Black Women Rock! 10 Black Women Everyone Should Know
Black Women Rock : 10 Black Women Everyone Should Know
About
When I was looking up Octavius Catto, I decided to look at notable black women and though I found a LOT of notable ones, even those I hadn't heard of prior. I had to shout out black women and how they rocked this world! So, enjoy and I'll put up the link when I film and edit the video on Youtube!
Most of the information from this video is taken from
Biography.com. The link
10 Ida B Wells Barnett
Best known as Ida B Wells, she was primarily known for
her journalism and was an early figure in the Civil Rights Movement. After the
murder of a friend, Wells went about investigating reasons black men were
lynched. She found the reasons: Not giving way to whites, competing
economically with whites, and the go to reason: an attack or rape of a white
woman. She published her findings in an 1892 pamphlet called Southern Horrors:
Lynch Law in All Its phases. Afterward her press in Memphis was destroyed by a
white mob. Wells also worked with WEB DuBois on economic empowerment of black people and was known to cause a stir in Washington DC especially under the Wilson Administration. Fearless to the end and always true to her convictions. She died
in March of 1931
In 2004, she
felt inspired to make her own films. She later directed Selma
(2011) and I Will Follow (2010) and Middle of
Nowhere (2012). DuVernay became the first African American female director to receive an
Oscar nomination and a Golden Globe. In 2016, she wrote and directed 13th,
named for the Amendment that outlawed slavery except for as punishment for a
crime. It chronicles how the prison system is another way in which slavery
still operates under mass incarceration and the school to prison pipeline.
DuVernay also received an Oscar nomination for her work on 13th
8 Octavia Butler
Dyslexic black woman sci-fi writer. To describe her as
this would be accurate but also fall short of her majesty. Known for her
shyness and impressive height, she changed the world with her debut of
Patternmaster (1976) which blended African American spiritualism and science
fiction. Her other notable novels are called Kindred (1979) Parable
of the Sower (1993) and Parable
of the Talents (1998). She thrived in a world
dominated by white males and won many awards including the Hugo awards (Oscars
of sci-fi). She was the first science fiction writer to win a “genius” grant in
1995 which allowed her to buy a house for her mother and herself. Her last
novel was Fledgling in 2005. She died on February 24, 2006
7 Ibtihaj Muhammad
A fierce competitor who would become the first Muslim
wearing a hijab to represent the United States at the Olympics. Frustrated with
uniforms that had to be altered to add coverings for her arms and legs, fencing
was perfect for her. After attending Duke University on a scholarship, she
ended her first year (2004) with a record of 49-8. She would place in at the
Junior Olympics and earn 3 All American honors. In the 2010s Muhammad would
earn many top honors during the Olympics in 2016. Muhammad runs a clothing company
Luella in 2014 for Muslim athletes who desire to dress modestly while
competing. After she retires she will commit to running it full time. Her
sisters and brother are also involved in her business
6 Michele Roberts
The first female union leader in major North American sports (NBA Players Association) in 2014. She grew up in Bronx Public housing and later attended UC Berkeley School of Law. She started out as a public defender, and rose to litigating partner in many top firms. She also joined Anita Hill’s legal team in 1991 during Clarence Thomas’s confirmation and exonerated Charles Bakaly. In 2014, the NBA Players Association picked her out of 300 candidates to represent their union in collective bargaining talks despite having no experience in labor relations or sports
5 Euphemia Lofton Haynes
In 1943, she became the first African American woman to
earn a Ph.D. in mathematic. She was born in DC and graduated from Mt St high
School in 1907 and Miner Normal School in 1909, earned her Bachelor of Arts in
Math from Smith College. She became a professor at Miners Teachers College
(renamed University of the District of Columbia) in 1930; she would remain head
of the school’s math department for 30 years. She would serve with distinction
on many boards and in various organizations after retiring from the public
school system. She died of a heart attack 1980 at the age of 89
4 Florence Beatrice Price
Ms. Price is the first African American woman to have her
work performed by a major symphony. She was born in Arkansas in 1887, and gave
her first piano performance at the age of 4. She would settle in Chicago where
her award winning “Symphony in E Minor” was performed by the Chicago Symphony
Orchestra. Leontyne Price and Marian Anderson would sing her compositions as
well. In 1910, she moved to Atlanta to head Clark’s University music
department. In 1940, Price, composed more than 300 compositions was inducted
into the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers in 1940. In June
of 1953, she passed away of a stroke.
3 Regina Benjamin
A Physician appointed as the 18th US
Surgeon General in 2009 & unanimously confirmed. Benjamin grew up in
Alabama and graduated from Xavier University with her Bachelors, and received
her M.D from the University of Alabama in 1984. Using her business expertise,
Benjamin has devoted most of her life to opening clinics for low income
communities and accessing federal funds to keep them afloat. Ms. Benjamin was
the first African American woman under 40 elected to the American Medical
Association’s board of trustees in 1995, and in 2002 became the first black
woman to lead a state based medical society as president of the Medical
Association of the State of Alabama. She received many honorary degrees and
accolades including the Nelson Mandela Award for Health and Human rights and
the National Caring Award
2 Mary Jane Patterson
The first black woman to graduate from an established
four year college (Oberlin). Born into slavery in 1840, she moved to Ohio in
1852 with her family. In 1862 he was the first black woman to earn her B.A
there. Her brother john, and Sisters Emma and Chanie Ann would graduate to
pursue teaching careers. She taught at the Institute for Colored Youths in
Pennsylvania and went to DC for a teaching position in DC at the Preparatory
High School for Colored Youths. In 1871 she became the first black principalPreparatory High School for Negroes and
continued working at the school until she died in September of 1894
Honorable Mentions
Patricia Roberts Harris, Ambassador, Dean of Howard,
Mayoral Candidate. She passed away in 1982
Claudette Colvin, Civil Rights Activist, Plaintiff in Bowder vs. Gayle—the legal case which cemented the victory of the Montgomery Bus Boycott
Fredi Washington, Civil Rights Activist, Actress in Imitation of Life and The Emperor Jones. She played mulatto roles but refused to pass for white. She died black and proud at the age of 91 in Savannah Georgia
Ari Moore, LGBT Community Activist and Artist
My Momma, Love you!
1 Autherine Lucy
Ms. Lucy is an educator who became the first
African-American student to desegregate the University of Alabama, facing group
threats. In 1952, Lucy and Pollie Ann Myers were
admitted to the University of Alabama until the admission office found out she
and Myers were African American. In 1955 she won a federal ruling stating that
she was to attend in February of 1956. On the third day of school a white mob
formed outside and she had to leave under police protection. The Board of the University of Alabama expelled her for her because the school was unsafe for her as well as dismissed allegations that the school conspired to form the mob there. In 1988,
the Board lifted her expulsion and in 1992 she attended the school with her
daughter to get her master’s in education and a scholarship was established in her
honor
I know there are many women I didn't shout out but who are some you would've included in the list? What did they do? How'd they impact the world?
Please comment and enjoy!
Please comment and enjoy!
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