Standing on the Shoulders of Legends

By Laverne Moore

Civil Rights Activists and Politicians
An old saying. . .
Without them (trailblazers) there would be no us, and without their courage and
sacrifices, many civil rights and politicians’ careers might have been thrown under the bus.
A dynamic group of politicians and civil rights activists, who just wanted to make sure
that people’s rights would not be abused, denied, or dismissed.
Music Genres
This gifted and talented group of musicians are well known in the music game, they sing
many genres of music and each of them has a famous name.
There’s Aretha, Bill, and Bobby, Fats, Ma Rainey and Marvin Gaye, Mahalia, Mary, and
Michael Jackson, R&B, soul, and gospel, music that they can sing or play.
Gladys, Jennifer, and John, Stevie Wonder, and Patti LaBelle, Travis, Jon, and Tina
Turner, relatable stories in their songs, that they can beautifully tell.
Entertainment
An extraordinary list of entertainers, comedians, movie stars, entrepreneurs, and TV
host, and in each of their distinguished professions, they are famous from coast to coast.
Past entertainer legends had a much harder way to go, they took the hard knocks and
challenges but success for them came very slow.
While the current entertainers, also paid their dues, although their success was not
without lots of anxiety, they had more options from which to choose.
Sports Icons
Damian, Giannis, Patrick, and Simone, Wilma Rudolph a legend of the past, each of
them is an MVP in their sport and important members of their professional teams’ cast.
Whether these superstar athletes participate in basketball, football, gymnastics, or track,
the one thing they all have in common is that they are young, talented, gifted, and Black.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Aug 8, 2023
• ISBN: 9798886859805

Book preview

cover.jpg

Standing on the Shoulders of Legends

Laverne Moore

ISBN 979-8-88685-979-9 (paperback)

ISBN 979-8-88943-632-4 (hardcover)

ISBN 979-8-88685-980-5 (digital)

Copyright © 2023 by Laverne Moore

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Christian Faith Publishing

832 Park Avenue

Meadville, PA 16335

www.christianfaithpublishing.com

Printed in the United States of America

Table of Contents

Standing on the Shoulders of Legends

Trailblazers: Past Legends

Barbara Jordan

Fannie Lou Hammer—Part 1

Fannie Lou Hammer—Part 2

Harriet Tubman

John Lewis—Part 1

John Lewis—Part 2

Martin Luther King Jr. Poem

Maya Angelou—Part 1

Maya Angelou—Part 2

Medgar Eevers

Nelson Mandela

Underground and the Rivonia Trial

(Underground and the Rivonia Trial)

Rosa Parks

Shirley Chisholm

Thurgood Marshall

Current: Living Legends

Barack Obama

Barack Obama Poem

Kamala Harris

London Breed

Michelle Obama

Michelle Obama Poem (When They Go Low, We Go High)

Stacey Abrams

Tony Thurmond

Trailblazers: Past Legends

Aretha Franklin

Bill Withers

Bobby Blue Bland

Fats Domino

Ma Rainey

Michael Jackson

Mahalia Jackson

Marvin Gaye

Mary Wilson

Current, Living Legends (Music Genres)

Gladys Knight

Jennifer Hudson

John Legend

Jon Baptiste

Patti LaBelle

Stevie Wonder

Travis Scott

Tina Turner

Trailblazers: Past Legends

Chadwick Boseman

Sherman Hemsley

Madam C. J. Walker

Mom's Mabley

Redd Foxx

Current, Living Legends

Cedric the Entertainer

Don Lemon

Joy M. Reid

Oprah

RuPaul—-Drag Queen

Tyler Perry

Whoopie Goldberg

Trailblazers

Wilma Rudolph

Current, Living Legends

Damian Lillard

Giannis Antetokounmpo

Patrick Mahomes

Simone Biles

About the Author

To my sister,

Johnnie Ruth Nelson

(who passed away from COVID-19 on December 6, 2020)

We love and miss you very much.

To my children,

Marc and Maryann Moore,

Sharon Cooke and Chris Johnson,

Janet Dantzler.

You bring so much love and joy to my life.

To my great-grandson,

Kingly Moore.

You make everyone smile.

Standing on the Shoulders of Legends

Standing on the shoulders of legends

Born many years ago,

Opened doors of opportunity for others

That they will never know.

They had to fight for freedom

And everything they gained,

Wanted to make things better

So future generations would feel less pain.

With a heavy burden on their shoulders

They had to find a way,

To ensure liberty and justice for all

Said in the pledge of allegiance, in public every day.

They worked hard for what they needed

Luxuries were very rare,

They kept hoping that one-day

Things would be different and fair.

But trying to earn a decent living

There were disputes regarding the pay,

Equal pay for equal work

Is supposed to be the American way.

Standing on the shoulders of legends

Trying to level the playing field,

They just wanted to make sure that people of all races

Got a fair and equitable deal.

Legends in Rhyme

This book is an original collection of fifty stories and three poems about famous, well-known past and present African American legends.

These legends represent a diverse group of male and female professionals with experiences and expertise in each of their respective genres.

While the names of the legends are very familiar, what makes their stories fascinating and unique is that the entire story is written in a poetry style format and includes a rather large series of four-line rhyming verses written in a three-, four-, and five-page story.

The fifty (trailblazers and current) legend's stories are organized into one of the following four categories: (1) civil rights and politics, (2) music genres, (3) various aspects of entertainment, and (4) sports.

Although the trailblazers are no longer with us, they nevertheless left a tremendous legacy and blueprint for those who came after them and whose shoulders the current legends literally stand on.

Each rhyming story will take the reader on a rather interesting journey into various aspects of the legends' life experiences. The stories are meant to give the reader a rather small glimpse into the lives of these famous legends, it's by no means a complete bio or story.

The reader will ascertain that these celebrities have experienced some of the same ups and downs, successes, failures, and disappointments as regular everyday people.

Moreover, the reader will further learn that success for these legends did not come easy. They paid their dues, persevered, kept the faith, stayed the course, and didn't give up.

The rhyming stories will explore the distinct generational likenesses and differences of both trailblazers of the past and current legend's lifestyles. They also describe the many challenges and opportunities that each group experienced and the recognition of their important work and contributions.

The information for the stories was taken from various sources, personal knowledge as well as using Wikipedia to check the facts and used as a resource for gathering information about the legends.

Converting a story to rhyme is extremely challenging and it's very important that the content of the story remain factual and accurate.

The question might be asked, Why were these particular legends selected and not others? The names of the legends featured in each of the stories were suggestions made by various friends, relatives, and colleagues.

All fifty stories are about African American legends, and every effort was made to ensure equity in terms of equal numbers relative to gender as well as both past and current legends.

Overall, there are twenty-six trailblazers of the past including the Martin Luther King Jr. poem and twenty-five current legends stories in the book. However, in terms of gender, there are twenty-five female and twenty-five male stories.

I've attempted to paint a positive picture that captures a description of the legends' lives through the lens of the rhyming verses in this book.

I also wanted to ensure that the readers could visualize the scenarios in the story and, at the same time, make it interesting, enjoyable, and easy to read.

It's my sincere hope that the rhyming stories of all fifty legends will be easy to read, entertaining, enjoyable, and a learning experience about their challenges and contributions to African American history and culture.

I feel extremely blessed that I'm able to share the legends' stories in my own personal style of writing. For me, it was truly a labor of love!

CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVIST

&

POLITICIANS

(Past Legends)

Get in good trouble, necessary trouble, and Help redeem the soul of America

John Lewis

Trailblazers: Past Legends

Barbara Jordan

She was a lawyer and educator

From the deep south she came,

The first Black congresswoman from Texas

And Barbara Jordan was her name.

Born February 21, 1936

She was an only child,

A smart and articulate Black female

Who had a warm and friendly smile.

She grew up in Houston, Texas

In a poor neighborhood,

The daughter of a Baptist minister

Her behavior was always expected to be good.

Her oratorical skills were

Among the very best,

In any speaking competition

She could easily win any contest.

She had a gift for language

And building arguments,

An award-winning debater

Known everywhere she went.

Magna cum laude at Texas Southern

And on to Boston U Law School she went,

One of the few Blacks in the program

This made her proud, happy, and very content.

After earning a law degree

She returned to her home state,

Set up a law practice

There was little time to wait.

Out of her parents' home

She worked very hard,

Practicing law and campaigning

Winning the Senate seat would truly be a reward.

She was very active into politics

As she campaigned for JFK,

This political experience

Would benefit her campaign one day.

She was invited to the White House

By President LBJ,

To preview his 1967 civil rights message

This was a very special day.

Her first bid for the Texas legislature

Did not go so well,

It took two more tries to win and

For history to successfully tell.

She was the first woman ever

Elected to a Texas Senate seat,

With excellent qualifications

Her opponents she was able to defeat.

Barbara Jordan finally won a seat

The first Black woman to do so,

Initial lukewarm welcome from colleagues

Eventually winning them over was very slow.

She successfully passed

The first law on minimum wage,

Wanted to improve the lives

Of people of all races and age.

From Texas to Washington

She advanced her career,

Won election to the US House of Representative

This was a phenomenal year.

Thrust into the spotlight

During the notorious Watergate,

Echoed impeachment of Nixon

Before it was too late.

There was a great demand for speaking

At high-profile political events,

Large audiences in attendance

Everywhere she went.

Jordan wanted to be the attorney general

When president Jimmy Carter won,

Although he gave the position to someone else

Didn't mean her career was done.

Two-time DNC keynote speaker

1976 and again in 1991,

At the Democratic convention

Her speeches were highly motivating and always well done.

Her first speech at the '76 Democratic Convention

Was among the very best,

It was powerful and memorable

Everyone was very impressed.

Her second '91 DNC keynote address

Passionately delivered from her wheelchair,

This would be her final political appearance

And she delivered it with the utmost of care.

Barbara Jordan finished her

Final term in 1979,

She did not seek reelection

But it was not the end of the line.

Diagnosed with multiple sclerosis

It was later revealed,

She took time for self-reflection

As well as time to heal.

She later accepted a professorship

In Austin at Texas U,

Educating future generations

About the positive things they can do.

While her educational work was

The focus of her later years,

Never fully stepping away from public life

It was always very close and near.

Still she was able to rally her party

With the same powerful style,

Displayed sixteen years ago

Yet maintained her warm smile.

Appointed to head the Commission

On Immigration Reform in 1994,

She also received the Medal of Freedom

From President Clinton she proudly wore.

She passed away two years later

January 17, 1996,

From pneumonia and leukemia

She had been very sick.

The nation mourned the loss

Of a great pioneer,

Who shaped the political landscape

And adhered to the constitution for many, many years.

Her commitment to ethics

And her impressive strong will,

Made you proud of a country

That produced a brilliant person with such extraordinary skills.

Fannie Lou Hammer—Part 1

Fannie Lou Hammer was a leader in the civil rights movement

For human, voting, and women's rights,

Which had previously been reserved in Mississippi

For only people who were white.

She was known for her spiritual hymnals and

Her resilience in leading the civil rights fight,

For Black women in Mississippi

Who just wanted their God-given right.

Threatened, harassed, shot at, and assaulted

By racists, including members of the police,

While trying to register for and exercise

Her right to vote, all in the name of peace.

On August 31, 1962, she and seventeen others

Tried to vote but failed the literacy test,

She was fired by her boss, but her husband had

To stay on the land until the end of the harvest.

Forced to move between various homes for protection

They had to constantly be on the go,

Shot at fifteen times in drive-by shootings, and it

Showed how vicious hate could make people's anger grow.

Fearing retaliation by the KKK for her attempt to vote

The family moved to a different town,

Staying there for three months

Fortunately, she and her family were not found.

On December 4, after returning to her hometown, she

Went to the courthouse to take the literacy test again

But failed and was turned away, but she told the registrar,

"You'll see me every thirty days until I pass. On this, you can depend."

"I guess if I'd had any sense,

I would have been terrified.

The only thing they could do was kill me,

And many times, they've certainly tried."

These racists did all kinds of mean, ugly, and destructive things

To try and scare Hammer away,

From trying to register to vote and

By their rules, she was not about to play.

Hammer took the voter registration literacy test

For a third time on January 10, 1963,

She was successful and was informed that

She was now a registered voter in the state of Mississippi.

However, when she attempted to vote

She needed two poll tax receipts,

A requirement all voters had to have was

Another letdown and another big defeat.

They used as many impediments as possible

To keep people of color from registering to vote,

It was somewhat synonymous to

Hanging from a dangerous slippery slope.

This requirement emerged in mostly Confederate States

After the right to vote was first given to all races,

By the 1870 ratification of the Fifteenth Amendment to the US Constitution

To prevent voting by those with black and brown faces.

Hammer later acquired the requisite

Poll tax receipts for voter registration,

It took a long time, but she wanted to make sure that

She followed all of their directions.

She later helped and encouraged thousands

Of African Americans in the Mississippi state,

To become registered voters in spite of all

Racial discrimination, violence, bigotry, and hate.

Fannie Lou Hammer—Part 2

Fannie Lou Hammer

Fought for civil rights,

She knew it would be dangerous

But she was in for this fight.

Born 1917, in Mississippi

Where segregation reign supreme,

She engaged in civil disobedience

As a part of the SNCC team.

The daughter of a sharecropper

She worked in the fields at an early age,

Her family struggled financially

And was cheated out of a decent wage.

In the summer of 1962

After attending a voter registration protest,

She became active in this movement

Worked hard and got very little rest.

Fannie Lou Hammer personally experienced

The horror of racism in her home state,

Her civil rights activism evolved

To focus attention on why people felt the need to hate.