Black Women in History
Pretty women wonder where my secret lies. I’m not cute or built to suit a fashion model’s size but when I start to tell them, they think I’m telling lies. I say, It’s in the reach of my arms, the span of my hips, the stride of my step, the curl of my lips. I’m a woman Phenomenally. Phenomenal woman, That’s me. I walk into a room just as cool as you please, and to a man, the fellows stand or fall down on their knees. Then they swarm around me, a hive of honey bees. I say, it’s the fire in my eyes, and the flash of my teeth, the swing in my waist, and the joy in my feet. I’m a woman phenomenally. Phenomenal woman, That’s me.Men themselves have wondered what they see in me. They try so much but they can’t touch my inner mystery. When I try to show them, they say they still can’t see. I say, it’s in the arch of my back, the sun of my smile, the ride of my breasts, the grace of my style. I’m a woman phenomenally. Phenomenal woman, that’s me. Now you understand Just why my head’s not bowed. I don’t shout or jump about or have to talk real loud. When you see me passing, it ought to make you proud. I say, it’s in the click of my heels, the bend of my hair, the palm of my hand, the need for my care. ’Cause I’m a woman Phenomenally. Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.
-Maya Angelou
Sirsasana
"Black women have had to develop a larger vision of our society than perhaps any other group. They have had to understand white men, white women, and black men. And they have had to understand themselves. When black women win victories, it is a boost for virtually every segment of society."
-Angela Davis
marichyasana II
“A woman is free if she lives by her own standards and creates her own destiny, if she prizes her individuality and puts no boundaries on her hopes for tomorrow”
- Mary McLeod Bethune
Baddha Konasana
"I did not feel I was being protected in any way within the confines of the school because there were adults there and they did nothing” - Dorothy Counts
Virasana
“If you hear the dogs, keep going. If you see the torches in the woods, keep going. If there's shouting after you, keep going. Don't ever stop. Keep going. If you want a taste of freedom, keep going” - Harriet Tubman
“I was the conductor of the Underground Railroad for eight years, and I can say what most conductors can't say; I never ran my train off the track and I never lost a passenger”- Harriet Tubman
Siddhasana
“You've got to have something to eat, and a little love in your life before you can hold still for any damn body's sermon on how to behave” - Billie Holiday
Urdhva Muka Svanasana
"The only choice permitted us is either to be servants for $7 a week or to portray them for $700 per week."
- Hattie McDaniel
Padmasana
“I guess what everyone wants more than anything else is to be loved. And to know that you loved me for my singing is too much for me. Forgive me if I don't have all the words. Maybe I can sing it and you'll understand”
- Ella Fitzgerald
Ardha Matsyendrasana
“In slave times the Negro was kept subservient and submissive by the frequency and severity of the scourging, but, with freedom, a new system of intimidation came into vogue; the Negro was not only whipped and scourged; he was killed.” - Ida B. Wells
Bharadvajasana I
“Well, children, where there is so much racket there must be something out of kilter. I think that 'twixt the negroes of the South and the women at the North, all talking about rights, the white men will be in a fix pretty soon. But what's all this here talking about?
That man over there says that women need to be helped into carriages, and lifted over ditches, and to have the best place everywhere. Nobody ever helps me into carriages, or over mud-puddles, or gives me any best place! And ain't I a woman? Look at me! Look at my arm! I have ploughed and planted, and gathered into barns, and no man could head me! And ain't I a woman? I could work as much and eat as much as a man - when I could get it - and bear the lash as well! And ain't I a woman? I have borne thirteen children, and seen most all sold off to slavery, and when I cried out with my mother's grief, none but Jesus heard me! And ain't I a woman?
Then they talk about this thing in the head; what's this they call it? [member of audience whispers, "intellect"] That's it, honey. What's that got to do with women's rights or negroes' rights? If my cup won't hold but a pint, and yours holds a quart, wouldn't you be mean not to let me have my little half measure full?
Then that little man in black there, he says women can't have as much rights as men, 'cause Christ wasn't a woman! Where did your Christ come from? Where did your Christ come from? From God and a woman! Man had nothing to do with Him.
If the first woman God ever made was strong enough to turn the world upside down all alone, these women together ought to be able to turn it back , and get it right side up again! And now they is asking to do it, the men better let them.
Obliged to you for hearing me, and now old Sojourner ain't got nothing more to say.” - Sojourner Truth
Salamba Sarvangasana
“One of the police officers said to the driver in a very angry tone, "Who is it?" The motorman pointed at me. I heard him say, "That's nothing new . . . I've had trouble with that 'thing' before." He called me a "thing." They came to me and stood over me and one said, "Aren't you going to get up?" I said, "No, sir." He shouted "Get up" again. I started crying, but I felt even more defiant. I kept saying over and over, in my high-pitched voice, "It's my constitutional right to sit here as much as that lady. I paid my fare, it's my constitutional right!" I knew I was talking back to a white policeman, but I had had enough... It felt like Sojourner Truth was pushing me down on one shoulder, and Harriet Tubman was pushing me down on the other shoulder, saying,"Sit down girl!"
- Claudette Colvin
Dhanurasana
"I am a women that came from the cotton fields of the South. I was promoted from there to the wash tub. Then I was promoted to the cook kitchen, and from there I promoted myself into the business of manufacturing hair goods and preparations... Everybody told me I was making a mistake by going into this business, but I know how to grow hair as well as I know how to grow cotton.”
- Madam C.J. Walker
Chaturanga Dandasana
"Winning is great, sure, but if you are really going to do something in life, the secret is learning how to lose. Nobody goes undefeated all the time. If you can pick up after a crushing defeat, and go on to win again, you are going to be a champion someday." - Wilma Rudolph
Utthita Marichyasana
This woman wrote my favorite book, Jubilee. Her name is Margaret Walker.
“The poetry of a people comes from the deep recesses of the unconscious, the irrational and the collective body of our ancestral memories.” - Margaret Walker
Malasana
“What’s happening now is powerful and I salute it and the women who have disclosed but the power of using ‘me too’ has always been in the fact that it can be a conversation starter or the whole conversation – but it was us talking to us,” - Tarana Burke
Baddhanguliyasana
Ibtihaj Muhammad
Virabhadrasana II
“As CNN saw our growth in African-American viewership, they affirmed a fundamental truth of news coverage - people will watch you if they see themselves in what you report. It doesn't hurt if the people doing the reporting look like them, too.” - Soledad O’Brien
Eka Pada Sarvangasana
“The goal of my shows, my interviews, my business, my philanthropy, all of it, whatever ventures I might pursue, would be to make clear that what unites us is ultimately far more redeeming and compelling than anything that separates me.” - Oprah Winfrey
Garudasana
“Love a Black woman from infinity to infinity”
- Queen Latifah
Salamba Sarvangasana
“I've been a proud mentor to many women seeking public office, because I believe we need more women at all levels of government. Women have an equal stake in our future and should have an equal voice in our politics. These are challenging times, but I believe getting more women to run for office is a big part of the solution.”
- Kamala Harris
Eka Pada Sirsasana
“The really wonderful thing that happened to me when I was in space was this feeling of belonging to the entire universe.” - Mae Jemison
Ustrasana
“Yes, I decided to rewrite those tired old scripts that define too many of us. I decided that I wasn’t bossy — I was confident and strong. I wasn’t loud — I was a young woman with something important to say and when I looked into the mirror I saw a tall, and smart and beautiful black girl. And that more than anything else is what I want for you, I want you to live life on your own terms... but anyone who’s achieved anything in life knows that challenges and failures are necessary components of success. I need you to understand that we are the women who marched from cotton fields into fields of medicine ... politics ... entertainment. We have found a way to march into a White House.”
- Michelle Obama
Triang Mukhaikapada Paschimottanasa
“I merged those two words, black and feminist, because I was surrounded by black women who were very tough and and who always assumed they had to work and rear children and manage homes.” - Toni Morrison
Krounchasana
“Black Women are Leading the Revolution” - Angela Rye
Setu Bandha Sarvangasana
"We aren't the first generation of black Americans to rise up and demand our human right to life, and we won't be the last, but I know a better world is possible. I know that once we come together, we are powerful beyond imagination." - Erica Garner
Paschimottanasana
I’ve always had an athletic body. When I was a little girl I thought having a muscular body made me unattractive, because I looked like a boy. It was so powerful for me to see Serena Williams this beautiful, strong, talented woman that looks just like me. She was body shamed and discriminated against, but she never let it get her down, and she kept winning. Seeing her do that helped me see my own beauty and strength.
“The success of every woman should be the inspiration to another. We should raise each other up. Make sure you’re very courageous: be strong, be extremely kind, and above all be humble.” Serena Williams
Virabhadrasana III
This post is dedicated to the women that raised me, and also taught me what it means to be a Black woman.
Vrksasana