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There are many things that have come to light, or have gotten much needed attention, during the recent movement for social justice. One of those things is just how poor our education is in America when it comes to the plight and contributions of Black people throughout history.
If a Black person contributed to history in some way they should be in all of the books and be taught all year round, not only during Black History Month, and we definitely think these 11 Black women deserve whole chapters (if not whole books) dedicated just to them.
11. Madam C.J. Walker
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The Guinness Book of World Records calls Madam C.J. Walker – an American entrepreneur, philanthropist, and political and social activist, the first female self-made millionaire in the country.
Born in 1867, she made her fortune with Madam C.J. Walker Manufacturing Company. The company developed and marketed a line of cosmetics and hair products specifically for Black women.
10. Gladys West
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Gladys West, a mathematician, contributed to the mathematical modeling of the shape of the Earth, and her work and models were later incorporated into the development of the Global Positioning System (GPS).
In the 1970s and 1980s, Gladys programmed an IBM computer that delivered precise calculations to model the shape of Earth. She used extremely complex algorithms that took into account variations in gravitational, tidal, and other forces of nature that impact the shape of the globe.
9. Valerie Thomas
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If you like 3D movies, say a quick silent thank you to Dr. Valerie Thomas. She was an American scientist and inventory who held various positions at NASA, where she authored multiple scientific papers and applied for a patent for the illusion transmitter – a device that simulates a real-time, 3-dimensional viewing of an object through optical illusions with parabolic mirrors.
In normal speak, her technology allowed for the creation of 3D technology for everyone.
8. Barbara Jordan
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The first African American woman elected to the Texas Senate (in 1966), Barbara worked to establish a minimum wage law, a Fair Employment Practices Commission, and anti-discrimination statements in business contracts. She was elected as Senate President in 1972, becoming the first Black woman in America to oversee a legislative body.
Later in her career she was elected to Congress – the first African American woman to be elected from the South since 1898 – and took center state during President Richard Nixon’s impeachment hearings.
7. Mary McLeod Bethune
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Mary McLeod Bethune was an educated and activist often referred to as “The First Lady of The Struggle.” She was born to slave parents and when she was 30, opened the Educational and Industrial Training School for Negro Girls in a small house near a dump. It later merged with a boy’s school, taking on the name Bethune-Cookman School.
In 1924 she was elected president of the National Association of Colored Women’s Club, then founded the National Council of Negro Women.
In 1936, FDR named her director of Negro Affairs of the National Youth Administration, making her the highest ranked African-American woman in government at the time. While serving, she created the Women’s Army Corps, ensuring they would be racially integrated.
6. Shirley Chisholm
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Shirley Chisholm was the first African American woman elected to the U.S. Congress, and the first woman (and African American) to seek the presidential nomination from one of the two major political parties in 1972.
She introduced more than 50 pieces of legislation while in Congress, where she also spoke out for racial and gender equality, for the poor, and strove to end the Vietnam War.
She co-founded the National Women’s Political Caucus in 1971, and in 1977, became the first Black woman (and second woman ever) to serve on the House Rules Committee.
5. Daisy Bates
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Daisy Bates lost her mother after she was raped and murdered by 3 white men. She dedicated her life to fighting the kind of inequality that shaped her world, and played a leading role in the Little Rock Integration Crisis of 1957.
She and her husband ran The Arkansas Weekly, one of the only African American newspapers dedicated solely to the Civil Rights Movement.
Daisy was the President of the Arkansas chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) for many years, and was integral in enrolling Black children in white schools after the Supreme Court made it possible.
4. Mary Kenner
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Born to a family of inventors, Mary Kenner came up with and tried to patent the idea for an adjustable sanitary belt with an inbuilt, moisture-proof napkin pocket – the precursor to modern sanitary pads.
She never made any money off her idea, because her patent was rejected because she was Black.
3. Barbara Smith Conrad
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Barbara Smith Conrad was admitted to the University of Texas in 1956, where she sang opera and, somewhat unwillingly, became part of a racial controversy when she got the lead in a musical over a white performer.
They took the role away from her, which led to protests and media coverage.
2. Wangari Maathai
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Wangari Maathai was the first woman from East and Central Africa to earn a PhD, and the first African woman to win the Nobel Prize. She was a social, environmental, and political activist who founded the Green Belt Movement in 1977 – an environmental non-governmental organization that put their main focus on the planting of trees, environmental conservation, and women’s rights.
1. Alice Coachman
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Alice was an amazing athlete and the first Black woman to win an Olympic gold medal. In 1948, her medal was presented by King George VI, and in 1952, she became the first African American woman to advertise an international product – Coca-Cola – as she continued to support other young people in sports.
She’s credited with opening the door for future African American track stars.
I’m dying to know more about each and every one of these ladies.
And honestly, I’m pretty upset that I’m middle aged and don’t already know it all already. Major fail, public high school and private college!
