Frederick McKinley Jones invented the refrigerator and a portable air-cooling unit for trucks carrying perishable food in 1940.

Emmett Louis Till was born 7/25/41 in Chicago, IL. He was visiting in Mississippi when he was 14 years old and was lynched, kidnapped, beaten, mutalated, shot in the head, and his body was dumped in the Tallahatchie River. Two men were acquitted of his kidnapping and murder and later they admitted to the crime.

Lester Holt was the 1st black solo anchor of a weekday network nightly newscast, NBC Nightly News, 2015.

Beyoncé became the second woman and first black woman artist to win an ASCAP award for Pop Songwriter of the year; 2001.

Robert H. Lawrence, Jr. became the first black person to be trained as an astronaut; 1967.

Nicki Minaj became the most charted female rapper in history when her song “Only” reached No. 1 on the R&B/hip-hop chart; 2015.

Al Jarreau was the 1st vocalist to receive Grammy Awards in three separate categories: jazz (1977), pop (1978), and R&B (1985).