman bishop elected in the history of the African Methodist Episcopal Church.

The Associated Press reported that a Black man had been found hanging from a tree near Bossier City, Louisiana on this date. He was handcuffed and gagged.

New York Yankee shortstop Derek Jeter won the Most Valuable Player Award in Major League Baseball's All-Star Game on this date in Atlanta, Georgia.

Karen Stanecki, Chief of the Health Studies Branch of the U.S. Census Bureau's Center for International Research, reported that 15 million Africans had died of AIDS and estimated that 25 million more infected would die in the next few years on this date.

The Freedom Schooner Amistad sailed into New London, Connecticut on this date. The ship was a re-creation of the slave ship, La Amistad, that was taken over by its captured African slaves.

Pro golfer Tiger Woods won the British Open Golf Tournament on this date. This win made Woods the youngest golfer to ever win the career grand slam. He won all four major pro golf tournaments in his career: The British Open, The Masters, The PGA Championship, and The U.S. Open.

The National Urban League released its annual report called The State of Black America 2000 on this date. The report stated facts like the unemployment rate for Blacks was still twice as high as for Whites.

Irene Morgan was honored on this date in Virginia. In 1944, Morgan was arrested for not giving up her seat on a Greyhound bus to a White couple. Her case was appealed by NAACP lawyer Thurgood Marshall and won the ruling.

Golf pro Tiger Woods won the PGA Golf Championship on this date in Louisville, Kentucky. This win was Woods' third major championship of the year.

Radio and television commentator Carl Thomas Rowan died on this date in Washington, D.C.

Frank Wills, the Watergate security guard who discovered the Watergate break-in of 1972, died on this date in Augusta, Georgia.

The Million Family March was held on this date in Washington, D.C. It was held on the fifth anniversary of the Million Man March. The march was organized to emphasize the importance of having a strong family unit. The march was co-sponsored by the Unification Church and the Nation of Islam.

Disc jockey and radio personality Frankie Crocker died on this date in Florida from pancreatic cancer.

New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter was named World Series Most Valuable Player of the "Subway Series" between the Yankees and the New York Mets on this date in New York City.

Dorothy Brown is elected Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County (Illinois) by a 4 to 1 margin, becoming the first African American to hold this position.

Ruth Simmons became the first Black president of an Ivy League school on this date at Brown University in Rhode Island.

The Coca-Cola Company settled its race discrimination suit on this date. Former and current Coca-Cola employees filed the lawsuit because they believed the company had a corporate hierarchy where the Black employees were not given raises or promotions because of their race.

Civil Rights Leader Hosea Williams died of prostate cancer on this date in Atlanta, Georgia. Williams was the co-leader of the Selma to Montgomery March that ended in what became known as "Bloody Sunday". He was a top lieutenant to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and was present when King was assassinated.

Gwendolyn Brooks, the first African American woman to win the Pulitzer Prize, passes away this day.