This Day in History: 1933-03-18

Unita Zelma Blackwell, American civil rights activist who was the first African-American woman to be elected mayor in the U.S. state of Mississippi, is born. Blackwell was a project director for the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and helped organize voter drives for African Americans across Mississippi. She was also a founder of the US China Peoples Friendship Association, a group dedicated to promoting cultural exchange between the United States and China. Learn more.