Ed Dwight was in line to be the first Black astronaut. History had other ideas

In the 1960s, the U.S. was embroiled in a tense space race with the Soviet Union — and was losing. By the start of the decade, the Soviets had already sent the first satellite and the first man into space. So, on May 25, 1961, President John F. Kennedy made a pledge to the nation: The U.S. would land a man on the moon before the decade ended.

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