Arthur Ashe

Who was Arthur Ashe? Most people know him as the black tennis player who got AIDS and has a tennis court at the US Open named after him.
Born July 10, 1943 in Richmond, VA, Ashe was one of the pioneers in tennis for black athletes (without Ashe there may be no Serena or Venus Williams dominance in tennis). Career record of 818-260, 33 career titles and 3 major wins (the US Open in 1968, the Australian in 1970 and finally Wimbledon in 1975) and reached the number 1 ranking in the world in singles. Before his first Grand Slam title, Ashe served in the Army from 1966-1968.
People think that because Ashe contracted HIV that he was "dirty". Ashe contracted HIV from his second heart surgery in a blood transfusion. Ashe found out that he had HIV in 1988, but kept it private until 1992. Ashe did a lot to call attention to the newly discovered disease, AIDS. Ashe founded the Arthur Ashe Institute for Urban Health and received awards for humanitarian work in the latter days of his life.
Ashe was not only a legendary tennis player, he was a pioneer, a humanitarian and a brave man to face his imminent mortality with no regret.

Black History Month

It's that time of year again. The winter is getting harsher, football is coming to an end, the stress of pleasing your loved one (or finding a loved one) for Valentine's day is overwhelming and America is relying on an oversized rodent to tell us when to expect the warmth to return. Sounds pretty horrible, right? However, there is a silver lining to arguably the worst month of the year. It is Black History month. For each person, the month means different things. For me growing up in Tampa, Florida it was the one month I'd actually learn about black history, and by high school, there was no more Black History month education. The only black history I learned in high school were throw away lines in our "complete" U.S. history textbooks. It is ironic that Black History month is also the shortest month of the year. To me, it symbolizes how at first the "celebration" was solely a formality and not a truely educational process. However, at this great university we have plenty of classes about all types of history. From traditional African history to the history of the hip-hop culture, it's all there.