Ridgefield Allies

Today in “Hidden” History is a daily listing of important but little-known events illustrating the range of innovators, contributors, or incidents excluded from formal history lessons or common knowledge. Hidden history is intended not as an exhaustive review, but merely as an illustration of how popular narratives "hide" many matters of fundamental importance. Bookmark this page and check daily to quickly expand your knowledge. Suggest entries for Today in “Hidden” History by clicking the Contact Us link. Entries for April 08:

Date	Type	Event
1872		Playwright and educator Ruth Ada Gaines-Shelton is born in Glasgow, Missouri. Gaines-Shelton was raised by her father, a minister in the African Methodist Episcopal Church. She graduated from Wilberforce University in 1895 and went on to teach school in Montgomery, Missouri. Ruth Gaines-Shelton plays were part of the Harlem Renaissance. She is best known for her allegorical comedy The Church Fight, written in 1925. Unique and innovative for its era, The Church Fight does not deal with the relationship between different racial communities, but rather is totally centered around the black experience, written for a black audience. Many of Gaines-Shelton's plays were written for her own church and women's clubs. Not all of her plays have survived with many of her manuscripts lost and unpublished. Learn more.
1920		American jazz singer Carmen Mercedes McRae is born. She is considered one of the most influential jazz vocalists of the 20th century and is remembered for her behind-the-beat phrasing and ironic interpretation of lyrics. McRae was born in Harlem, New York City, United States. Her father, Osmond, and mother, Evadne (Gayle) McRae, were immigrants from Jamaica. She began studying piano when she was eight, and the music of jazz greats such as Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington filled her home. When she was 17 years old, she met singer Billie Holiday. As a teenager McRae came to the attention of Teddy Wilson and his wife, the composer Irene Kitchings. One of McRae's early songs, "Dream of Life", was, through their influence, recorded in 1939 by Wilson’s long-time collaborator Billie Holiday. McRae considered Holiday to be her primary influence. Learn more.
1960		The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), the principal channel of student commitment in the United States to the civil rights movement during the 1960s, is formed. Emerging from the student-led sit-ins at segregated lunch counters in Greensboro, North Carolina, and Nashville, Tennessee, the SNCC sought to coordinate and assist direct-action challenges to the civic segregation and political exclusion of African Americans. From 1962, with the support of the Voter Education Project, SNCC committed to the registration and mobilization of black voters in the Deep South. Affiliates such as the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party and the Lowndes County Freedom Organization in Alabama increased dramatically the pressure on federal and state government to enforce constitutional protections. Learn more.