Joe Biden Says A Black Man Invented The Light Bulb, Not Thomas Edison

BYCole Blake18.7K Views
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Joe Biden, Light Bulb, Black Man
Joe Biden says it was a black man who invented the light bulb.

Speaking in Kenosha, Wisconsin, Thursday, Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden said that it was a black man who invented the light bulb, not a white man. Biden likely was likely referring to inventor Lewis Howard Latimer, a black man who greatly improved the light bulb in 1880.

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"People fear that which is different. We've got to, for example, why in God's name don't we teach history in history classes? A Black man invented the light bulb, not a White guy named Edison," Biden said. "There's so much — did anybody know before what recently happened that Black Wall Street in Oklahoma was burned to the ground. Anybody know these things? Because we don't teach them. We've got to give people facts."

Biden also referred to the 1921 Tulsa massacre and destruction of Black Wall Street in Oklahoma, saying this is an example of a historically significant moment that is not included in school history curricula.  

In addition to significant work on the light bulb, Latimer invented the first toilet for railroad carriages as well as an early forerunner of the air conditioner.

Biden's slight gaffe, Thursday, is one of his least egregious of the campaign, in which he's built a reputation as being prone to verbal mishaps. 

[Via]


About The Author
Cole Blake is a current staff writer at HotNewHipHop based out of New York City. He began writing for the site as an intern back in 2018 while finishing his B.A. in Journalism at St. John’s University. In the time since, he’s covered a number of breaking stories for HNHH. These include the ongoing YSL RICO trial, the allegations surrounding Diddy, and much more. His work also extends outside of hip-hop, having written extensively about a myriad of topics including politics, sports, and pop culture. He’s attended several music festivals to provide coverage for the site as well, such as Rolling Loud and Governors Ball.
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