Black History
Dr. Patricia Bath: A Legacy of Visionary Achievements
Dr. Patricia Bath, a trailblazer in the field of ophthalmology, etched her name in history as a woman of numerous firsts and groundbreaking achievements.
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By Tamara Shiloh
Dr. Patricia Bath, a trailblazer in the field of ophthalmology, etched her name in history as a woman of numerous firsts and groundbreaking achievements.
Born on Nov. 4, 1942, in Harlem, New York City, Bath’s journey began under the guidance of her father, Rupert Bath, the first Black motorman for the NYC subway, and her science-loving mother, Gladys Bath.
From a young age, Bath’s passion for learning and science blossomed. At just 16, she attended a cancer research workshop sponsored by the National Science Foundation, where her discoveries garnered such acclaim that they earned her the prestigious Mademoiselle magazine’s Merit Award in 1960.
Following her remarkable high school graduation in a mere two years, Bath pursued higher education at Hunter College, obtaining her bachelor’s degree in 1964. Subsequently, she enrolled at Howard University for medical studies and graduated with honors in 1968.
An internship at Harlem Hospital and a fellowship in ophthalmology at Columbia University followed, where she discovered alarming disparities in eye care between African Americans and other patients.
In 1973, Dr. Bath shattered barriers by becoming the first African American to complete an ophthalmology residency. She later ventured to California, holding an assistant professorship in surgery at Charles R. Drew University and the University of California, Los Angeles. Notably, in 1975, she became the first woman to join the faculty of UCLA’s Jules Stein Eye Institute.
Recognizing the urgent need for eye care accessibility, Dr. Bath co-founded the American Institute for the Prevention of Blindness in 1976, asserting that “eyesight is a basic human right.” Her efforts extended further as she chaired the Ophthalmology Residency Training program at UCLA-Drew in 1983, another pioneering feat as the first woman to hold such a position.
However, Bath’s most influential innovation emerged in 1986 — the Laserphaco Probe.
This revolutionary device harnessed laser technology to offer a more precise and less painful treatment for cataracts, restoring sight to individuals who had suffered blindness for decades.
Her remarkable achievement led to a patent grant in 1988, making her the first African American female doctor to receive a medical patent, not just in the United States, but also in Japan, Canada, and Europe.
In 1993, Dr. Bath retired from UCLA Medical Center and received the esteemed title of “Howard University Pioneer in Academic Medicine.” Her enduring legacy continues to inspire generations of aspiring medical professionals, especially women and people of color, to break barriers and leave an indelible mark on the world of medicine.
On May 30, 2019, the world mourned the loss of this remarkable visionary as she passed away in San Francisco. Yet, her legacy remains a beacon of hope and progress, illuminating the path for future pioneers to follow in her footsteps and shape a more equitable and vibrant world.
Activism
McClymonds High Names School Gym for Star Graduate, Basketball Legend Bill Russell
William “Bill” Felton Russell was born on Feb. 12, 1934, and died on July 31, 2022. He achieved fame as a U.S. professional basketball player who played center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1956 to 1969. He was the centerpiece of the Celtics dynasty that won 11 NBA championships during his 13-year career.
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By Ken Epstein
West Oakland’s McClymonds High School, “the School of Champions,” this week named the school’s gymnasium in honor of one of its most famous graduates, basketball legend Bill Russell (class of ’52).
William “Bill” Felton Russell was born on Feb. 12, 1934, and died on July 31, 2022. He achieved fame as a U.S. professional basketball player who played center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1956 to 1969. He was the centerpiece of the Celtics dynasty that won 11 NBA championships during his 13-year career.
Russell is widely known as one of the greatest basketball players of all time. In 2011, he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the country’s highest civil honor, from President Barack Obama for Russell’s contributions to basketball and the Civil Rights Movement.
The McClymonds’ naming ceremony was held on Wednesday, the same day as Russell’s birthday. Oakland leader Bill Patterson, a longtime friend of Russell’s, was scheduled to cut the ribbon at the reopening of the gym, which had been closed for several months for renovation. Russell’s daughter Karen was scheduled to attend the ribbon cutting.
Russell’s name and signature are now printed on the gymnasium floor.
Patterson was working at DeFremery Park when he met Russell. “I befriended him as a boy and during his years at University of San Francisco” said Patterson. “We stayed friends for the rest of his life.”
Said McClymonds Principal Darielle Davis, herself a McClymonds graduate, “We are excited to honor Bill Russell for his sports accolades and because he broke color barriers. He is part of our legacy, and legacy is really important at McClymonds.”
Brian McGhee, community schools manager at McClymonds and former football player at UC Berkeley, said that Russell meant a lot to him and others at the school. “He was a beacon of light and hope for West Oakland,” he said. “He did a lot for sports and for civil rights.”
Starting in 2018, Ben “Coach” Tapscott worked with Patterson and other McClymonds grads, community members, and former coaches to encourage the Oakland Board of Education to endorse the naming of the school gym, which finally happened recently.
“We worked hard to make this happen,” said Tapscott. “He’s an important part of McClymond’s history, along with a lot of other famous graduates,” he said.
Activism
NNPA Launches National Public Education and Selective Buying Campaign
“We are the trusted voice of Black America, and we will not be silent or nonresponsive to the rapid rise of renewed Jim Crow racist policies in corporate America,” stated NNPA Chairman Bobby R. Henry Sr. “The Black Press of America continues to remain on the frontline keeping our families and communities informed and engaged on all the issues that impact our quality of life.”
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Washington, DC: The National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), representing the Black Press of America, has announced the planning and implementation of a national public education and selective buying campaign across the nation in direct response to those corporate entities that have dismantled their respective Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) commitments, programs and staffing. NNPA Chairman Emeritus Danny Bakewell Sr. explained, “Now is the time for the Black Press of America once again to emphatically speak and publish truth to power.”
“We are the trusted voice of Black America, and we will not be silent or nonresponsive to the rapid rise of renewed Jim Crow racist policies in corporate America,” stated NNPA Chairman Bobby R. Henry Sr. “The Black Press of America continues to remain on the frontline keeping our families and communities informed and engaged on all the issues that impact our quality of life.”
At a recent convening of NNPA member publishers and editors, a united resolve was reached that each member publication of the NNPA will begin a national public education campaign coupled with the release of research data on those American companies that are engaging in efforts to sanction racial injustice, inequitable polices, divisive leadership, and economic apartheid in America.
“We note forthrightly that Black Americans spend $2 trillion dollars annually as consumers of products and services throughout the United States,” NNPA President and CEO Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. emphasized. “We now must evaluate and realign to question why we continue to spend our money with companies that do not respect us,” Chavis continued. “This now must come to an end. These contradictions will not go unchallenged by 50 million Black Americans who have struggled for centuries to ensure equality, fairness and inclusion in our nation’s democracy.”
A selective buying campaign involves exercising the right to select what we spend our money on and who we spend our money with. We are starting with targeting TARGET.
The following are some of the major American companies that have publicly retreated from Diversity, Equity and Inclusion:
- TARGET
- Lowe’s
- John Deer
- Walmart
- Meta
- Tractor Supply
- Amazon
- McDonald’s
- Ford
Activism
Retired Bay Area Journalist Finds Success in Paris with Black History Tours
In the late 90s, Stevenson finally realized her dream of living in Paris, now with her daughter. She started exploring the history of Africans in the city and would go on to teach others the same. Her business, which she named Black Paris Tours (BPT), received a significant boost when a family friend gave her a stack of cash and encouraged her to expand on the knowledge that she had only started to share with people she knew.
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By Magaly Muñoz
A young Ricki Stevenson, born in the Bay Area and immersed in the deep history of Black people in America, knew two things: she wanted to be a journalist and live in Paris one day.
The dreams of moving to Paris would start early for Stevenson, as she had long heard stories from her mother, who was a professional dancer, about wanting to visit the ‘City of Love.” Stevenson’s father had promised her mother that one day he would take her and over the years of hearing them talk about these plans, she was determined to end up there herself.
But before that would ever happen, she had a tumultuous career as a newscaster across the country that was inspired by her family’s history in civil rights issues.
Stevenson recalled marching with Cesar Chavez as he fought for labor rights for farm workers in California. Until that point, she’d only heard about the struggles and fights for Black people.
“Are we Mexican now?” she asked her parents. “No, but we are fighting for what’s right,” they responded to her.
Her family also had ties to living in Greenwood, Oklahoma during the time of Black Wall Street, where Black people had oil wells, banks, and thriving businesses before being bombed in 1921.
This background would propel her into a long 25-year journalism career, interviewing greats like James Baldwin, serving as a United Nations correspondent, and hosting radio shows in the Bay Area.
In the late 90s, Stevenson finally realized her dream of living in Paris, now with her daughter. She started exploring the history of Africans in the city and would go on to teach others the same. Her business, which she named Black Paris Tours (BPT), received a significant boost when a family friend gave her a stack of cash and encouraged her to expand on the knowledge that she had only started to share with people she knew.
“Admiral Tony [family friend] put a chunk of money in my hand. He said, ‘Ricky, I’ve been coming here for 20 years, and with you and Dedie, I’ve seen more in two days than I’ve seen in those years, ’” Stevenson said.
Years after BPT took off, she met Miguel Overton Guerra, who would become a senior scholar guide for her tours. He has fulfilled this role for over eight years and continues to do so.
Guerra shared that having something like the Black Paris Tours allows those who didn’t know how much influence Black people had in Europe to now know that they can learn from those before them and follow in their successes or correct their mistakes.
“I always tend to have a feeling for history always being a means of a reference point backward…you start to understand the history, that it isn’t just the United States that has Black people,” Guerra said.
He said that it’s been a pleasure to watch people learn something they didn’t know before and to take them through the city to key points in Black history, like hangout spots for writers like Baldwin and Richard Wright, restaurants in the busiest parts of Paris, the home of Josephine Baker and so much more.
Although the tours are open to all, Guerra hopes that those of African descent from all over the world will embrace the fact that they don’t have to stay where they are because movies and media have portrayed cities like Paris as only white; it’s multicultural and accepting of all.
“We’ve been here and we’ve been there, going way back when and we shouldn’t be considered or consider ourselves to be strangers in any place that we go to,” he said.
In the years that have followed, Stevenson claims they’ve had 100,000 people come through BPT, with notable guests like former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick, Steve Harvey, Lil Nas X and more.
Friends and former colleagues of Stevenson have also long visited and taken tours with her or Guerra, complimenting them on how well they know the city and their ability to always keep it interesting.
“He [Guerra] just had a deep, deep wealth of knowledge and he was constantly supplanting information with historical facts and the like. I absolutely love that it was demonstrating and showing how Black people have thrived in Paris or contributed to the culture in Paris,” Candice Francis said.
She toured in the summer of 2022 and stated that in the two weeks they visited Paris, BPT was the highlight of her trip. She shared that she was proud of Stevenson and the life she’d managed to manifest and build for herself.
“Even if you’re visiting Paris for the 10th time, if you haven’t taken the tour, then by all means, take it,” Francis emphasized.
You can book your own adventure with Black Paris Tours at blackparistour.com.
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