EBONY Magazine’s wonderful article about the new Black Fives Era compilation of Brooklyn-related vintage African American basketball images at Barclays Center.
EBONY Magazine | The Black Fives: Black Basketball Pioneers
February 10, 2013 was a night to remember at the Barclays Center when the arena and the Brooklyn Nets honored Black Fives Era pioneers and their descendants.
The Root provided extensive coverage of the recent unveiling of a new installation of Brooklyn-related vintage African American basketball images at the Barclays Center.
Mayor Bloomberg and the New York City Mayor’s Office will proclaim today, February 10, 2013, as “Black Fives Day” for the City of New York.
On February 10, Barclays Center will unveil a compilation of six mural-sized photographic images honoring the legacy of Brooklyn’s African-American basketball history throughout the arena’s main concourse.
Newsday published this cool article by Bob Herzog. The piece is insightful, thoughtful, and thorough.
Claude Johnson was a guest on WNYC Radio’s Brian Lehrer Show in a segment called “Brooklyn’s Secret African-American Basketball History.”
The University of Indianapolis is honoring the memory and contributions of two alums, African American basketball pioneers Ray and George Crowe, by renaming one of its student residences after them.
NBA pioneer and Hall of Fame member Earl Lloyd (left) with Claude Johnson, Founder & Executive Director of the Black Fives Foundation, at the Smithsonian Institution in 2011.
Globetrotters pioneer Reece ‘Goose’ Tatum, known as the “Clown Prince of Basketball,” will be enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame’s Class of 2011.
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Black Fives
We inspire excellence in youth and communities by preserving, teaching, and honoring the pre-NBA history of African Americans in basketball.
For years, we have been building something truly remarkable.![]()
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Something deeper than what’s visible on the surface.![]()
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This piece, created by the Gee’s Bend Quilters Collective from remnants of our Black Fives throwback jerseys, carries that idea.![]()
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On the front, you see something beautiful.![]()
On the back, you see the work.![]()
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Tens of thousands of stitches.![]()
Each one holding the whole together.![]()
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Like the earlier African American basketball pioneers whose names were forgotten, but whose work helped shape the game.![]()
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Like the countless people, often unseen, who did and are doing the work that holds our country together.![]()
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The surface only exists because of what’s behind it.![]()
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And it’s only as strong as the weakest stitch.![]()
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Do we really want to remove certain stitches?![]()
Are we OK with pieces falling apart?![]()
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Do we value the work we don’t see?![]()
Do we recognize it?![]()
Do we protect it?![]()
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That’s the real story.![]()
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A cultural archive. A sports heritage platform.![]()
Build with us.![]()
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Make History Now.![]()
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#culturalheritage ![]()
#intellectualproperty ![]()
#archives ![]()
#sportsbusiness ![]()
#blackhistory
For years, we have been building something truly remarkable.![]()
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A deep archive of early African American basketball.![]()
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The stories, the images, the history that shaped the game.![]()
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But this is more than an archive.![]()
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It’s a cultural IP and sports heritage platform.![]()
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Infrastructure of history, identity, and assets ready to build with.![]()
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For partners, institutions, and brands who want real cultural authenticity, not just performative optics.![]()
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Build with us.![]()
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blackfives.org/build![]()
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#blackhistory #culturalheritage #brandpartnerships #archives #intellectualproperty