Celebrating Black History: Key Events from July 30 to August 5, 2025

**This Week in Black History: July 30-August 5***July 30*In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued a consequential “eye-for-an-eye” edict aimed at the Confederates. This order threatened retribution for the killing of captured Black soldiers, promising one captured Confederate would face execution for each Black soldier slain. Though the edict did not entirely halt such atrocities, it maintained a degree of restraint.In 1945, activist Adam Clayton Powell Jr. was elected to Congress from Harlem, becoming one of only two Black representatives alongside William Dawson. Powell's influence peaked by 1961 as head of the Education and Labor Committee, where he enacted over 50 significant legislations, including measures against lynching and for public desegregation.*July 31*In 1874, Father Patrick Francis Healy was inaugurated as Georgetown University's first Black president. Born in Georgia in 1834, Healy faced racial bias while earning his PhD abroad. He openly embraced his African heritage until his death in 1910. In 1960, Elijah Muhammad spoke in New York, urging the creation of an all-Black state, emphasizing self-sufficiency through Black-owned businesses.*August 1*In 1619, historically significant African arrival at Jamestown marked the dawn of Black history in America, though exact dates remain uncertain.