Read About Black Women: Black History Month Features!

It’s officially February, which means Black History Month is in full swing! We’ve been celebrating  amazing black women who made and are making history - here’s a round-up of some of the women we’ve been featuring on the GAGC Instagram.

Carrie Mae Weems

Carrie Mae Weems is an American artist who works with text, fabric, audio, digital images, and installation video, but is best known for her work in photography and “The Kitchen Table Series.” Weems received the MacArthur “Genius” grant in 2013.

Mae Jemison, MD

Mae Carol Jemison is an American engineer, physician and NASA astronaut. She became the first African American woman to travel in space when she went into orbit aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour on September 12, 1992.

Shirley Chisholm

Shirley Anita Chisholm was an American politician, educator, and author. In 1968, she became the first black woman elected to the United States Congress, and she represented New York's 12th Congressional District for seven terms from 1969 to 1983.

Mary McLeod Bethune

The daughter of slaves, Mary McLeod Bethune founded Daytona Normal and Industrial Training School for Negro Girls (now known as Bethune-Cookman College) with only $1.50 and five pupils in 1904. In Bethune’s lifetime she was prolific in her work and influence to advance civil rights. She was elected president of the Southeastern Federation of Colored Women’s Clubs, founded the National Council of Negro Women, and was the first African American woman to head a federal agency as Director of the Division of Negro Affairs.

Althea Gibson

Althea Gibson was an American tennis player and professional golfer, and the first black athlete to cross the color line of international tennis. In 1956, she became the first person of color to win a Grand Slam title.

Aretha Franklin

Franklin was the first African-American woman, and first woman, inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. She is one of the best-selling musical artists of all time, the winner of 18 Grammy Awards, and has sold over 75 million records worldwide.

Dorothy Dandridge

Dorothy Jean Dandridge was an American film and theatre actress, singer, and dancer. She is best known for being the first African-American actress to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in the 1954 film Carmen Jones.

Alice Walker

Born to sharecroppers in Georgia in 1944, Alice Walker grew up to become a highly acclaimed novelist, essayist and poet. She is best known for her 1982 novel The Color Purple, which won the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and soon was adapted as a film by Steven Spielberg. Walker is also known for her work as an activist.

Lena Waithe

Lena Waithe is a writer, producer, and actress known for her work on "Dear White People," "Master of None," and "The Chi." She was the first black woman to win the Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series in 2017.

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Follow us on Instagram @gotagirlcrush to see the rest of our girl crushes for February!