Black History Month Trivia

What month is Black History Month?

• January

• Febraury

• March

• April

Answer explanation

Black History Month is observed in the month of February. It started out as ‘Negro History Week’ in 1926 because it had the birthdays of President Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. Lincoln was born on Feb. 12, and Douglass, a former slave who did not know his exact birthday, celebrated his birthday on Feb. 14. Decades later, the founder, the civil rights movement, and Black Power movement advocated for and successfully called for an official shift from Black History Week to Black History Month.

Who came up with the celebration that became Black History Month?

• Carter G Woodson

• Thurgood Marshall

• Martin Luther King Jr

• Charles Hamilton Houston

Answer explanation

The creator of Black History Month was historian Carter G. Woodson. Often referred to as the “Father of Black History,” he was notably the second African American to graduate from Harvard University with a doctorate degree, and is credited with being one of the first scholars to study and research the history of African Americans.

What year did Black History Month become officially observed?

• 1964

• 1958

• 1980

• 1976

Answer explanation

Individually several places, including West Virginia in the 1940s and Chicago in the 1960s, expanded the celebration into Negro History Month. The civil rights and Black Power movement advocated for an official shift from Black History Week to Black History Month, Scott said, and, in 1976, on the 50th anniversary of the beginning of Negro History Week, the Association for the Study of African American History made the shift to Black History Month.

1. Who was the first Black woman to serve as a Supreme Court Justice? 

• Shirley Chisholm

• Kentaji Brown

• Carol Braun

Answer explanation

Kentaji Brown worked for three years in private practice, then she worked as an attorney at the U.S. Sentencing Commission for two years, as an assistant federal public defender in Washington, D.C., for two years, and again in private practice for three years.

1. What event did LeBron James co-host for in 2007?

• The Academy Awards

• The Espys

• The Grammy's

Answer explanation

LeBron James co-hosted the ESPY Awards in 2007. The ESPY Awards is an annual event that honors the achievements of athletes in various sports categories. LeBron James, being a highly accomplished basketball player, was chosen as a co-host for the prestigious awards show.

1. Who was the leader of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and a prominent figure in the Civil Rights Movement?

• John Lewis

• Malcolm X

• MLK Jr.

• Stokely Carmichael

Answer explanation

Black students from Fisk University, American Baptist, and other local colleges discussed and debated the principles of nonviolence. They studied the history of nonviolent struggle and even engaged in role-playing exercises. In October 1959, the young people formed the Nashville Student Movement, and on February 13, 1960–less than two weeks after the Greensboro sit-ins–the group initiated its own sit-ins in downtown Nashville.

1. Who was the African American musician known as the "King of Jazz" and one of the most influential figures in the development of jazz music?

• Wynton Marsalis

• Duke Ellington

• Louis Armstrong

Before Barack Obama served as President, he served as what?

• Mayor of Chicago

• U.S. Senator

• U.S. House

• Governor of Illinois

Answer explanation

As a Senator, Obama served on a variety of committees and chaired the United States Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on European Affairs. In his first session (109th Congress), he was involved in immigration reform. Legislation bearing his name was passed for armament reduction and federal transparency as well as relief aid.

1. At what age did Serena Williams win her first US Open? 

• 18

• 20

• 22

• 17

1. Booker T is regarded as one of the greatest in which sport? 

• Football

• MMA

• Boxing

• Professional Wrestling