250 Years of Independence
African American Contributions That Helped Build America (Group Activity)
As America marks 250 years since the signing of the United States Declaration of Independence, there is an opportunity to celebrate with honesty as well as pride.
The story of the United States has never belonged to one group alone. It was written by Indigenous peoples, immigrants, women, laborers, inventors, soldiers, entrepreneurs, artists, scientists, educators, activists and by generations of African Americans whose labor, sacrifice, creativity, intellect, and courage transformed a nation that often denied them.
The American story cannot be told without the African American story.
As our nation commemorates the 250th anniversary, many institutions are encouraging Americans to reflect on both the country’s achievements and its ongoing pursuit of liberty and equality. I would like to join in with my own form of celebration.
So, in honor of America250, I have curated 50 contributions and I’m inviting you to help complete the list. Let’s rack up 200 more contributions together. This is our way of marking the holiday, with remembrance.
Leave a comment naming an African American whose work, courage, innovation, leadership, or service has made America stronger. Tell us what they contributed and why their story deserves to be remembered. Whether they’re a nationally recognized figure, your granny, or someone whose impact was felt in a local community, every story matters.
I hope that by remembering our history, it will guide us into the future, and we can deepen our appreciation for one another and continue building a country worthy of the generations who came before us and those yet to come.
Join the conversation. Add a name. Share a story. Help me reach 250 contributions for 250 years.
Because this is how we celebrate.
This barely scratches the surface.
It isn’t ranked.
It isn’t political.
This is “Love” (Article Coming Soon 7/4)
Fifty Contributions That Changed America.
1. Crispus Attucks
The first person killed during the Boston Massacre, becoming one of the earliest martyrs of the American Revolution.
2. Black Patriots of the Revolutionary War
Thousands fought for American independence despite living in bondage.
3. Benjamin Banneker
Astronomer, mathematician, and surveyor who helped map Washington, D.C.
4. Richard Allen
Founded the African Methodist Episcopal Church, expanding religious freedom and Black leadership.
5. Frederick Douglass
One of America’s greatest voices for liberty and constitutional democracy.
6. Harriet Tubman
Led dozens to freedom through the Underground Railroad and later served the Union Army.
7. Sojourner Truth
Advocated for abolition, women’s rights, and human dignity.
8. The Underground Railroad
A vast network that challenged slavery through courage and cooperation.
9. Black Civil War Soldiers
Nearly 200,000 served in the Union Army and Navy.
10. Reconstruction Leaders
African Americans helped rewrite Southern governments and expand public education.
11. Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs)
Educated generations of leaders, professionals, scientists, and public servants.
12. George Washington Carver
Revolutionized agricultural science and sustainable farming.
13. Madam C.J. Walker
America’s first self-made female millionaire.
14. Garrett Morgan
Invented the modern traffic signal and improved gas masks.
15. Granville T. Woods
Held dozens of patents that advanced electrical engineering and rail transportation.
16. Lewis Latimer
Improved electric lighting and helped expand practical electricity.
17. Charles Drew
Developed modern blood banking techniques that continue saving lives.
18. Dorothy Height
Advanced civil rights and women’s leadership.
19. Jackie Robinson
Integrated Major League Baseball.
20. Thurgood Marshall
First African American Supreme Court Justice.
21. Rosa Parks
Inspired a movement through quiet courage.
22. The Montgomery Bus Boycott
Demonstrated the power of organized nonviolent protest.
23. Martin Luther King Jr.
Helped America move closer to its founding ideals through nonviolent activism.
24. John Lewis
Reminded America that democracy requires participation.
25. Shirley Chisholm
First Black woman elected to Congress and first to seek a major-party presidential nomination.
26. Barbara Jordan
A constitutional voice during one of America’s greatest political crises.
27. The Tuskegee Airmen
Helped transform military policy through extraordinary service.
28. The Buffalo Soldiers
Protected western frontiers while serving under difficult conditions.
29. Black Women of NASA
Advanced the American space program through mathematics and engineering.
30. Katherine Johnson
Calculated trajectories that helped send Americans into space.
31. Mae Jemison
First African American woman in space.
32. Percy Julian
Developed life-changing medical compounds.
33. Patricia Bath
Invented technology restoring sight to millions.
34. Daniel Hale Williams
Performed one of the first successful open-heart surgeries.
35. Elijah McCoy
Created innovations so valuable that people demanded “the real McCoy.”
36. The Harlem Renaissance
Redefined American literature, music, and visual arts.
37. Jazz
One of America’s greatest cultural gifts to the world.
38. Blues
Created the foundation for much of modern popular music.
39. Gospel Music
Influenced American worship and global music traditions.
40. Hip-Hop
Became one of the world’s most influential cultural movements.
41. Toni Morrison
Expanded American literature through stories that reshaped the national imagination.
42. Maya Angelou
Gave voice to resilience, dignity, and hope.
43. August Wilson
Documented generations of African American life through theater.
44. Alvin Ailey
Redefined modern dance.
45. Oprah Winfrey
Transformed media, publishing, and philanthropy.
46. Barack Obama
Became the first African American President of the United States.
47. Black Entrepreneurs
Built businesses that created jobs, innovation, and wealth despite historic barriers.
48. Black Educators
Expanded educational opportunity across every generation.
49. Black Military Service Members
Served in every American conflict since the nation’s founding.
50. Everyday African Americans
Teachers.
Parents.
Pastors.
Nurses.
Builders.
Farmers.
Artists.
Small business owners.
Neighbors.
Millions whose names never appeared in history books but whose labor, faith, sacrifice, and perseverance built communities that strengthened America.
There are hundreds more.
Scientists.
Inventors.
Judges.
Musicians.
Athletes.
Authors.
Engineers.
Activists.
Soldiers.
Entrepreneurs.
Family members.
Unsung heroes whose names deserve to be remembered.
Again here’s my invitation:
Help me reach 250
Leave a comment with another African American whose contributions shaped America; shaped YOU.
History is not merely about looking backward. It is about carrying forward the stories that teach us who we have been, who we are, and who we still have the opportunity to become.
May remembering our shared history guide us wisely into the next 250 years.
Photo by frank mckenna on Unsplash
Booker T. Washington, educator, author, orator; Duke Ellington, jazz composer and pianist; Louis Armstrong, jazz and blues trumpeter; Wynton Marsalis, jazz and classical trumpeter, composer, developer of Lincoln Center's Jazz Department; Branford Marsalis, Saxophonist, composer, bandleader; Scott Joplin, composer and pianist, the "King of Ragtime"; the Mills Brothers, vocal jazz and traditional pop vocal quartet and the first black artists to have their own show on national network radio (on CBS in 1930); they made appearances in film; and were the first to have a No. 1 hit on the Billboard singles chart, with "Paper Doll" in 1943 (OK, I'm a little more partial to them because they are from my town. And yes, I'm a pianist and music lover and could go with more wonderful musicians, I'm sure they alone would bring the total to 250.)
Harvey Keye, my dad, born 1932 in Birmingham, AL and grew up under Jim Crow became a NH state senator and spoke on the senate floor to urge the recognition of MLK., Jr. Day in 1999. Many credit his testimony for the vote that followed in favor, making NH the last state in the country to recognize the holiday. My dad is 93 today and dying of cancer, yet even in these dark times he has hope because hope is what got him this far.