AP African American Studies Resource Archive | Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History

A color lithograph poster for the musical film Space is the Place featuring Sun Ra and the Arkestra. Sun Ra is depicted in the center of the poster wearing a headdress and collar resembling that of an Egyptian pharaoh. The headdress is topped by a large golden orb with long extensions on either side. On either side of Ra is a yellow and red flaming sun. Above and below him are the words [SUN RA / IN / SPACE IS THE PLACE] small planets are scattered among the lettering.

Poster for “Space is the Place”

1974

View an example of Sun Ra’s Afrofuturist art.

Primary Source

Two Black women wearing light-colored coats look into a glass vitrine case with the title "Arthur A Schomburg, 1874–1938." Atop the case is a matted photograph of Arturo [Arthur] Schomburg.

“The Negro Digs Up His Past”

1925

Read this essay by Afro-Latino historian and collector Arturo Schomburg.

Primary Source

From left to right: Fodé Lassana Diabaté, a Black man wearing a light-colored tunic and dark red shirt, playing the balafoon (a struck instrument similar to a xylophone); Hawa Kassé Mady Diabaté, a Black woman wearing a patterened cloth dress and red headscarf, singing with arms outstretched, and Chérif Keita, a Black man in a blue robe, smiling.

The Sunjata Story: Glimpse of a Mande Epic

with Fodé Lassana Diabaté, Hawa Kassé Mady Diabaté, and Chérif Keita

Explore the story of Sunjata Keita through this performance.

Video

A map of the contiguous United States with circles of different sizes for Black population in metropolitan areas, colored in shades of red based on Black middle class percentage of the overall population.

The Black Middle Class Needs Attention Too

2020

Read excerpts and view charts from a report on the state of the Black middle class.

Secondary Source

Carter G. Woodson, a Black man, wearing a dark jacket, white shirt (with a small collar), and polka-dotted tie (white dots on a dark fabric) with a tie bar or button.

“The Mis-Education of the Negro”

1933

Read the preface to Carter G. Woodson’s 1933 book.

Primary Source

A handwritten petition in cursive.

Arkansas Petition for Freedmen’s Rights

1869

Read a petition on behalf of formerly enslaved African Americans on indigenous territory requesting tribal citizenship and benefits.

Primary Source

A man wearing a white shirt and pants begins a handstand as a band plays in the background and others look on.

Two Depictions of Capoeira

ca. 1835/2017

View how capoeira has persisted in the culture of Brazil over nearly two hundred years.

Primary Source

A circular seal of a woman with wrists in chains kneeling, with her plea above: "Am I Not a Woman and a Sister?"

Am I Not a Woman and a Sister?

ca. 1833

View this visual representation of a rallying cry for abolition among Black women.

Primary Source

The Roots in performance on stage at the House of Blues — band members include (left to right) a saxophonist, trumpeter, keyboardist, guitarist, vocalist (Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter, wearing a white shirt, jeans, sunglasses and a dark hat while holding a microphone), drummer (Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson, behind the drum kit, wearing a black t-shirt), sousaphonist, and percussionist.

“Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Around”

2012

Watch a modern performance of a classic song from the Black Freedom struggle.

Video

Two Black women in military uniform (dark jackets, light shirts and ties, dark skirts and boots) looking on at two rows of other Black women in military uniform standing at attention.

The 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion

1945

View this photograph of Black women serving in the Women’s Army Corps during World War II.

Primary Source

A wooden crucifix sculpture with three crosses stacked vertically, each with a Christlike crucified figure

Christianity and the Kingdom of Kongo

with John K. Thornton

Take a deep dive into Nzinga a Nkuwu (João), Nzinga Mbemba (Afonso), and the Kingdom of Kongo's move to Catholicism.

Video

A black-and-white photograph of James Brown, a Black man wearing a white shirt, sunglasses, a metal bracelet, and wristwatch waving as fans wave pieces of paper and look on in the distance.

The Origins and Elements of Hip-Hop

with Jeff Chang

Learn more about the genres, composers, and performers who developed the building blocks for what would become hip-hop.

Video