This segment examines black nationalist leader Marcus Garvey and his organization, the Universal Negro Improvement Association. Best known for his leadership in a "back to Africa" movement, Garvey's ideas would influence later black nationalist thought.
Suzanne Bilyeu details how Jackie Robinson's gift for playing ball eventually united a team of 30 men and gave hope to hundreds of thousands of African Americans. These feats came at a great cost to Robinson physically, mentally and emotionally as he endured hate and hardships on and off the field
Adam Liptak details a recent affirmative action case before the U.S. Supreme Court. He also looks at affirmative action's history, the debates around the policy and considers possible effects of the Court's ruling.
Hussein, the narrator of My Name Was Hussein, lives in Bulgaria. His Muslim family takes great pride in their religion and traditions. But soldiers soon arrive in their village and force all of the Muslims to adopt Christian names, thereby inhibiting their freedom and identities.
Margaret Batchelder writes to President Theodore Roosevelt to tell him how women inspectors welcome immigrants—with smiles and encouragement. Although not allowed to question the immigrants, the women make a difference in the immigrants' first experiences on shore.
Jordan's poem takes on an sarcastic tone as she describes the duties, punishments, emotions and false promises endured by African Americans since slavery in response to Bill Clinton's description of affirmative action as "a psychologically difficult time for the so-called angry White man."
Septima Clark was an African-American educator and civil rights activist. The following excerpt is from a 1976 interview with Clark for the Southern Oral History Program Collection.