The men and women who serve on the front lines as firefighters, rescuing citizens in harm’s way, should be saluted daily for their bravery. In one of the most-dangerous and selfless occupations in the world, firefighters risk their lives for the safety of others at a moment’s notice. Even though history has not been kind to the memory of African-American firemen, their contribution to firefighting is a significant one. Still, even with the most-dedicated research, it is difficult to ascertain who were the first African-Americans who took up the role as firefighters.

Several sources, including the richly detailed website^[1] from historian Mike Legeros, all point to the summer of 1817 as being the earliest record that Black firemen existed in New Orleans, La. Although Black men stamping out blazes could have happened before then, there is no real evidence available in capturing this historic truth. According to Legeros, 1821 and 1833 also show evidence of freed men joining firemen ranks

Will the real Mitt Romney please stand up?

Making his first comments since his widely panned presidential debate performance, President Barack Obama reveals to supporters in Sloan’s Lake Park in Denver, Colorado that he had no idea who he was debating against Wednesday night, but it definitely wasn’t Mitt Romney.

See the POTUS’ comments below:

When I got on the stage, I met this very spirited fellow who claimed to be Mitt Romney.

But it couldn’t have been Mitt Romney, because the real Mitt Romney has been running around the country for the last year promising $5 trillion in tax cuts that favor the wealthy. The fellow on stage last night said he didn’t know anything about that.

The real Mitt Romney said we don’t need any more teachers in our classrooms, but the fellow on stage last night, he loves teachers, can’t get enough of them.

The Mitt Romney we all know invested in companies that were called pioneers of outsourcing jobs to other countries, but the guy on stage last night said he

The former mayor^[1] of Washington, D.C., Marion Barry (pictured) began on the right foot in life as a scrupulous activist who worked hard to plot a course that would eventually lead him to the American dream. Somewhere along the line, though, his path took a devastating twist, leading to his destruction. Did Barry become the victim of racists who discriminated against Blacks or did he just self-destruct?

SEE ALSO: Conspiracy Theory 101: Bill Cosby? Oprah Winfrey? Who Got Dave Chappelle’s Show Off the Air?^[2]

Barry was an activist, legislator, and had the backing of the Pulitzer Prize-winning Washington Post, so why wouldn’t he win D.C.’s mayoral race of 1978? With the promise of improving the “bumbling and bungling” D.C. administration, Barry set his course, and his first term in office was once described as “methodical, competent, and intellectually superior.”

On the flip side, though, unemployment and crime rates soared, the promise of improved public housing was slow and coming, and

Well, well, well. What do we have here? Followers of Chris Brown and girlfriend Karrueche Tran are shocked (note sarcasm) by the  news that the rebound relationship is officially over. Even more interesting, the “Don’t Wake Me Up” singer admits that the split is over his rekindled “friendship” with his ex-toxic flame, Rihanna, reports the NY Daily News^[1].

“I have decided to be single to focus on my career. I love Karrueche very much but I don’t want to see her hurt over my friendship with Rihanna,” Chris Brown tells Confidenti@l through his spokesman on Thursday. “I’d rather be single allowing us to be both be happy in our lives.”

SEE ALSO: Rihanna Dines Nude In Australia? (Photos)^[2]

As previously reported by NewsOne^[3], Rihanna and Brown have been testing the waters of public reaction since they decided to eat each other’s “Birthday Cake” all over the airwaves. They took it a step farther at the MTV Video Music Awards when the “Diamonds” singer warmly hugged Brown and rubbed her hand i