Early History
This woman escaped slavery and helped others gain freedom using the Underground Railroad
Harriet Tubman
This woman’s refusal to give up her bus seat helped spark the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
Rosa Parks
This talk show host built a global media empire.
Oprah Winfrey
This athlete broke Major League Baseball’s color barrier.
Jackie Robinson
This NASA mathematician helped calculate flight paths for space missions.
Katherine Johnson
This scientist revolutionized Southern agriculture with crop rotation and peanut research.
George Washington Carver
This minister delivered the famous “I Have a Dream” speech during the March on Washington.
Martin Luther King Jr.
This poet wrote I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.
Maya Angelou
This tennis star has won more Grand Slam singles titles than any other woman.
Serena Williams
This former president supported STEM education and technology innovation initiatives.
Barack Obama
This inventor and activist published the first Black-owned newspaper in the United States.
Frederick Douglass
This congressman marched across the Edmund Pettus Bridge on Bloody Sunday.
John Lewis
This actress became the first Black woman to win a Best Actress Oscar.
Halle Berry
This boxing champion was known for his speed, skill, and activism.
Muhammad Ali
This former First Lady promoted education and healthy lifestyles nationwide.
Michelle Obama
This entrepreneur became America’s first female self-made millionaire through haircare products.
Madam C. J. Walker
This outspoken leader advocated Black empowerment and self-determination in the 1960s.
Malcolm X
This British actor starred in Luther and Black Panther.
Idris Elba
This Olympic runner won four gold medals and became one of the fastest men in history.
Jesse Owens
This Vice President previously served as California’s attorney general.
Kamala Harris
This educator founded a school that later became Tuskegee University.
Booker T. Washington
This Supreme Court justice argued and won Brown v. Board of Education.
Thurgood Marshall
This dancer and choreographer shaped Broadway and television dance.
Debbie Allen
This athlete overcame childhood illness to win multiple Olympic gold medals and inspire millions.
Wilma Rudolph
This astronaut became the first Black woman to travel into space.
Mae Jemison