Black History Month
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Elder Watson Diggs: ‘The Dreamer’
In 1916, Elder Watson Diggs, founder of Kappa Alpha Psi, became the first Black graduate of the IU School of Education.
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Trailblazing Judge, Tireless Advocate
Viola Taliaferro, JD’77, renowned judge and advocate for children, died June 12, 2023. She was married to football legend George Taliaferro.
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McKinney Law Alumnus J.B. Stradford was Prominent on Black Wall Street
One hundred years ago, a section of Tulsa, Okla., called Greenwood, more commonly known as “Black Wall Street,” was destroyed by a hostile white mob armed with guns, knives, and…
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Olympic Gold Medalist: Milton Campbell
Milton Campbell, ’57, was the first Black man to win Olympic gold in the decathlon. He was inducted into the IU Hall of Fame in 1982.
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IU’s Black History Makers
Peer into the lives of 12 alumni whose “firsts” made a lasting impact on IU, the Bloomington community, and beyond.
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IU Football, Preston Eagleson, and the 1885 Civil Rights Act
The Eagleson name is familiar to many at Indiana University and in Monroe County, as the prominent Black family is known for many “firsts” and other high-level achievements, dating back…
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Eye on the Prize
The 1895 Arbutus lists among the graduating seniors a math major named Marcellus Neal. With that announcement, history was made. Neal had officially become the first Black student to graduate…
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A Phenomenal Woman
In the fall of 1915, a young Black woman from Rushville, Ind., arrived at Indiana University to begin her freshman year. She carried with her all her worldly possessions, her…
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The Great George Taliaferro
George Taliaferro, BS’51, was the first Black man drafted to the NFL and a leader in the desegregation of Indiana University.
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Bill Garrett Makes History—Again
As the first Black basketball player to compete regularly in the Big Ten, Bill Garrett, BS’51, was a trailblazer for Indiana University. Some 70 years later, Garrett, who died in…
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A Queen Comes Home
This story was originally published in the Feb. 28, 2013, issue of the Indiana Daily Student, and won first place in the Hearst Journalism writing competition for personality profile. Note:…
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Doing the Undoable
Thomas Atkins, BA’61, was elected the first Black student body president of a Big Ten university in 1960. He went on to study law at Harvard.