Black History

#Black Girl M-A-G-I-C: Zaila Avant-garde 1st Black American to win the Spelling Bee

In the July 8 contest held in Orlando, Fla., Zaila won on the word “murraya” a genus of tropical Asiatic and Australian trees. At that moment she spun around and jumped in the air as multi-colored confetti flurried around her.

Published

3 years ago

July 17, 2021

Isabelle Price

Zaila Avant-garde competes in the first round of the the Scripps National Spelling Bee finals in Orlando, Florida on July 8, 2021. (Photo by JIM WATSON / POOL / AFP) (Photo by JIM WATSON/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Zaila Avant-garde, 14

Zaila Avant-garde, 14, from Harvey, La., is the first African American and the first student from Louisiana to win the National Spelling Bee. (Her father changed her surname from Heard to Avant-garde in homage to saxophonist John Coltrane.)

The first person of African descent to win the contest was Jody-Anne Maxwell a 12-year-old from Jamaica in 1998.

The National Spelling Bee began in 1925. Now known as the Scripps National Spelling Bee, the organization acknowledged in a statement that it “has not been immune from the social issues of its times, including the long-fought battle for racial equality. . . Our hope is that Zaila’s amazing accomplishments will be seen as an inspiration to other young people and another step forward in that cause.”

“It felt really good to win because I have been working on it for like two years. So to actually win the whole thing was like a dream come true,” she told CNN’s “New Day” on Friday. “I felt like in the moment I snapped out of a surreal dream.”

Zaila also holds three Guinness World Records for dribbling, bouncing and juggling basketballs. They include: the most basketballs dribbled simultaneously (six for 30 seconds); the most basketball bounces (307 in 30 seconds); and the most bounce juggles in one minute (255 with four basketballs).

She appeared in a commercial with Golden State Warrior Steph Curry in 2018.

For her win, which was televised on ESPN, she received a trophy and a $50,000 prize. This was only Zaila’s second time competing in a spelling bee. In her first competition she made it to the third round.

She told Good Morning America that the Bee was a “gate-opener to being interested in education.”

Zaila was in the final round with Chaitra Thummala, 12, from San Francisco.

Mayor LaToya Cantrell of New Orleans tweeted: “talk about #blackgirlmagic!”

The New York Times, CNN and BBC News were sources for this report.

Isabelle Price

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Oakland Post: Week of July 24 – 30, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of July 24 – 30, 2024

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9 hours ago

July 26, 2024

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Oakland Post: Week of July 17 -23, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of July 17 -23, 2024

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Black History

Betty Harris: Inventor of Spot Test That Revolutionized Chemical Detection

Our accomplishments never cease to amaze me. Imagine being a scientist who can detect hidden chemicals with just a simple test. Here’s another hidden gem. Dr. Betty Harris is a brilliant scientist and inventor known for her work in chemistry. She was born on July 29, 1940, in Louisiana. From a young age, Betty was fascinated by science. She loved to learn how things worked and always asked lots of questions. Her passion for science led her to become a chemist.

Published

1 week ago

July 19, 2024

Oakland Post

Dr. Betty Harris

By Tamara Shiloh

Our accomplishments never cease to amaze me. Imagine being a scientist who can detect hidden chemicals with just a simple test. Here’s another hidden gem.

Dr. Betty Harris is a brilliant scientist and inventor known for her work in chemistry. She was born on July 29, 1940, in Louisiana. From a young age, Betty was fascinated by science. She loved to learn how things worked and always asked lots of questions. Her passion for science led her to become a chemist.

By 1961, aged just 19, she had graduated from Southern University in Baton Rouge with a chemistry degree.

She did her research at Los Alamos National Laboratory, New Mexico, where she worked in the areas of hazardous waste treatment and environmental remediation as well as explosives chemistry. Areas of focus included explosives detection, synthesis and characterization of insensitive high explosives and sensitivity of weathered high explosives.

Her invention, a spot test for TATB, represents a significant advancement in the detection of this crucial but stable explosive compound.

TATB stands for 1,3,5-triamino-2,4,6-trinitrobenzene. It’s a type of explosive that is very stable and safe to handle, making it important for various safety applications. TATB is used in explosives because it doesn’t explode easily under heat or shock, which means it’s safer to store and use.

Harris invented a special test called a “spot test” to detect TATB. Before her invention, finding TATB in materials was difficult and time-consuming. Her spot test made it quick and easy to detect this important chemical.

The spot test developed by Harris is a simple yet powerful method that involves a few straightforward steps. A small sample of the material in question is obtained. The sample is treated with a special chemical solution formulated by Harris. If TATB is present in the sample, the solution undergoes a color change, providing a clear and immediate indication of its presence.

Harris’s spot test is important for several reasons. The test helps ensure that explosives are safe to handle and store. By detecting TATB quickly, accidents can be prevented. It is easy to use and provides fast results, saving time and resources.

Inventions like Harris’s help science to progress by making it easier to work with important chemicals.

Her contributions extend beyond her scientific achievements. She is a passionate advocate for education and has been a mentor to countless young scientists, particularly encouraging girls and African American students to pursue careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) fields.

Her dedication to fostering the next generation of scientists has earned her numerous accolades and respect in the academic community.

Harris still lives in New Mexico.