1919 – First Pan-African Congress Organized by W.E.B. Du Bois
On February 19, 1919, W.E.B. Du Bois convened the first Pan-African Congress in Paris, France, during the Versailles Peace Conference. Organized with support from Blaise Diagne and funded by groups like the NAACP, the meeting brought together nearly 60 delegates from Africa, the Caribbean, and the United States to address colonial rule and racial injustice.
Delegates called for legal protections for Africans, oversight of colonies by the League of Nations, and expanded rights for colonized peoples. Though largely reformist, the Congress marked a pivotal step in internationalizing the struggle against racism and colonialism.
1942 – Tuskegee Airmen 100th Fighter Squadron Is Activated
Established in February 19, 1942 at Tuskegee Army Airfield, Alabama, the 100th Fighter Squadron trained African American pilots from the Tuskegee Institute. Despite segregation and delays, the unit deployed to Italy in late 1943 as part of the 332nd Fighter Group, supporting Fifteenth Air Force bomber missions.
Flying P-47 Thunderbolts and later P-51 Mustangs, the squadron escorted bombers across Italy, France, and Germany during World War II. The 100th was inactivated in October 1945.
1996 – Dorothy Maynor Passes Away
Dorothy Leigh Maynor (1910–1996) was an acclaimed concert soprano and founder of the Harlem School of the Arts. She was the first African American to sing at a U.S. presidential inauguration in 1949, perform at Constitution Hall, conduct at the United Nations, and serve on the Metropolitan Opera board.
Internationally celebrated for blending classical works with Negro spirituals, Maynor also championed arts education in Harlem. She died in West Chester, Pennsylvania, at 85 on February 19, 1996.