Black Womens History
This abolitionist and women’s rights activist delivered the famous 1851 speech often titled “Ain’t I a Woman?” at a convention in Akron, Ohio.
Who is Sojourner Truth?
This Taíno cacica (female chief) of Hispaniola was a poet and leader who resisted Spanish colonization before being executed by the Spanish governor in 1503.
Who is Anacaona?
This formerly enslaved woman became a famous conductor on the Underground Railroad and later served as a scout and spy for the Union Army during the American Civil War.
Who Is Harriet Tubman?
Widely considered one of the greatest tennis players of all time, this athlete has won 23 Grand Slam singles titles, the most in the Open Era.
Who is Serena Williams?
In 1955, this seamstress and civil rights activist refused to give up her seat on a Montgomery bus, helping spark the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
Who is Rosa Parks?
This 19th-century Dominican poet and educator founded the Instituto de Señoritas, one of the first higher-education schools for women in the Dominican Republic.
Who is Salomé Ureña?
In 1940, this groundbreaking African American actress became the first Black performer to win an Academy Award for her role in the film Gone with the Wind.
Who is Hattie McDaniel?
This filmmaker directed the 2014 historical drama Selma, which depicts the 1965 voting rights marches led by Martin Luther King Jr..
Who is Ava DuVernay?
This poet wrote the autobiographical work I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings and recited a poem at the 1993 presidential inauguration of Bill Clinton.
Who is Maya Angelou?
These three sisters—Patria, Minerva, and María Teresa—became symbols of resistance after their 1960 assassination ordered by dictator Rafael Trujillo.
Who are the Mirabal sisters?
This civil rights activist and educator helped organize the 1964 Mississippi Freedom Summer and later co-founded the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party to challenge segregation in politics.
Who is Fannie Lou Hamer?
This American gymnast became the most decorated gymnast in World Championships history and won multiple Olympic medals at the 2016 Summer Olympics and the 2020 Summer Olympics.
Who is Simone Biles?
In 1993, this writer became the first Black woman to win the Nobel Prize in Literature for novels including Beloved.
Who is Toni Morrison?
This Mirabal sister, a lawyer and outspoken activist against Trujillo’s regime, was a key member of the underground resistance movement known as the 14th of June Movement.
Who is Minerva Mirabal?
In 2022, this U.S. Supreme Court justice became the first Black woman confirmed to serve on the nation’s highest court.
Who is Ketanji Brown Jackson?
In 2009, this business leader became the first Black woman to lead a Fortune 500 company when she became CEO of Xerox
Who is Ursula Burns?
In 2021, this U.S. politician became the first woman, first Black American, and first person of South Asian descent to serve as Vice President of the United States
Who is Kamala Harris?
This Dominican rural activist, born Florinda Soriano Muñoz, was murdered in 1974 after organizing farmers to demand land rights; she became a symbol of the peasant movement.
Who is Mamá Tingó?
This Dominican activist and feminist founded the organization Acción Feminista Dominicana and helped lead the movement that secured women’s voting rights in the Dominican Republic in 1942.
Who is Abigail Mejía?
This Dominican sprinter won the silver medal in the 400 meters at the 2020 Summer Olympics and later won the gold medal in the same event at the 2024 Summer Olympics.
Who is Marileidy Paulino?
This investigative journalist led a crusade against lynching in the late 1800s and co-owned the newspaper Free Speech in Memphis.
Who is Ida B. Wells?
This Dominican-American author wrote the novel In the Time of the Butterflies, which tells the story of the Mirabal sisters.
Who is Julia Alvarez?
This Dominican educator and writer is known for her influential 20th-century essays and poetry advocating for women’s rights and education in the Dominican Republic.
Who is Camila Henríquez Ureña?
: This Dominican-born actress starred as Neytiri in the blockbuster film Avatar directed by James Cameron.
Who is Zoé Saldaña?
This NASA mathematician helped calculate flight trajectories for early U.S. space missions and was portrayed by Taraji P. Henson in the film Hidden Figures.
Who is Katherine Johnson?
In 2000, this politician became the first woman elected Vice President of the Dominican Republic, serving under President Hipólito Mejía.
Who is Milagros Ortiz Bosch?
This Dominican soprano became the first singer from the Dominican Republic to achieve major international success in opera, performing in leading opera houses around the world.
Who is Aída Cartagena Portalatín?
This Dominican politician and lawyer became one of the most prominent young leaders in the Dominican Republic after being elected to the Senate in 2020 representing the National District.
Who is Faride Raful?
This educator and activist founded the National Council of Negro Women in 1935 and later advised President Franklin D. Roosevelt on minority affairs.
Who is Mary McLeod Bethune?
Known as the “mother of marine conservation” in the Dominican Republic, this marine biologist helped create the country’s first marine sanctuary for humpback whales at Silver Bank.
Who is Idelisa Bonnelly de Calventi?
This Dominican-American writer won the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for her play Fairview.
Who is Jackie Sibblies Drury?
This Dominican-American singer, activist, and television personality—born Diana Danelys De Los Santos—is known for advocating for Afro-Latina representation and starred on the reality show Love & Hip Hop: Miami.
Who is Amara La Negra?