Jerry Mitchell
@jmitchellnews.bsky.social
Leading investigative reporting team at Mississippi Today. Stories helped put 4 KKK members & serial killer behind bars. Author, Race Against Time.
#OnThisDay in 1901, Louis Armstrong was born in New Orleans. His inventive trumpet playing and gravelly voice prompted singer Bing Crosby to declare, “He is the beginning and end of music in America.” 1st Black American to host a nationally broadcast radio show. mississippitoday.org/2024/08/04/1...
1901: Louis Armstrong is born - Mississippi Today
On August 4, 1901, trumpeter Louis Armstrong was born in an impoverished area of New Orleans known as “the Battlefield.”
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#OnThisDay in 1924, author James Baldwin was born in Harlem. His work explored the themes of racial, sexual and class differences and discrimination in America. He became friends with Medgar Evers, whom he called “a great man … a beautiful man.” mississippitoday.org/2024/08/02/1...
1924: James Baldwin is born in Harlem - Mississippi Today
On August 2, 1924, novelist, playwright, poet, essayist and social critic James Baldwin was born in Harlem, New York.
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In her new book, “If Emmett Till Lived,” best-selling author and historian Sarah Lewis uses a collection of essays and photos to imagine what the Black teen's life might have been if he'd returned to Chicago. ow.ly/lilM50ZvcYi
Book reimagines Emmett Till's life had he lived - Mississippi Today
In her new book, “If Emmett Till Lived,” best-selling author and historian Sarah Lewis uses essays and photos to imagine what the Black teen's life might have been if he had returned to Chicago.
ow.ly
#OnThisDay in 1974, Beverly Johnson made fashion history when she became the first Black model to appear on the American cover of Vogue magazine. She made the cover three more times. Within a year, every major American fashion designer began to use Black models. mississippitoday.org/2024/08/01/1...
1974: Beverly Johnson becomes first Black model on U.S. Vogue - Mississippi Today
On this day in 1974, Beverly Johnson made fashion history, becoming the first Black model to appear on the American cover of Vogue magazine.
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#OnThisDay in 1968, Franklin Armstrong, the 1st Black character in the “Peanuts” comic strip, returned a beach ball that Charlie Brown had lost. 11 days after #MLK assassination, a schoolteacher urged Charles Schultz to add the Black character in hopes of improving racial understanding.
#OnThisDay in 1866, Black men were killed in New Orleans when they paraded outside the Louisiana Constitutional Convention in favor of their right to vote. The march ended in a massacre. At least 38 people were killed & 146 wounded. mississippitoday.org/2024/07/30/1...
1866: Black men killed in New Orleans Massacre - Mississippi Today
On this day in 1866, Black men parading for voting rights were killed during the New Orleans Massacre.
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#OnThisDay in 1874, Patrick F. Healy became president of Georgetown University, the 1st Black American to lead a predominantly white university. Born into slavery in GA, he helped transform Georgetown into a major university. mississippitoday.org/2024/07/31/1...
1874: Patrick F. Healy becomes Georgetown president - Mississippi Today
On this day in 1874, Patrick F. Healy became the first African American to become president of a predominantly white university.
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#OnThisDay in 1917, 15,000 Black Americans marched in silence in NYC to protest lynchings. Organizers wrote President Wilson, noting that 2,800+ Black Americans had been lynched without trials. Anti-lynching bill finally became law a century later. mississippitoday.org/2024/07/28/1...
1917: Black Americans march in Silent Parade - Mississippi Today
On this day in 1917, up to 15,000 Black Americans marched against lynchings in a Silent Parade in New York City.
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#OnThisDay in 1919, a melee began after a Black youth mistakenly swam into “white” territory in Chicago. 6 days later, 38 were dead, 500+ had been injured, 1,000 Black families lost their homes to mob violence. That violence spread across the US in “Red Summer.” mississippitoday.org/2024/07/27/1...
#OnThisDay in 1948, President Harry Truman issued Executive Order 9981, which abolished racial discrimination in armed forces, leading to segregation’s end. The order came after he saw many returning Black soldiers become victims of violence. mississippitoday.org/2024/07/26/1...
1948: Truman abolishes racial discrimination in military - Mississippi Today
On this day in 1948, President Harry Truman issued an executive order that abolished racial discrimination in the United States military.
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#OnThisDay in 1964, Unita Blackwell became a delegate for the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party, which fought to replace Mississippi’s all-white delegation at the 1964 DNC. “We had no idea that we were changing the whole political future of America.” mississippitoday.org/2024/07/25/1...
#OnThisDay in 1919, a white mob began assaulting Black Americans, including children, after a white woman was allegedly attacked in Washington, D.C. Up to 39 were killed & 150 injured. Similar violence followed in more than two dozen cities. mississippitoday.org/2024/07/24/1...
1919: Red Summer begins in D.C. - Mississippi Today
On this day in 1919, a white mob began assaulting random Black Americans after a white woman was allegedly attacked in Washington, D.C.
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#OnThisDay in 1890, white men assassinated F.M.B. “Marsh” Cook after he criticized the Constitutional Convention for its plot to “restore” white supremacy and strip Black Mississippians of the right to vote. The new laws & constitution did what Cook had claimed. mississippitoday.org/2024/07/23/1...
1890: F.M.B. 'Marsh' Cook assassinated - Mississippi Today
On this day in 1890, white men assassinated F.M.B. “Marsh” Cook after he criticized a Constitutional Convention plot to “restore” white supremacy.
mississippitoday.org
#OnThisDay in 1939, Jane Bolin became the 1st Black female judge in US when she was sworn in as family judge in NYC. Fought to end segregation in child placement facilities and spoke out for women’s rights. mississippitoday.org/2024/07/22/1...
1939: Jane Bolin became first Black female judge in the U.S.
On this day in 1939, Jane Bolin became the nation's first Black female judge when she was sworn in as a family judge in New York City
mississippitoday.org
#OnThisDay in 1963, when a National Guardsman poked his bayonet at Gloria Richardson in Cambridge MD, she pushed it away, refusing to back down during racism protests. Her stand inspired change. Two days later, she and others signed the Treaty of Cambridge. mississippitoday.org/2024/07/21/1...
1963: Gloria Richardson pushes bayonet - Mississippi Today
On this day in 1963, Gloria Richardson pushed away a National Guardsman's bayonet he poked at her.
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#onthisday in 1950, Black soldiers in the Army’s 24th Infantry Regiment recaptured Yechon, South Korea. For the U.S. forces, it marked the first South Korean city restored to friendly hands. Two soldiers received Congressional Medals of Honor. mississippitoday.org/2024/07/20/1...
1950: 24th Infantry recaptures Yechon - Mississippi Today
On this day in 1950, Black troops of the Army’s 24th Infantry Regiment began a 16-hour offensive that recaptured Yechon, South Korea.
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OnThisDay in 1958, Dockum Drug Store in downtown Wichita KS refused to serve Black patrons at its lunch counter. NAACP teens protested this policy through sit-ins. They endured insults, threats until Rexall drugstore chain ended discrimination. mississippitoday.org/2024/07/19/1...
#OnThisDay in 1965, Willie Brewster died after 3 neo-Nazis shot him to death. Their group had already bombed churches and killed Black Americans. Hubert Damon Strange received 10 years in prison, but never served time because he died in a bar fight. mississippitoday.org/2025/06/18/1...
1965: Willie Brewster killed in Alabama - Mississippi Today
Willie Brewster was fatally shot by three white men as he was headed home from work at a pipe foundry near Anniston, Alabama.
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#OnThisDay in 1944, Irene Morgan was arrested for refusing to move to the back of an interstate bus in VA for a white couple. Her legal appeal resulted in a Supreme Court decision barring segregation in interstate commerce. Her act inspired the Freedom Rides. mississippitoday.org/2025/07/16/1...
1944: Irene Morgan Arrested for Refusing to Give Up Seat - Mississippi Today
On this day in 1944, Irene Morgan was arrested for refusing to move to the back of an interstate bus, leading to a precedent-setting Supreme Court decision.
mississippitoday.org
#OnThisDay in 1867, Maggie Lena Walker, the first known Black president to charter a bank in US, was born in Richmond VA. She gave loans to Black Americans starting businesses. In 2017, Richmond honored Walker with a statue. mississippitoday.org/2025/07/15/1...
1867: Maggie Lena Walker First Black Bank President Born - Mississippi Today
On this day in 1867, Maggie Lena Walker, first Black and first known female bank president to charter a bank in the U.S., was born in Virginia.
mississippitoday.org
#OnThisDay in 1948, DNC adopted platform calling for an anti-lynching law, abolition of poll taxes & desegregation of armed forces. The Mississippi delegation & other “Dixiecrats” stormed out & nominated Strom Thurmond for president & Fielding Wright for VP. mississippitoday.org/2025/07/14/1...
1948: Dixiecrats Storm Out of Democratic Convention - Mississippi Today
On this day in 1948, the Mississippi delegation stormed out of the Democratic convention when it adopted a civil rights platform.
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#OnThisDay in 1863, Civil War Draft Riots began in Manhattan. Whites upset by draft rioted then attacked Black Americans. Mob of thousands shot, hanged & burned Black residents. Torched Black orphanage w/ 800 children. 120+ killed. 2,000+ injured. mississippitoday.org/2025/07/13/1...
1863: Civil War Draft Riots began in Manhattan - Mississippi Today
On this day in 1863, the Civil War Draft Riots began in Manhattan -- one of the bloodiest insurrections in the nation's history.
mississippitoday.org
#OnThisDay in 1964, Lt. Col. Lemuel Penn, who survived WWII, was driving home with two fellow officers from the U.S. Army Reserves training when he was shot and killed by three Klansmen in Colbert GA. He died nine days after the Civil Rights Act became law. mississippitoday.org/2025/07/11/1...
1964: Georgia Klansmen Killed Army Lt. Col. Lemuel Penn - Mississippi Today
On this day in 1964, Klansmen killed Lt. Col. Lemuel Penn, an assistant school superintendent, as he was driving home from Army Reserves training.
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#OnThisDay in 1962, #MLK & Ralph David Abernathy were convicted of charges stemming from his 1961 attempt to desegregate government buildings in Albany GA. King chose jail, but two days later, an unidentified Black man paid the bail, and the two men walked free. mississippitoday.org/2025/07/10/1...
1962: MLK, Ralph Abernathy convicted - Mississippi Today
Martin Luther King Jr. and Ralph David Abernathy were convicted of charges stemming from his 1961 attempt to desegregate government buildings.
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#OnThisDay in 1948, Satchel Paige became the first Black pitcher in AL history. @mlb.com wrote of him, “Paige was baseball’s Mark Twain, but with a much better fastball.” Ted Williams, Joe DiMaggio & Dizzy Dean all called him the best pitcher they had ever seen. mississippitoday.org/2025/07/09/o...
1948: Satchel Paige becomes first Black pitcher in American League Mississippi Today
On this day in 1948, Satchel Paige became the first Black pitcher in American League history.
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#OnThisDay in 1876, the Hamburg Massacre took place in South Carolina after Black members of a militia marched on the Fourth of July. It marked the beginning of the “Redemption,” reinstituting white supremacist rule, just as Mississippi had done a year earlier. mississippitoday.org/2025/07/08/1...
1876: 7 men killed in Hamburg Massacre - Mississippi Today
On this day in 1876, the Hamburg Massacre took place in South Carolina after Black members of a militia marched on the Fourth of July.
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#OnThisDay in 1961, future Congressman John Lewis was released after 40 days from Mississippi’s Parchman prison. Jackson police arrested him and other Freedom Riders who entered a “whites-only” area of a bus station. mississippitoday.org/2025/07/07/1...
#OnThisDay in 1957, Althea Gibson became 1st Black player to win at Wimbledon. Became #1 female tennis player. After tennis world opened its doors, she won French Open & women’s singles & doubles at Wimbledon. Won 56 career singles & doubles championships. mississippitoday.org/2025/07/06/1...
1957: Althea Gibson wins Wimbledon - Mississippi Today
On this day in 1957, Althea Gibson became the first African American to win the women’s singles title at Wimbledon.
mississippitoday.org
The Rev. Ed King, a white minister who challenged Mississippi’s segregated society and was one of the last living founders of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party, died in Jackson on the same day the nation celebrated its 250th birthday of freedom. mississippitoday.org/2026/07/05/c...
Mississippi civil rights veteran Ed King has died - Mississippi Today
The Rev. Ed King, former longtime chaplain at Tougaloo College and one of the last living founders of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party, died in Jackson on Saturday.
mississippitoday.org
#OnThisDay in 1827 -- a day after those enslaved were freed in the state of New York -- 4,000 Black Americans marched down Broadway in victory. The 5th of July is still celebrated in NYC. mississippitoday.org/2025/07/05/1...
