History tells us that Black Catholics were the first to hold a national lay Catholic Congress in the United States. The Congress offered opportunities for Black Catholics to speak for themselves on the issues of evangelization, spirituality, education and the plight of Black Americans. The initiator of this movement was Daniel Rudd.

In the early Twentieth Century, the Knights of Peter Claver, the Federated Colored Catholics, and the National Catholic Interracial Federation were formed. Their annual conventions echoed the spirit of the past Congresses and addressed the spiritual and human needs of the Black community. Oftentimes the content of these Congresses and Conventions revealed the hopes, the dreams, the vision and the pain of the entire Black community. Their goals, born and nurtured in these settings, likewise addressed the plight of the Afro-American.

In the late 20th Century, organizations such as the National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus, the National Black Sisters Conference, followed by the National Black Lay Catholic Caucus, and the National Office of Black Catholics have taken up the cause of Black Catholics. Since 1985, The National Black Catholic Congress has served as the leading organization.