BLACK PARIS TOURS

11/02/2025

With one arm and one leg, he upended assumptions that disabled people could not lead fulfilling lives, and his artistry had audiences clamoring for more.

11/02/2025

The family of four in Paris as part of their educational trip around the world for the children. The trip took them from home in Virginia to the African continent and Paris where they were stunned to learn about the rich legacy of African and African American history.

11/02/2025

This is why it’s called the Gulf of Mexico.

11/02/2025

10/02/2025

08/02/2025

Aaron Douglas 1898 - 1979.Known as the “Father of African American Arts,” Aaron Douglas was born in Topeka, Kansas, and developed an interest in drawing and painting at an early age. He studied at the University of Nebraska and in 1925 moved to New York City, settling in the African American neighborhood of Harlem. He soon became involved in the Harlem Renaissance, a cultural movement of the 1920s that emphasized African American artists, writers, and performers. Douglas began creating magazine illustrations and developed a modernist style that incorporated African and Egyptian design elements. Among his most important early work were his murals at the 135th Street Branch of the New York Public Library. In 1939 he moved to Nashville, Tennessee, and founded the Art Department at Fisk University, teaching there for nearly 30 years. In his art Douglas explored and celebrated the lives and history of people of color. In doing so he powerfully depicted an emerging black American individuality.

08/02/2025

Black History pioneers Marian Anderson and Mary McLeod Bethune. Anderson was a famous singer most known for her concert on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in 1939. Bethune was the first Black woman to have a national monument dedicated to her in the nation’s capital. Schools, public parks, and streets have been named for her contributions to education, philanthropy, and civil rights. Her greatest legacy remains Bethune-Cookman University, one of the top 50 historically Black colleges and universities in the country.

08/02/2025

This Is What Happened To Africa 🌍
The Berlin Conference of 1884 - 1885

07/02/2025

BLACK PARIS TOURS honors the life and talent of Eubie Blake, the co-writer of “I’m JUst Wild About Harry.” We’ll take you to some of the Paris theaters where he and Noble Sissle performed!
Born February 7, 1883 in Baltimore, MD, James Hubert “Eubie” Blake learned to play piano and began honed his talent and earned money performing at local brothels to earn money.
By 1915 Eubie teamed w/ brilliant songwriter Noble Sissle combining their talents w/ James Reese Europe and his 369th Harlem Hellfighters band who were shipped off to France during WWI...hailed by the French as heroes of the war. In 1921 Sissle & Blake brought "Shuffle Along" to Broadway featuring Blake's hit tune, "I'm Just Wild About Harry.” First to introduce and star Paul Robeson and Josephine Baker on stage. Had the honor of seeing his Broadway performance in “Eubie” in 1979 when he told the audience “I would have taken much better care of my body if I knew I was gonna live this long. Eubie Blake died in Brooklyn Feb. 12, 1983, just days after his 100th birthday.

07/02/2025

We’ve had the honor sharing the story of Edmond Dede for years….how this brilliant Black pianist/opera talent migrated from New Orleans to Paris after the 1803 Louisiana Purchase. Our thanks to Givonna Joseph of Opera Creole for bringing his grand works back to life!

ABOUT THE EVENT IN PARTNERSHIP WITH OPERA LAFAYETTE & OPERACRÉOLE Did you know that the first complete opera by a Black American has been hidden in a single manuscript for more than 130 years? Edmond Dédé, a fourth-gene...

07/02/2025

Amazing not one mention of the racism that caused Tanner to flee the US and spend most of his life in Paris….studying art, creating, being honored as an artist, living his best life from 1891-1935 when he died in Paris and was buried in a small town nearby. Of course Henri O. Tanner is one of the major figures on our Black Paris Tour.

06/02/2025

Wait til you see the place in Paris where we explain Benjamin Banneker’s critical role in mapping out Washington DC to make it look like Paris! looks like Washington DC and we ex

February is Black History Month in the United States. To celebrate, today we learn about one of our prominent naturalists from the 1700’s: Benjamin Banneker. In 1749 Banneker, a 17-year old free young Black man, observed that there were mysterious insects he called “locusts” emerging from underground, which were highly noisy after molting and only stuck around for a few weeks. At the time, he wrote down observations about what came to be known as Brood X, then repeated the process every time they reemerged. This led to his correct prediction that they would reappear in the year 1800. Banneker was one of the first scientists to observe and chart the life cycle of the 17-year cicadas 276 years ago.

Born and raised in Baltimore County to Robert, a freed-enslaved father and Mary, a free-born mother, Benjamin had a few years of education at a Quaker school, yet was mostly self taught. His love for and interest in nature is often attributed to his mother, who was an herbalist who kept beehives and fruit trees. His interest in insects intensified when he first observed Brood X. As the years passed, he went on to observe and study cicadas scientifically. This year the same species of Cicadas are emerging in Maryland in Allegany and Washington County from mid May to late June. These will be part of Brood XIV.

For more information and places to visit that honor Benjamin Banneker, please visit the following:

Banneker-Douglas Museum (Annapolis, Maryland)
https://bdmuseum.maryland.gov/

Benjamin Banneker Historical Park and Museum (Catonsville, Maryland)
https://www.baltimorecountymd.gov/departments/recreation/programs/banneker-museum/

For more information on the life of Benjamin Banneker:
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/long-overlooked-benjamin-banneker-is-recognized-for-work-on-cicadas-and-against-slavery/

For more information on cicadas visit:
https://extension.umd.edu/resource/cicadas-maryland/

https://www.cicadamania.com/cicadas/periodical-cicada-brood-xiv-14-will-emerge-in-2025-in-thirteen-states/

Portrait courtesy of the Banneker Douglass Museum, cicada by Edwin Guevara.

06/02/2025