Posted on 02/25/2021 5:08:36 AM PST by Kaslin
Each year, Black History Month allows us to reflect on so many great Black Americans who’ve contributed to the success of our nation. We reflect on the contributions of many well-known and not so well-known Black Americans. As we come to the end of another Black History Month, it's critical that we draw more attention to one group that has not gotten nearly enough attention – the Black inventor.
Thousands of African American inventors have transformed America. Black inventors have created groundbreaking products for centuries ranging from Lewis Lattimer, who helped construct a commercially viable lightbulb, to Marshall Jones, who pioneered laser use in industrial manufacturing.
Many of these innovative geniuses are unknown today, and it is critical to educate the public about the invaluable contributions of Black inventors.
I’ve written a great deal in recent years about America’s role as the innovation leader of the world – largely because we created a system that defined ideas and invention as the intellectual property of those who created them. Our Founding Fathers enshrined patent protections in the Constitution because they valued innovation and believed individuals should be able to reap the fruits of their labor.
For much of our early history, Black Americans were prevented from taking part in the patent system in the face of slavery and second-class citizenship. Slaves were prevented from obtaining patents and many slave owners and others stole the inventions of worthy Black inventors.
Nevertheless, brave inventors continued to persevere and our groundbreaking patent system provided an opportunity for Black inventors as our nation moved forward.
In 1820, Thomas Jennings became the first African American to obtain a patent – at a time when many blacks were still enslaved in the South. Jennings patented his "dry-scouring" technique that served as a precursor to later dry-cleaning methods. Jennings used the profits from his invention to fund the local abolitionist movement and to fight for civil rights.
After Jennings' death, Frederick Douglass discussed his impact, arguing the United States Patent Office needed to recognized Jennings as a "citizen of the United States." In 1868, Martha Jones became the first black woman to obtain a U.S. patent for her “Improvement to the Corn Husker, Sheller.”
Similar stories of Black inventors triumphing over seemingly insurmountable odds have occurred throughout American history. Elijah McCoy was the child of escaped slaves who grew up in poverty before patenting a lubricant allowing train engines to run continuously. McCoy didn't rest on his laurels but instead filed 56 other patents over his lifetime and even started his own company.
His reputation quickly spread, and when engineers were searching for top-end equipment, they would say they wanted "the real McCoy" because McCoy's products were the best.
Without a patent system, it is unlikely McCoy would have been acknowledged by society for his achievements. Garrett Morgan, another Black Inventor, invented the gas mask and obtained a wide range of patents for inventions as different as haircare products and a traffic light.
Morgan used his gas mask to save two trapped workers from a collapsed tunnel in Ohio. Unfortunately, the public rejected his heroism because he was black, and he was denied several awards he richly deserved. Racism didn't stop Morgan from obtaining more patents, and even in a hostile society, he profited from his inventions. In the middle of the Jim Crow era, the power of patents allowed Morgan to live secure, knowing his work was safe from theft.
This proud tradition of Black inventors continues today, as Lonnie Johnson has obtained over 100 patents. He is best known for inventing the Super Soaker, but his true passion is developing environmentally friendly technology that converts heat directly into electricity.
Dr. Marian Rogers Croak is another Black pioneer who has focused her vast energies on building secure ways to communicate over the internet and developed the Voiceover Internet Protocol (VoIP). Whenever you talk to someone over FaceTime or attend a Zoom meeting, it is partially because of Dr. Croak’s work.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Dr. Croak quickly invented technology allowing instant and secure donations to groups like the Red Cross, who needed funds to care for the victims.
Black inventors have shaped and will continue shaping America through their persistence and genius. We should all take a moment to appreciate these incredible Black men and women – and so many others like them for their innovation, creativity, and their example.
Actually, it forces us to note mostly many who made rather mundane contributions to the former success of our nation.
For fun sometime, ask any middle-aged or younger black that you know or meet if they know who Booker T. Washington was.
ML/NJ
Yes, raciss white libs gave blacks the shortest month of the year...
You know, there are many stories of blacks being passed over for recognition. Many compelling stories about blacks who strived to overcome daunting, unfair obstacles. So many fine human interest stories.
But having black this and black that crammed down my throat 24/7 makes me not want to read, hear or see any of it. It’s as if America was built by blacks exclusively. That white people were always the villain. That America today is at least 75% black, as evidence by popular culture, and the ever present mixed race couple in commercials.
I don’t like most people, but race has nothing to do with it. :)
The ‘Diamond In the Back’ and the ‘Gangster Lean’ come to mind.
Horse $hit.
For years now, google American inventors, and a line of photos appears. All black! You would think by this, blacks were the only inventors. How far must we decline in the interest of “fairness”?
I just did a search on Google for "stoners and reptiles bill whittle", to look for a video he did recently. I went 12 pages in without a single mention of that excellent video called "The Stolen Election Part II: Stoners and Reptiles" When I did the exact same search on DuckDuckGo, it came up on the first page, two entries in.
By the way, if you watch the video, it explains why all of this we are discussing is so relevant.
Google, which is used exclusively as the source of truth for up to four billion people on earth, shapes what it presents. In the linked video above which Bill Whittle described as one of the scariest ones he has seen, he discusses the infamous video The Selfish Ledger" which was created by Google, only for the eyes of the upper Google management, but was leaked to the public.
In "The Selfish Ledger" there is a creepy voice intoning what the goals of Google are-and it is to shape human behavior (in the same way they shape the returns on your searches) insidiously using AI to accomplish this. (I am not anti-AI, by the way, I do some work with it). Watch Bill Whittle's video, I highly recommend it, as he spends the last part talking about what Google is and what they are trying to do.
Luckily, 0 came along and redirected NASA's effort and they made up revealed all kind of inventions and contributions that muzzies have contributed to space exploration.
Was he the lead sing in Booker T. and the MGs?
Under a third corporation I made many inventions that were not patented, that my employer kept under wraps as trade secrets whose methods of implementation were obscured by the process. They were kept as trade secrets, with very stiff penalties for revealing them.
They made the corporations several millions, but for me only continued employment. There has been no post-employment income for any of these inventions, declared or undeclared.
My only satisfaction was accomplishing things that non-creative minds couldn't even imagine. That experience goes to Heaven with me, while earthly riches could not.
FWIW
Obviously the author lives in a parallel universe to the one I live in. Google "American Inventors"; it's been like this for the last decade. If one based their knowledge on the internet one would believe blacks invented everything.
In 1820, Thomas Jennings became the first African American to obtain a patent – at a time when many blacks were still enslaved in the South. Jennings patented his “dry-scouring” technique that served as a precursor to later dry-cleaning methods. Jennings used the profits from his invention to fund the local abolitionist movement and to fight for civil rights.
Good for Mr. Jennings, but can you, or any of you tell me who the first white person to file for a patent was or what it was for??? I don’t ever recall this being taught in history class, do you?
Sadly black history has been rewritten by Democrats to destroy families and keep the plantations working.If you ask about early AA millionaires they would name athletes, Oprah, or Rappers.Not the people that changed the business landscape for others to follow.
They’d never cut it in the ‘hood.
Blah blah blah -
Peanut butter was a very important invention. It made Mr. Ed a talking horse.
Yeah, he sang lead on the song Green Onions.
You didn’t invent the Post-It note did you? Just kidding, thought you would get a giggle out of that. It’s a fascinating story regarding inventions and corporations the inventors work for. I actually think it should be a movie. I have worked as a story analyst in the film industry, eventually a low level script doctor. I re-worked a lot of dialogue and story elements on some giant films....just got a paycheck, which is what I signed on for. But......makes my eyes roll sometimes when I see what I did for that paycheck.
I think a black person invented air conditioning also.
Several years back, even before the woke ness fad, there was a public service ad during black history month that mentioned Sarah Boone. Boone was an American inventor who on April 26, 1892, obtained United States patent number 473,563 for her improvements to the ironing board.
I thought to myself that’s all good and well, but is that the best you an come up with for Africa American inventors? My wife laughed and said that it was a sexist invention. lol
I think Washington’s study of the peanut was a huge contribution to human nutrition/agriculture, etc. Now the Left has made peanuts EVILLLLLLLLLLL. The Left eventually destroys everything, including what they first demand everybody bow down to and celebrate. Little kids love peanut butter sandwiches and it is a wonderful source of protein. NOPE! MUST REMOVE IT FROM EVERYWHERE. Because .02% of kids have some kind of allergy. I think most people with half a brain are simmering now as the Left are on warp drive to destroy our social structure and Western Civilization/logic. We shall see how it plays out.
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