1 November
- 1800 The White House and Enslaved Labor The U.S. presidential mansion is first occupied; much of its construction was performed by enslaved Black laborers.
2 November
- 1983 The Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday Is Signed Into Law President Reagan signs the bill establishing a federal holiday honoring Martin Luther King Jr.
3 November
- 1992 Carol Moseley Braun Is Elected to the Senate Carol Moseley Braun of Illinois becomes the first Black woman elected to the U.S. Senate.
4 November
- 2008 Barack Obama Is Elected President Barack Obama defeats John McCain to become the first Black person elected president of the United States.
5 November
- 1956 Nat King Cole Hosts His Own Network Show Nat King Cole becomes the first Black American to host a network television variety show.
6 November
- 1901 'Lift Every Voice and Sing' Is Composed James Weldon Johnson and his brother J. Rosamond Johnson set to music the poem that becomes 'Lift Every Voice and Sing.'
7 November
- 1989 L. Douglas Wilder Is Elected Governor L. Douglas Wilder of Virginia is elected the first Black governor in U.S. history.
8 November
- 1938 Crystal Bird Fauset Wins a Legislative Seat Crystal Bird Fauset is elected to the Pennsylvania legislature, the first Black woman elected to a state legislature in the United States.
9 November
- 1922 Dorothy Dandridge Is Born Actress and singer Dorothy Dandridge is born in Cleveland, Ohio.
10 November
- 1898 The Wilmington Massacre and Coup White supremacists overthrow the elected biracial government of Wilmington, North Carolina, killing scores of Black residents and destroying Black businesses.
11 November
- 1831 Nat Turner Is Executed Nat Turner, leader of the 1831 Virginia slave rebellion, is hanged in Jerusalem, Virginia.
12 November
- 1922 Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Founded Sigma Gamma Rho is founded by seven Black educators in Indianapolis, Indiana.
13 November
- 1956 The Supreme Court Affirms Bus Desegregation The Supreme Court affirms Browder v. Gayle, ruling that segregation on Montgomery's buses is unconstitutional.
14 November
- 1960 Ruby Bridges Integrates a New Orleans School Six-year-old Ruby Bridges, escorted by federal marshals, integrates William Frantz Elementary School.
15 November
- 1884 The Berlin Conference Partitions Africa European powers convene the Berlin Conference to divide the African continent among themselves with no African representation.
16 November
- 1873 W.C. Handy Is Born Composer W.C. Handy, the 'Father of the Blues,' is born in Florence, Alabama.
17 November
- 1911 Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Founded Omega Psi Phi, the first historically Black fraternity founded at a historically Black university, is established at Howard University.
18 November
- 1994 Cab Calloway Dies Bandleader and entertainer Cab Calloway dies at age 86.
19 November
- 1953 Roy Campanella Is Named League MVP Brooklyn Dodgers catcher Roy Campanella wins the National League Most Valuable Player award, one of three he would earn.
20 November
- 1923 Garrett Morgan Patents the Traffic Signal Inventor Garrett Morgan receives a U.S. patent for a three-position traffic signal, having also invented an early gas mask.
21 November
- 1865 Shaw University Is Founded Shaw University is founded in Raleigh, North Carolina, becoming one of the first historically Black universities in the South.
22 November
- 1930 The Nation of Islam Is Established The Nation of Islam is founded in Detroit, blending Black nationalism with a distinctive religious teaching.
23 November
- 1897 Andrew Beard Patents the 'Jenny Coupler' Inventor Andrew Jackson Beard, born into slavery, patents an automatic railroad car coupler that spares workers from losing hands and lives.
24 November
- 1868 Scott Joplin Is Born Composer Scott Joplin, the 'King of Ragtime,' is born around this time in northeast Texas.
25 November
- 1975 Suriname Wins Independence Suriname gains independence from the Netherlands.
26 November
- 1883 Sojourner Truth Dies Abolitionist and women's-rights champion Sojourner Truth dies in Battle Creek, Michigan.
27 November
- 1942 Jimi Hendrix Is Born Guitarist Jimi Hendrix is born in Seattle, Washington.
28 November
- 1960 Richard Wright Dies Novelist Richard Wright, author of 'Native Son' and 'Black Boy,' dies in Paris at age 52.
29 November
- 1908 Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Is Born Future congressman Adam Clayton Powell Jr. is born in New Haven, Connecticut.
30 November
- 1924 Shirley Chisholm Is Born Shirley Anita Chisholm is born in Brooklyn, New York.