Explore the intertwining of politics, music, literature, visual art, and philosophical theory in the twentieth century. Topics may include:
4.9 Black Religious Nationalism and the Black Power Movement
4.13 The Black Feminist Movement, Womanism, and Intersectionality
Image Source: Gatson, Rico. Beacons (2018) © Rico Gatson, NYCT 167 St. Commissioned by MTA Arts & Design. Audre Lorde portrait derived from a photograph by Jack Mitchell. Photo: Seong Kwon.
Topics 4.8–4.14
LO 4.8.A
Explain how artists, performers, poets, and musicians of African descent advocated for racial equality and brought international attention to the Black Freedom movement.
LO 4.8.B
Explain how faith and music inspired African Americans to combat continued discrimination during the Civil Rights movement.
You will need to understand and be able to use these materials for the AP exam.
Read this poem written by Afro-Cuban poet Nicolás Guillén after the Little Rock Crisis.
Hear Charles Mingus's musical retort to Arkansas Governor and segregationist Orval Faubus.
Read an excerpt from Martin Luther King’s 1964 book, focused on segregation in Birmingham prior to SCLC’s campaign there.
Watch a modern performance of a classic song from the Black Freedom struggle.
You can further develop your knowledge of this topic with primary and secondary sources.
Explore a work of art on the Long Island Rail Road inspired by jazz musician John Coltrane.
These videos from Black History in Two Minutes (or So) feature condensed, engaging, and fact-packed stories.
Take a closer look at the development and impact of jazz music in this video.
You will need to understand and be able to use these materials for the AP exam.
Read Malcolm X’s speech on methods to reach equality and the potency of both political activism and armed self-defense.
View a photograph of Martin Luther King and Malcolm X’s only meeting.
View a photograph of the Nation of Islam's official newspaper being prepared for sale.
View Elijah Muhammad, leader of the Nation of Islam, speaking to congregants.
You can further develop your knowledge of this topic with primary and secondary sources.
Dive into the lives and work of both Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X.
These videos from Black History in Two Minutes (or So) feature condensed, engaging, and fact-packed stories.
Examine the evolution of the Black Power movement in this video.
Learn more about the life and legacy of Malcolm X.
You will need to understand and be able to use these materials for the AP exam.
![A lithographic print juxtaposing two black faces stylized as African masks framed by yellow circular emblems with a black panther in the center. The words [BLACK IS / BEAUTIFUL] are inscribed around each panther. The print appears in quadrants, with one face in three-quarter view in the top left and the other face appearing straight on in the lower left. The panther emblems appear in a grid in the top right and bottom left quadrants, with the top and bottom rows extending across the full print.](/sites/default/files/styles/card_tall/public/2025-04/ElizabethCatlett.webp?h=e10800f9&itok=3olWI5Uk)
View an example of art from the Black Arts movement by Elizabeth Catlett.
You can further develop your knowledge of this topic with primary and secondary sources.
Explore the origins, evolution, and key players and works of the Black Arts Movement.
Explore the work of Romare Bearden in this posthumously completed piece.
View Jacob Lawrence’s last public work, a mosaic mural in New York City's Times Square subway station.
Explore a mosaic connecting visual art with music.
You will need to understand and be able to use these materials for the AP exam.
Read the Black Panther Party’s guiding manifesto.
View an example of women organizing and protesting in the Black Panther Party.
View an example of the Black Panther Party's direct action in the community through food distribution.
These videos from Black History in Two Minutes (or So) feature condensed, engaging, and fact-packed stories.
Explore the origin of the Black Panthers in this video.
LO 4.12.A
Describe the emergence of the Black is Beautiful movement and Afrocentricity in the mid-twentieth century.
LO 4.12.B
Explain how the Black is Beautiful movement and Afrocentricity influenced Black culture in the 1960s, 1970s, and beyond.
LO 4.12.C
Explain how the Black is Beautiful movement and Afrocentricity influenced the development of African American Studies and ethnic studies.
You will need to understand and be able to use these materials for the AP exam.
Learn more about this element of Afrocentric aesthetics and the embrace of “Black is Beautiful.”
Listen to Maya Angelou read from her work, including her poem “Still I Rise,” and Dunbar’s “We Wear the Mask.”
View a photograph from a key convergence of artists and models amid the Black is Beautiful movement.
You can further develop your knowledge of this topic with primary and secondary sources.
Learn more about the works of Betye Saar, Elizabeth Catlett, and Toni Morrison in the context of Black is Beautiful.
You will need to understand and be able to use these materials for the AP exam.
Read this foundational document of Black feminism.
These videos from Black History in Two Minutes (or So) feature condensed, engaging, and fact-packed stories.
Black Feminism
Black Feminist Organizations
Black Liberation and Womanist Theology
We have teamed up with New American History on interactive resources exploring America’s past and harnessing the power of digital media, curiosity, and inquiry.
Read a 2021 interview with three of the women responsible for writing the Combahee River Collective Statement.
LO 4.14.A
Describe the concept of “interlocking systems of oppression” and its connection to earlier Black feminist activism.
LO 4.14.B
Explain how Black writers have represented interlocking systems of oppression in their work.
You will need to understand and be able to use these materials for the AP exam.
Read a short story that would grow into Gwendolyn Brooks’s novel Maud Martha (1953).
You can further develop your knowledge of this topic with primary and secondary sources.
View a mosaic portrait of Lorde installed in the New York City subway system.
These videos from Black History in Two Minutes (or So) feature condensed, engaging, and fact-packed stories.
Explore Maya Angelou’s life, work, and impact in this video.