13 Things About Women of Color You May Not Have Known

Many negative things are plaguing the news and the world right now. Still, one thing that makes us hopeful is the message of inspiration and empowerment many women of color hold with their achievements and feats in each of their expertise.

Some of us might think that we know a lot about women of color, but here are thirteen other things about women of color. 

Things about Women of Color Making History 

Many women of color are making history not just in public service but in every realm, giving little girls and teenagers of color someone to look up to and aspire to be. 

If you are active in current events, you might have heard of the glass ceiling-breaking Ketanji Brown Jackson, the first Black woman to hold a position in America's highest court. And let's not forget about Kamala Harris, who, after years of white men holding the office, was the first Black woman and the first woman ever to have the second-highest office in the country. 

Things about Women of Color as Record Breakers

One of the many ways women, particularly women of color, can help enrich their community's life is by running for office. In 2020, a record-breaking feat was broken by many women of color, with their numbers running for office traversing new record highs at 267 women of color running for congress. 

There are other record-breaking feats for women of color outside of politics, from Simone Biles, being the first gymnast ever to win up to 25 World Championship medals, to Bernardine Evaristo being the first black woman to win the prized Booker Prize. 

Things about Women of Color as Successful Entrepreneurs

One of the things about women of color to know is that entrepreneurship is the future, and today, about one-third of all women-owned firms in the country are handled by a beautiful tribe of women of color. 

This number will keep growing as long as we empower one another because there are still challenges to attaining this level of financial freedom. Still, this tribe of women opens the doors for many women who look like them to have a seat at the table. 

Boss Chick Life is one of those businesses aiming to empower women of color through chic and high-quality clothing at an affordable price so that they have the confidence to make changes in their lives and, in turn, the life of their community. 

Things about Women of Color as Tastemakers

Our first fashion icons are our grandmothers and mothers. Maybe you watch them get ready on their vanity in their Sunday best, or they share with you the importance of taking care of your beautiful hair. Women of color have always been tastemakers, which is evident in the tie of Black culture, particularly with popular culture. 

In the world of fashion, there is Naomi Campbell, who has been a muse to many designers, and you have Dame Pat McGrath, still inspiring many to venture into her profession. A legend, and a pioneer, are just some of the adjectives many have used to describe her. 

Things about Women of Color as Fashion Icons

From Josephine Baker paving the way in the 1920s to the Supremes in the 60s, Grace Jones and her fierce fashion in the 1980s, and Michelle Obama in her power suiting in her time as the first lady of the United States promoting women of color, black women have always been fashion icons, and it was always celebrated. 

And now, we see Rihanna, Zendaya, Beyonce, and Yara Shahidi, changing the game as emerging fashion icons in their own right. These are just some of the style icons, and many of them still inspire us today. 

Things about Women of Color as Big Proponents of Sustainability

One of the most pressing issues our dear earth is grappling with is sustainability issues and how we can pass this earth to future generations with as minor damage as possible. In this fight, one champion of these causes has always been women of color. 

Sustainability covers many topics under its umbrella, from environmental justice to food justice and security to illegal garbage dumping to sustainability in fashion, and many women of color have done their work to bring awareness and help address these issues. 

Things about Women of Color as their Sporty Selves

Women of color have faced double discrimination in the realm of sports, just for the color of their skin and the fact that they are women, but that does not stop them from shaking the ground of sports through the years. 

We have come a long way from Stokes and Pickett not being allowed to compete in the Olympics in 1932 to Venus and Serena Williams setting the records and changing the face of their sport. 

There is a long track to go, and the first step is to encourage girls of color to play sports, too! 

Things about Women of Color as Inspirational

Many women of color are grappling with discrimination both because of their being women and because of their skin color, but many choose to still forge on and rise above the height in their everyday lives. 

Many women have paved the way so that they are recognized, so that they can practice their freedom, and just so they could be their full selves. 

Writers like Maya Angelou to Audre Lorde have left their words and ethos and are still guiding the many women and girls today because of the encouragement they left in their writings. 

Things about Women of Color as Role Models

Seeing is believing, and the importance of empowered role models for little girls to emulate and look up to is now more critical than ever, especially for little girls of color. Not just for them to be entrenched out of restrictive gender roles and stereotypes but also so that they see what they could be, what is possible for all of them. 

You probably have seen that video recently circulated on the internet of a little Latina girl seeing herself in Mirabel, a character of Disney's groundbreaking Encanto. It's touching and goes to point out the importance of representation. 

Things about Women of Color as their Musical Selves

Another thing black women are breaking boundaries and making history is in music. They have influenced and spearheaded genres such as Jazz with Billy Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald, Motown with dynamic girl groups like the Ronettes and the Shirelles, RnB with TLC to Hip-hop and pop music with Megan Thee Stallion and Beyonce. 

Music has always been a medium of expression to many African American women and this expression, once confined in the plantations during a dark time in history have grown to be the genre we love today from rock to blues to jazz to bluegrass and gospel music. 

Things about Women of Color as Pioneers

Many women of color are pioneers, but for most of history, their voices and experiences are shot down and minimized, and only now are we celebrating their achievements and the scale of what they had to give, just in time to inspire little girls of color. 

One of the aspects where women of color have been pioneers is in science and technology, two things that have transformed our lives in many unimaginable ways. Katherine Johnson, whose calculations were critical for the US to achieve the moon landing, and Doctor Gladys West, who invented and created the Global Positioning System or GPS we now use almost every day. 

Things about Women of Color as Dreamers and Visionaries

Art has been heavily dominated by white men, especially in the past. However, women of color have always been a player in this men's game, even though there is still a discrepancy when it comes to their exposure in museums or art galleries. 

These artists are the famed and celebrated Mexican artist Frida Kahlo with her surrealist self-portraits to Amy Sherald. She is known for her colorful depiction of a grayscale Michelle and Barack Obama for their official portrait in the National Portrait Gallery. 

If Women of Color are Empowered, Everyone is Empowered

Empowering women is essential, but empowering women of color is vital to the development of themselves and their communities. When women of color are given a chance to decide what they want and have the avenue to achieve what they wish to through work, they will lead fulfilled and productive lives. 

In return, they can also help their communities more since they know what it is like to try extra harder than everyone else when it comes to the opportunities they have achieved. 

Whether they are serving in office as a public official, designing a fashion line deeply rooted and inspired by their mothers, or making music about their experiences living as a woman of color in this world. 

Final Thoughts

Women of color are beautiful, intelligent, innovative, trailblazers, all the fabulous superlatives you can add to these paragraphs. We have always been, and we are thankful to the ancestors that lead us right to this moment. 

Whether you are an African American, a Latina, or a Southeast Asian woman, every woman of color, our skin makes us extraordinary and beautiful. There is so much about us that we have to let people know. We hope you learn something from this article about things about women of color! 

Author bio: Nikki is a fashion enthusiast and loves things about clothing, style, and fashion in general. She loves writing about the latest fashion trends and updates that everyone must know.