Ellen has used her life to change history and benefit humankind by promoting social and economic development, peace, and reconciliation (Nobel Prize).
Thomas Sankara
Thomas Sankara is a bit of a controversial figure in the world of politics. Known as Africa’s Che Guevara, he made the most of his short yet revolutionary time as president of Burkina Faso from 1983-1987. The leader of this extremely poor nation claimed to focus on decolonizing the minds of the people, cutting ties…
Ibn Khaldun
Ibn Khaldun, also known as the Father of History and Sociology, is an author and scholar from Northern Africa. Khaldun was born in Tunis, Tunisia on May 27, 1332 and lived most of his life in Northern Africa after his parents moved slowly before the Spanish reconquest. His family is of southern Arab origin and…
Gift Ngoepe
First African Major League Baseball Player Gift Ngoepe was born on January 18, 1990, in Polokwane, South Africa. He is currently 32 years old and grew up only with his brother and mother. From a very young age, he grew fond of the game of baseball and set his goal to one day become a professional…
Gerard Sekoto
Gerard Sekoto: Artist & Humanizer Sekoto working in his studio (Image courtesy of the Gerard Sekoto Foundation archives) Gerard Sekoto was a visual artist who pioneered the movements of Urban Black Art and Social Realism. Born in 1913, the artist made countless works portraying the ordinary lives of his fellow Black South Africans in order…
El Anatsui
El Anatsui is a contemporary artist from Ghana. He was born in 1944 in Anyako, Ghana, but moved to Nsukka, Nigeria for college, where he lives today. Anatsui attended the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology – one of the best universities in Ghana. He studied sculpture and fine arts, later going on to…
Dikembe Mutombo
On June 25, 1966, in Kinshasa, the capital of Democratic Republic of the Congo, a legendary basketball player and philanthropist was born. The legend born was Dikembe Mutombo Mpolondo Mukamba Jean-Jacques Wamutombo or more commonly known to the public as Dikembe Mutombo. Mutombo spent four years at Georgetown before graduating and deciding to pursue a…
Abdel Halim Hafez
Musical Discovery Hafez’s first musical teacher was his brother. Hafez later joined the Arabic Music Institute in Cairo, excelling in various media but ultimately decided to become an oboe player before graduating in 1948. Abdel Hafez began his musical career teaching music in schools in Tanta, Egypt. At the same time Hafez was singing in…
Hamid El Kasri
(Featured Image Courtesy of Michael Coglan) Every year, in the port city of Essaouira, Morocco, thousands gather for an international music festival. However, they’re not listening pop, rap or EDM . They are listening to the traditional music of the Gnawa people, an entrancing yet exciting music led by masters called Maalems. One such Maalem…
Francis Ngannou
Photo courtesy of Josh Hedges at The UFC on Twitter Francis Ngannou is an MMA fighter born on September 5th, 1986, in Batié, Cameroon, and is the current UFC Heavyweight Champion (ESPN and UFC). Francis Ngannou is currently ranked #4 in the UFC’s Pound for Pound rankings, and is ranked #1 in the Heavyweight division…
Wole Soyinka
Wole Soyinka is a playwright, writer, activist, teacher, a man of many names. Soyinka’s work has impacted the world, and his fight has changed the literary world and countries around Africa in their fight for democracy.
Kei Kamara
By Jackson Wolf Kei Kamara is a refugee turned professional footballer. Kei was born on the first of September in 1984 in Kenema, Sierra Leone. Kei was born into a family of a single mother and one older brother but this family did not last long. In 1990, Kei’s mother won an immigration lottery and…
Beyond the Single Story 