Our Brave Foremothers: Celebrating 100 Black, Brown, Asian, and Indigenous Women Who Changed the Course of History

by Rozella Kennedy, Joelle Avelino (Illustrator)

Overview

Inspired by her own foremothers’ legacies and the friendships formed throughout her life, Rozella Kennedy centers and celebrates the stories of 100 Black, Brown, Asian, and Indigenous women—both famous and little-known—who changed the course of US history.
 
In the beautiful pages of Our Brave Foremothers, discover an intergenerational, intercultural bouquet of Black, Brown, Asian, and Indigenous women lifted into the significance that they deserve.• From Etel Adnan to Mary Jones, Thelma Garcia Buchholdt to Pura Belpré to Zitkála-Šá, here are 100 women of color who left a lasting mark on United States history. Including both famous and little-known names, the thoughtful profiles and detailed portraits of these women herald their achievements and passions.• Following each entry is a prompt that asks you to connect your life to theirs, an inspiring way to understand their influence and the power of their stories. To consider on a deeper level the devotedness of Clara Brown, the fearlessness of Jovita Idár, the guts of Grace Lee Boggs, or the selflessness of Martha Louise Morrow Foxx. And to be as brave as we each can be—and then beyond that.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781523514557
Publisher:	Workman Publishing Company
Publication date:	04/11/2023
Pages:	208
Sales rank:	296,913
Product dimensions:	6.20(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Rozella Kennedy has dedicated her work and life to uplifting issues of culture, belonging, authentic allyship, and intercultural celebration and solidarity. She is the creator of the Brave Sis Project and the Director of Impact and Equity for the global consulting firm Camber Collective. A native New Yorker, she now lives on the West Coast with her husband and their Caribbean Potcake dog, Pippa.

Joelle Avelino is an Angolan and Congolese illustrator. She has illustrated several titles including Hey You!, a 2022 British Book Awards winner. Her animation project with the Malala Fund was featured as one of Design Week's favorite International Women's Day projects of 2020.

Table of Contents

Contents
Ada Blackjack
Mary Ellen Pleasant
Rose Fortune
Pura Belpré
Fannie Lou Hamer
Kateri Tekakwitha
Angela Davis
Chien-Shiung Wu
Shirley Chisholm 
Bharti Mukherjee
Bessie Stringfield
Kalpana Chawla
Anna May Wong
Mary Ann Shadd Cary
Lucy Gonzalez Parsons
Clara Hale
Mary Golda Ross
Felicisima “Ping” Serafica
Claudette Colvin
Lili‘uokalani
Mamie “Peanut” Johnson
Alice Moore Dunbar-Nelson
Lozen
Clara Brown
Alice Augusta Ball
Susan La Flesche Picotte
Caterina de San Juan
Kala Bagai
Marie Laveau
Marsha P. Johnson
Emma Ping Lum
Mary Fields
Old Elizabeth
Lydia Mendoza
Florynce “Flo” Kennedy
Umeko Tsuda
Etel Adnan
Martha Louise Morrow Foxx
Tidye Pickett
Red Wing
Ellen Smith Craft
Mabel Ping-Hua Lee
Della Irving Hayden
Sono Osato
Mary McLeod Bethune
Augusta Savage
Xue Jinquin
Sonia Sotomayor
Katherine Johnson
Komako Kimura
Mary Kaye
Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin
Elizabeth Key Grinstead
Lorraine Hansberry
Zitkála-Šá
Pauli Murray
Grace Lee Boggs
Emma Naea Kaleleonalani Rooke
Cicely Tyson
Gwendolyn Brooks
Wilma Mankiller
Septima Poinsette Clark
Mary Evans Wilson
Dorothy Toy
Bridget “Biddy” Mason
Bernadita Camacho-Dungca
Florence Ebersole Finch
Sojourner Truth
Phillis Wheatley
Jovita Idár
Mimi Jones
Charlotte Forten Grimké
Mitsuye Endo
Elizabeth Wanamaker Peratrovich
China Mary
Maria Montoya Martinez
Mary Jones
Charlotte E. Ray
Sylvia Rivera
Sue Ko Lee
Ida B. Wells
Rebecca Lee Crumpler
Thelma Garcia Buchholdt
Zarina Hashmi
Mary Church Terrell
Pablita Velarde
Amelia Boynton Robinson
Edmonia Lewis
Jane Johnston Schoolcraft
Mary Richards
Sylvia Mendez
Althea Gibson
Mary Paik Lee
Mary Jane Patterson
Tsuru Aoki
Madam C. J. Walker
Buffalo Calf Road Woman
Dolores Huerta
Harriet Tubman
Yuri Kochiyama
 

Editorial Reviews

"Kennedy compiles short, eminently readable biographies of one-hundred Black, Brown, Asian, and Indigenous women in this interactive book…Activists, artists, athletes, and scientists all receive long overdue recognition in this attractive volume that is well-suited for public library and circulating reference collections. This engaging illustrated volume is well-suited to young scholars.” —Booklist

“At a time when women’s history is being lifted up, this accessible work will edify casual and academic readers and may be used as a reference for some.” —Library Journal

“An essential book that connects us to our past and current sisters and reminds us that each of our stories matters.” —Ruth Chan, illustrator and author

“A long overdue portrayal of inspiring hidden figures whose stories needed to be told to the world.” —Rokhaya Diallo, journalist, writer, and award-winning filmmaker

“Our Brave Foremothers sheds truth on old perceptions and gives us stories both informative and inspiring about women who paved the way for generations of women to follow.” —Audrey Edwards, former executive editor of Essence magazine and author of American Runaway: Black and Free in Paris in the Trump Years

“Our Brave Foremothers is the book that every family should have on their coffee table. It’s a visual encyclopedia of greatness for our future generation to know about the work done by these important women.” —Joy Cho, author and founder of Oh Joy!

From the Publisher

03/01/2023

Kennedy, Camber Collective's director of impact and equity, builds upon her career to foster intersectional equity and antiracism with this debut title. Her book features short biographies of 100 notable women who are Black, Brown, Indigenous, or Asian. Each profile is easily digestible and illustrated, and each features an inspiring quote and a prompt from the author for further meditation on the subject. Some of these prompts are only tangentially related to the topic, but this work is still a solid tome. Collectively, the book celebrates the contributions women of color have made to politics, the arts, cultures, and civil rights. Readers will recognize some names, such as Harriet Tubman, but many entrants will likely prove new. The vibrant color illustrations position the book as suitable for high school students and adults. This book enlightens and entertains. VERDICT At a time when women's history is being lifted up, this accessible work will edify casual and academic readers and may be used as a reference for some.—Jessica A. Bushore

Library Journal

Sheds truth on old perceptions and gives us stories both informative and inspiring about women who paved the way for generations of women to follow.”

former executive editor of Essence magazine and au Audrey Edwards