Black Women in History - Black History Month
Introducing my first in the Black Women of History Series celebrating Black History Month!
Black Women of History made a difference for everyone. These amazing women against the odds fought against slavery, for womens rights, were philanthropists, and were the first in their fields and had a large impact on American History.
My paternal grandmother was Black Seminole Indian and my maternal Grandmother was Quaker and her family was abolotionsits as far back as the 1600's.
Handcrafted Artistian Jewelry in Stainless Steel because how its made matters.
Born into slavery in Maryland, Harriet Tubman escaped to freedom in the North in 1849 to become the most famous "conductor" on the underground railroad. Tubman risked her life to lead hundreds of family members and other slaves from the plantation system to freedom on this elaborate secret network of safe houses. A leading abolitionist before the American Civil War Tubman also helped the Union Army during the war, working as a spy among other roles.
Bessie Coleman soared across the sky as the first African American, and the first Native American woman pilot. Known for performing flying tricks, Coleman’s nicknames were; “Brave Bessie,” “Queen Bess,” and “The Only Race Aviatrix in the World.” Her goal was to encourage women and African Americans to reach their dreams. Unfortunately, her career ended with a tragic plane crash, but her life continues to inspire people around the world.
A former slave, Sojourner Truth became an outspoken advocate for abolition, temperance, and civil and women’s rights in the nineteenth century. Her Civil War work earned her an invitation to meet President Abraham Lincoln in 1864. She escaped with her infant daughter to freedom in 1826. After going to court to recover her son in 1828 who had been sold into slavery illegally, she became the first blackwoman to win such a case against a white man.
Madam C. J. Walker was “the first Black woman millionaire in America” and made her fortune thanks to her homemade line of hair care products for Black women. Born Sarah Breedlove to parents who had been enslaved, she was inspired to create her hair products after an experience with hair loss, which led to the creation of the “Walker system” of hair care. A talented entrepreneur with a knack for self-promotion, Walker built a business empire, at first selling products directly to Black women, then employing “beauty culturalists” to hand-sell her wares. The self-made millionaire used her fortune to fund scholarships for women at the Tuskegee Institute and donated large parts of her wealth to the NAACP, the Black YMCA and other charities.
Eleanora Fagan, known professionally as Billie Holiday, was an American jazz and swing music singer with a career spanning 26 years. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner Lester Young, Holiday had an innovative influence on jazz music and pop singing.
