In 1926, historian Carter G. Woodson and the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History established the second week of February to be “Negro History Week.”

Since 1976, every United States president has officially designated the month of February as Black History Month.

People everywhere spend the month reflecting on the essential role of black people in U.S. history.

Five students share their thoughts on the most influential black people in, not just American history, but in world history.

Lauren Richardson, Senior

Who do you think is the most influential black person in history?

“Michelle Obama is definitely someone who is influential to me,” Richardson said.

What do you think was the most influential thing she did?

“I admire her for her elegance, her gratitude, and her passion for helping others. Michelle grew up on the South Side of Chicago where, even against the circumstances, (she) made herself a strong, classy, and dedicated woman to her school and her work,” Richardson said. “I think she embodies everything a woman should be through her character and her success. I think what I like best about her is she defies all stereotypes.”

How do you think the world would be different without her?

“I think she represented a great role model while in office and really reflected on the women of America. I wouldn’t say life would be completely different, but life wouldn’t have been the same,” Richardson said.

Jacobi Wright, Senior

Who do you think is the most influential black person in history?

“Martin Luther King Jr.,” Wright said.

What do you think was the most influential thing he did?

“I think that the most influential thing that he did was standing up for what he believed in, like desegregation and equality, and being so brave not to care what the consequences would be,” Wright said.

How do you think the world would be different without him?

“I feel like the without the ‘I Have a Dream’ speech the world wouldn’t nearly be the same as it is today,” Wright said. “Not full- on segregation but way more set back than it is now, like less progress would have happened on both sides without the impact of his speech.”

Hannah Bailey, Senior

Who do you think is the most influential black person in history?

“I don’t think I could pick just one to be the most influential,” Bailey said. “But Thurgood Marshall would definitely be at the top of my list.”

What do you think was the most influential thing he did?

“The most influential thing he did was winning the Brown v. Board of Education case,” Bailey said, “which the Supreme Court unanimously voted to end racial segregation in public schools.”

How do you think the world would be different without him?

“Without Thurgood Marshall, I think our school systems would still be set back with racial segregation,” Bailey said.

Mackenzie Ramey, Sophomore

Who do you think is the most influential black person in history?

“I most definitely think Rosa Parks influenced the world today the most,” Ramey said.

What do you think was the most influential thing she did?

“Not only did she fight for African-Americans, but she also fought as a woman, which most women would never do, especially in that time of the world,” Ramey said. “So I think that was very brave of her to do.”

How do you think the world would be different without her?

“The world without Rosa Parks would be very different,” Ramey said. “I think it would still be a world with (segregation), possibly the same world that it was in 1955, when she had to fight for her spot on the bus.”

Kristopher Perry, Sophomore

Who do you think is the most influential black person in history?

“Nelson Mandela is the most influential black person in history, in my opinion,” Perry said.

What do you think was the most influential thing he did?

“Nelson Mandela abolished the apartheid movement in Africa, which was a social system in South Africa. And under white rule racial segregation was strong,” Perry said. “But he ended it, even when he was imprisoned multiple times.”

How do you think the world would be different without him?

“If he was not around, then maybe even today racial segregation in South Africa would be very strong,” Perry said.