Sensei Aishitemasu | Hidden Figures: Delilah L. Beasley #BlackHERstoryMonth 1/28 @SenseiAishitemasu | Uploaded February 2021 | Updated October 2024, 4 hours ago.
If you enjoy my work, please consider supporting! CashApp: $SerenSensei
Patreon: patreon.com/seren_sensei
Delilah Leontium Beasley (September 9, 1867 – August 18, 1934), was a historian and newspaper columnist for The Oakland Tribune in Oakland, California. Beasley was the first Black American woman to be published regularly in a major metropolitan newspaper. Beasley was also first to present written proof of the existence of California's black pioneers in her books Slavery in California (1918) and The Negro Trail-Blazers of California (1919). Her career in journalism spanned more than 50 years, and was hugely impactful on the print industry.
Beasley was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on September 9, 1867. As a child, she developed an interest in journalism: by the age of twelve she had begun to write and publish short social notices in the local Black newspapers and some white newspapers, such as the Cleveland Gazette. Yet as the oldest of five children, Beasley was required to find a full-time job when her parents' died while she was still a teenager, causing her to drop out of school to become a maid and hairdresser. Working in Chicago, New York, and Michigan, Beasley never lost her love for journalism, and in 1883 she began writing about church and social activities for a Black newspaper in Ohio. Three years later, she published her first column. After moving to Oakland, California in 1910 at the age of 39, Beasley began attending history lectures and researching at University of California, Berkeley. She trained herself in historical research, visiting libraries, exploring archives, and conducting oral interviews with Black residents.
In 1915, Beasley began a column exclusively for a Black audience in The Oakland Sunshine, and went on to chronicle Black American firsts and notable achievements in early California in her book The Negro Trail-Blazers of California (1919). Beasley's Trail-Blazers book gave names and information on Blacks in California from the pioneer period to the late 19th century; she self-published and distributed the book, which she had researched over the course of nine years, putting herself into severe debt. Her book is recognized as the first to compile proof of Black communities in California dating back to the 1800s.
Her work on the The Negro Trail-Blazers was well-received, and by 1925 Beasley was writing regularly for the Oakland Tribune, making her the first Black American to be published regularly in a major metropolitan newspaper. At the Tribune, she authored the Sunday column Activities Among Negroes, often spending over forty hours a week collecting material about Black American churches, social events, women's clubs, literary societies, and local as well as national politics. She regularly traveled around the country to persuade the editors of major newspapers everywhere to stop using racist language in print. She also regularly spoke at rallies and protests against racism. In the mid-1920s, Beasley was named a national historian of the National Association of Colored Women (NACW). In 1933, it was at Beasley's public urging through her column that an anti-lynching bill was introduced and passed unanimously in both branches of the California Legislature. It was the state's first mob violence law.
Beasley continued writing her column for the Tribune until her death in 1934.
#DelilahBeasley #HiddenFigures
******************
Merchandise! MAKE SURE U GETTA SHIRT!! teepublic.com/user/sssseren
shophouseof950.com/embroidery-tees/theblackamericans
shophouseof950.com/embroidery-tees/dacs?rq=d.a.c.s
Follow me on social media!
Instagram: @sensei_aishitemasu
Personal Tumblr: sensei-aishitemasu.tumblr.com
Tumblr for my work: sssseren.tumblr.com
GoFundMe: gofundme.com/tc5wh7q
******************
Did you know I wrote a book? ☺️ 'So, About That... A Year of Contemporary Essays on Race and Pop Culture'
Paperback: amazon.com/About-That-Contemporary-Essays-Culture-ebook/dp/B013V0CHK6
Kindle: amazon.com/dp/B013V0CHK6
Digital download (e-book): gumroad.com/l/IkUa
******************
Links:
The Negro Trail Blazers of California Paperback – April 3, 2007:
amazon.com/Negro-Trail-Blazers-California/dp/1594625921
'The Oakland Tribune Journalist Who Highlighted Black Trailblazers:'
kqed.org/pop/102326/rebel-girls-from-bay-area-history-delilah-l-beasley-pioneering-journalist
'Delilah L. Beasley wielded her pen to bring about change:'
aaregistry.org/story/delilah-l-beasley-wielded-her-pen-to-bring-about-change
'Delilah L. Beasley and the Trail She Blazed:'
https://library.csun.edu/SCA/Peek-in-the-Stacks/delilah-beasley
'The Pioneering Black Historian Who Was Almost Erased From History:'
nytimes.com/2020/02/07/us/black-history-month-delilah-beasley.html
Delilah Beasley (Wikipedia):
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delilah_Beasley
If you enjoy my work, please consider supporting! CashApp: $SerenSensei
Patreon: patreon.com/seren_sensei
Delilah Leontium Beasley (September 9, 1867 – August 18, 1934), was a historian and newspaper columnist for The Oakland Tribune in Oakland, California. Beasley was the first Black American woman to be published regularly in a major metropolitan newspaper. Beasley was also first to present written proof of the existence of California's black pioneers in her books Slavery in California (1918) and The Negro Trail-Blazers of California (1919). Her career in journalism spanned more than 50 years, and was hugely impactful on the print industry.
Beasley was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on September 9, 1867. As a child, she developed an interest in journalism: by the age of twelve she had begun to write and publish short social notices in the local Black newspapers and some white newspapers, such as the Cleveland Gazette. Yet as the oldest of five children, Beasley was required to find a full-time job when her parents' died while she was still a teenager, causing her to drop out of school to become a maid and hairdresser. Working in Chicago, New York, and Michigan, Beasley never lost her love for journalism, and in 1883 she began writing about church and social activities for a Black newspaper in Ohio. Three years later, she published her first column. After moving to Oakland, California in 1910 at the age of 39, Beasley began attending history lectures and researching at University of California, Berkeley. She trained herself in historical research, visiting libraries, exploring archives, and conducting oral interviews with Black residents.
In 1915, Beasley began a column exclusively for a Black audience in The Oakland Sunshine, and went on to chronicle Black American firsts and notable achievements in early California in her book The Negro Trail-Blazers of California (1919). Beasley's Trail-Blazers book gave names and information on Blacks in California from the pioneer period to the late 19th century; she self-published and distributed the book, which she had researched over the course of nine years, putting herself into severe debt. Her book is recognized as the first to compile proof of Black communities in California dating back to the 1800s.
Her work on the The Negro Trail-Blazers was well-received, and by 1925 Beasley was writing regularly for the Oakland Tribune, making her the first Black American to be published regularly in a major metropolitan newspaper. At the Tribune, she authored the Sunday column Activities Among Negroes, often spending over forty hours a week collecting material about Black American churches, social events, women's clubs, literary societies, and local as well as national politics. She regularly traveled around the country to persuade the editors of major newspapers everywhere to stop using racist language in print. She also regularly spoke at rallies and protests against racism. In the mid-1920s, Beasley was named a national historian of the National Association of Colored Women (NACW). In 1933, it was at Beasley's public urging through her column that an anti-lynching bill was introduced and passed unanimously in both branches of the California Legislature. It was the state's first mob violence law.
Beasley continued writing her column for the Tribune until her death in 1934.
#DelilahBeasley #HiddenFigures
******************
Merchandise! MAKE SURE U GETTA SHIRT!! teepublic.com/user/sssseren
shophouseof950.com/embroidery-tees/theblackamericans
shophouseof950.com/embroidery-tees/dacs?rq=d.a.c.s
Follow me on social media!
Instagram: @sensei_aishitemasu
Personal Tumblr: sensei-aishitemasu.tumblr.com
Tumblr for my work: sssseren.tumblr.com
GoFundMe: gofundme.com/tc5wh7q
******************
Did you know I wrote a book? ☺️ 'So, About That... A Year of Contemporary Essays on Race and Pop Culture'
Paperback: amazon.com/About-That-Contemporary-Essays-Culture-ebook/dp/B013V0CHK6
Kindle: amazon.com/dp/B013V0CHK6
Digital download (e-book): gumroad.com/l/IkUa
******************
Links:
The Negro Trail Blazers of California Paperback – April 3, 2007:
amazon.com/Negro-Trail-Blazers-California/dp/1594625921
'The Oakland Tribune Journalist Who Highlighted Black Trailblazers:'
kqed.org/pop/102326/rebel-girls-from-bay-area-history-delilah-l-beasley-pioneering-journalist
'Delilah L. Beasley wielded her pen to bring about change:'
aaregistry.org/story/delilah-l-beasley-wielded-her-pen-to-bring-about-change
'Delilah L. Beasley and the Trail She Blazed:'
https://library.csun.edu/SCA/Peek-in-the-Stacks/delilah-beasley
'The Pioneering Black Historian Who Was Almost Erased From History:'
nytimes.com/2020/02/07/us/black-history-month-delilah-beasley.html
Delilah Beasley (Wikipedia):
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delilah_Beasley
