David Adkins, known professionally as Sinbad, was born on this day in Benton Harbor, Michigan. A natural entertainer from a young age, Sinbad rose to fame in the 1990s for his clean, energetic comedy and appearances on television shows such as A Different World and The Sinbad Show. He also starred in films like Jingle All the Way and First Kid. Sinbad’s humor, rooted in real-life observations and family experiences, made him a standout in the world of comedy.

On November 18, 1993, South Africa’s Black and white leaders approved a new interim constitution, marking a historic step toward ending apartheid and white minority rule. This agreement laid the foundation for the country’s first multiracial democratic elections, held in April 1994, in which Nelson Mandela would be elected President.

The interim constitution granted universal suffrage, enshrined civil rights for all citizens, and marked the official beginning of South Africa’s transition to a full democracy after decades of racial segregation and oppression.

On this day, Wally “Famous” Amos, founder of Famous Amos Cookies, donated his signature Panama hat and embroidered shirt to the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History.
Amos, a former talent agent turned entrepreneur, became a cultural icon in the 1970s and 80s, known not only for his chocolate chip cookies but also for his charismatic personality and distinctive style.

This donation recognized his influence as one of the first African American entrepreneurs to build a nationally recognized food brand bearing his own image and name.

Over 900 people, most of them African American, died in a mass murder-suicide at the People’s Temple Agricultural Project (commonly known as Jonestown) in Guyana, South America. The event was orchestrated by Jim Jones, the leader of the People’s Temple cult.

Among the victims were children, elderly people, and many families who had followed Jones from California seeking a utopian society. That day, they were coerced or forced to drink a cyanide-laced beverage. The phrase “Don’t drink the Kool-Aid” originated from this event, though it was actually a different flavored drink.

The tragedy followed the murder of U.S. Congressman Leo Ryan, who had traveled to Jonestown to investigate abuse allegations. Ryan and four others were shot and killed as they attempted to leave the area.

Andrew J. Young, civil rights leader, diplomat, and politician, was awarded the Spingarn Medal by the NAACP in 1978. The Spingarn Medal is the NAACP’s highest honor, awarded annually for outstanding achievement by an African American.

Young played a pivotal role in the Civil Rights Movement, working closely with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as a strategist and negotiator. He later became the first African American U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations (1977–1979) and served as Mayor of Atlanta from 1982 to 1990.

Robert Edward Chambliss, a former member of the Ku Klux Klan, was convicted of first-degree murder for his role in the 1963 bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama.
The bombing, which occurred on September 15, 1963, killed four young Black girls: Addie Mae Collins (14), Denise McNair (11), Carole Robertson (14), and Cynthia Wesley (14) — a tragedy that shocked the nation and became a catalyst for the Civil Rights Movement.
Chambliss’s conviction came 14 years after the bombing, marking a major, though delayed, step toward accountability for racially motivated violence.

On this day, Howard Thurman was born in Daytona Beach, Florida. A theologian, philosopher, and civil rights leader, Thurman became one of the most influential religious thinkers of the 20th century. He was the first Black person to hold a full-time faculty position at a predominantly white American university (Boston University, in 1953).

Thurman was a mentor to many civil rights leaders, including Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and his book “Jesus and the Disinherited” profoundly shaped the spiritual foundation of the nonviolent movement for social justice.

Sojourner Truth, born Isabella Baumfree in Swartekill, Ulster County, New York, was born into slavery but became one of America’s most powerful abolitionists, women’s rights activists, and public orators. After escaping slavery in 1826, she changed her name to Sojourner Truth in 1843 and dedicated her life to advocating for the abolition of slavery, racial equality, and women’s suffrage.
Her most famous speech, “Ain’t I a Woman?”, delivered in 1851 at the Women’s Convention in Akron, Ohio, remains a foundational moment in feminist and civil rights history.