The Voices of Herstory Sheroes of Warrior

The Voices of Herstory
Sheroes of Warrior-Activism

Ida B. Wells-Barnett

bell hooks

Ida b. Wells-Barnett: Born 1862 and transcended in 1931. Warrior-activist in her crusade against lynching and virtually any injustice against blacks Intellectual in her own right – certificates in teaching and critical of the sociopolitical climate limiting the life possibilities of blacks. Life experience was her form of knowledge making. She was determined, strong willed, forthright, steadfast and maintained a visible sureness of who she was and what she was called to do.

bell hooks: Born in the 50’s, had a hard time getting her actual year. Warrior-activist – what is it to be a black woman and how come we are having so much trouble finding out. Black feminist embracing all that necessary to create critical consciousness of who we are, what this society and why exclusion is an institutional ethic. Intellectual – life experiences are her intellectualism and this put into practice at New York city college where she is a full professor She was also determined, strong willed, forthright, steadfast and maintained a visible sureness of who she was and what she was called to do

What do these two women have in common? They are Black and live within a dominant society that does not truly value their contributions, nor them as African American women. Through their autobiographies I have gained an intimate portrait of these women. And I realize that for all my sisters, our life experiences provide a challenge to history by offering our herstories, our personal stories, to gain insight into the worlds and realities we inhabit. Culling these experiences is critical to harvesting strategies for survival that can be shared collectively. Additionally, our voices are not longer muted, especially by celebrating our unique voices and penning (documenting) our thoughts and experiences.