6 Hidden Contributions from African Americans

Actress and singer, Teresa Graves

America is a country that is still learning and digging up so much history about itself. With that in mind, countless contributions from other groups are being discovered, including African Americans. So many innovators from tech, film, and even the automotive industry are just now being discovered and learned about, partially thanks to social media. I find it ironic how more historical figures and little-known facts are being brought to light as we live in a time when politicians are trying their hardest to ban books and censor films. However, people can’t stop spreading the knowledge on social media or through oral history. In case you need someone to talk about this upcoming Black History Month, here are six contributions from African Americans you probably didn’t know about.

1). Emeline King

For all of those who love muscles cars and thunderbirds, take a minute to thank her. Emeline King was the first black woman to be a designer at Ford Motor Company and was the designer behind the 1989 Thunderbird and the interior design for the 1994 Mustang. 

2). Kitty Black Perkins 

If you’re still feeling the hype from the Barbie movie, you should get a thrill from this fun fact. Kitty Black Perkins is the trailblazer who designed the first black Barbie in 1979.

3). Atoy Wilson

We’ve heard of pioneering and legendary black athletes from Jackie Robinson to Michael Jordan, from Flo Jo to Gabby Douglas, but have you heard of Atoy Wilson? He was the first African American to win the U.S. National Championship for figure skating in 1966.

4). Michael Douglas Peters 

We all love to watch music videos, but at times we tend to overlook the contributions of the choreographer. Michael Douglas Peters began his career by choreographing for Donna Summer's famous song "Love to Love You, Baby". Later, he went on to choreograph some of the most groundbreaking music videos of the MTV era, including Pat Benatar's "Love is a Battlefield" and the legendary Michael Jackson video "Thriller."

5). Teresa Graves

While we’re talking about representation in Hollywood, let’s not forget that this iconic actress was the first black woman to star in her own hour-long drama television series “Get Christie Love!” 

6). George Carruthers

It took us years to find out about the black women who worked at NASA, thanks to the film “Hidden Figures”, but there’s another hidden figure we must know about. George Carruthers was the astrophysicist who designed an astronomical instrument used during space missions to photograph the stars and the galaxy.