In 1921 Eva Beatrice Dykes became the first black woman in the United States to complete the required coursework for a Ph.D. and the third African American woman to receive a doctoral degree. Two other black women, Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander and Georgiana Simpson, receive … Read MoreEva Beatrice Dykes (1893-1986)
Harold Cruse, a leading intellectual in the second half of the 20th Century, was born in 1916 in Petersburg, Virginia. His father, a railroad porter, divorced his mother and took Cruse to New York at a young age. While in school he worked nights at … Read MoreHarold Cruse (1916-2005)
Librarian, author, and storyteller Augusta Braxston Baker was the first African American woman to hold an administrative position with the New York Public Library (NYPL). She was a pioneering advocate of the positive portrayal of blacks in children’s literature, and beginning in the 1930s removed … Read MoreAugusta Braxston Baker (1911-1998)
Through her personal struggles and exceptional writing abilities, Florence Onyebuchi “Buchi” Emecheta constructed a collection of literary works that reflected the lives of African women. Emecheta was born on July 21, 1944, in Yaba, Nigeria into a family with strong ties to their cultural traditions. … Read MoreFlorence Onyebuchi “Buchi” Emecheta (1944 – 2017 )
Zadie Smith, writer and essayist, was born in the London, UK borough of Brent on October 25, 1975. Smith was named Sadie by her mother, a Jamaican immigrant who arrived in London in the late 1970s, and her English father. Smith enjoyed tap dancing as … Read MoreZadie Smith (1975- )
Kimberly Clarice Aiken Cockerham, Miss America, 1994, was the fifth black woman to win the crown. Aiken was born on October 11, 1975 in Columbia, South Carolina to Charles and Valerie Aiken. At the time she won the crown, Aiken was only 18 years old and … Read MoreKimberly Aiken (1975- )
Writer and educator Charles Johnson is best known for his novel Middle Passage (1990), which earned a National Book Award for depicting the voyage of a newly-freed slave. He was the first African American to receive the award since 1953 when Ralph Ellison won for … Read MoreCharles Johnson (1948- )
Literary critic Addison Gayle, Jr., born in Newport News, Virginia in 1932, was educated in the local public schools before he attended City College of New York, where he earned a B.A. degree in 1965; and the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), where … Read MoreAddison Gayle Jr. (1932-1991)
Leighla Frances Whipper, author, songwriter, and restaurateur, was born on September 22, 1913 in Athens, Georgia into a prestigious family that encompassed the wide ranging areas of literature, theater, medicine, and social activism. Leighla was the daughter of the noted Hollywood actor Leigh Whipper and … Read MoreLeighla Frances Whipper (1913-2008)
