Then, in the middle of this biography, there's a surprising detail: • 1909: Reaches the North Pole with Peary and plants the American flag. Born into a family of sharecroppers, Henson later set sail for the North Pole (Credit: Everett Collection Inc/Alamy) The sign is topped with a photograph of Henson wrapped in furs, a hood pulled over his head. His brow is soberly furrowed, and he wears a bushy mustache. His appearance fits the archetype of the polar explorer in every way but one: Henson was Black.

https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20230418-matthew-henson-the-us-unsung-black-explorer

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