SHE ✨👑

She, Composed of grace and style She, Made up of brown sugar and gold She, Skin like cocoa and honey She, Built with the unwillingness to fold She, Armed with the strength of ten men She, Shining as bright as the stars in the night sky She, Never settling, aware of her worth She, Boldly …

This One’s for the Dreamers

Ever had a dream so big that it scared you? When you think about said dream, does it make you a little uncomfortable? Almost as if it's completely unattainable? Those are the dreams that should be chased until they're a reality. Personally, I have a few different dreams. My obvious passion is writing. I want …

Women’s History Month: A Salute to Viola Davis

Growing up poor in Rhode Island, Viola Davis found an oasis from her family's financial woes in watching movies. Her father worked at racetracks, often as a horse groomer. She discovered a love of acting early in high school. At Rhode Island College, Davis earned her degree in theater in 1988. From there, she soon …

Black History Month: A Salute to Alice Marie Coachman

  Alice Coachman was born on November 9, 1923, in Albany, Georgia. One of 10 children, Coachman was raised in the heart of the segregated South, where she was often denied the opportunity to train for or compete in organized sports events. Instead, Coachman improvised her training, running barefoot in fields and on dirt roads, …

Black History Month: A Salute to Eartha Kitt

Born in North, a small town in Orangeburg County near Columbia, South Carolina, famed singer and actress Eartha Kitt had a difficult childhood. Her mother abandoned her, and she was left in the care of relatives who mistreated her. Kitt was often teased and picked on because of her mixed-race heritage—her father was white, and …

Black History Month: A Salute to Fannie Lou Hamer

Civil rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer was born Fannie Lou Townsend on October 6, 1917, in Montgomery County, Mississippi. She was the youngest of 20 children. Her parents were sharecroppers in the Mississippi Delta area. Hamer began working the fields when she was only 6 years old. Around the age of 12, Hamer dropped out …

Black History Month: A Salute to Lena Horne

  Actress, singer, dancer, pin-up, and Civil Rights activist Lena Mary Calhoun Horne was born on June 30, 1917, in Brooklyn, New York, the daughter of a banker and an actress. Her parents divorced when she was 3, and because her mother traveled as part of various theater troupes, Horne alternately accompanied her on the road …

Black History Month: A Salute to Shirley Chisholm

Born in Brooklyn, New York, on November 30, 1924, Shirley Chisholm is best known for becoming the first black congresswoman (1968), representing New York State in the U.S. House of Representatives for seven terms. She went on to run for the 1972 Democratic nomination for the presidency—becoming the first major-party African-American candidate to do so. …

Black History Month: A Salute to Etta James

Jamesetta Hawkins, more famously known as Etta James, was born January 25, 1938, in Los Angeles, California, to a 14-year-old mother, Dorothy Hawkins, who encouraged her daughter's singing career. James would later say, "My mother always told me, even if a song has been done a thousand times, you can still bring something of your own …

Black History Month : A Salute to Cicely L. Tyson

Born December 19, 1933, Cicely L. Tyson is an African-American actress. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress, and the Golden Globe Award for her performance as Rebecca Morgan in Sounder (1972). For this role she also won the NSFC Best Actress and NBR Best Actress Awards. She starred in The Autobiography …