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In the words of Texas native Beyoncé: “Who run the world? Girls.” That’s why for Black History Month, we’ve decided to lift up the stories of eight Black women born and raised in the Lone Star State who have left an indelible mark on Texas—and the US as a whole—thanks to their contributions to sports, music, aviation, academia, politics, and more.
Considering many of the current discriminatory systems Black women here have to endure—we’re talking the abysmal state of maternal and reproductive health, how Black women only earn 58 cents compared to every dollar a white man makes, and more—we thought sharing these women’s stories could serve as a reminder that change can happen.
Elsie Faye Heggins
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Elsie Faye Heggins was a civil rights activist and Dallas councilwoman who first became involved in the community in the 1960s. In 1972, she officially began taking on leadership roles at various Dallas organizations, including the Crossroads Community Block Partnership and the Dallas Legal Services Project.
In 1978, she became the Democratic Chairman of Precinct No. 3317, and in 1980 she made history as the first Black Dallas City Council member without ties to the white establishment. Heggins garnered praise for being a fierce advocate for the Dallas community, and was even hailed as a “living legend” in a 1990 exhibit for the Junior Black Academy of Arts and Letters.
To read more about Heggins’ life and accomplishments as a Dallas City Council member, click here and here.
Barbara Jordan
American congresswoman from Texas, Barbara Jordan (1936 – 1996), giving a speech, U.S.A., circa 1975. Photo by Archive Photos/Getty Images)
Barbara Jordan was the first Black American elected to the Texas Senate in the post-Reconstruction South, as well as the first Southern Black woman elected to the House of Representatives.
Born in Houston in 1936, Jordan served three terms in office and was known for “her pragmatic leadership style.” Prior to establishing her own political career, Jordan had previously worked on John F. Kennedy’s presidential campaign in 1960.
In 1974, she “took on a national leadership role as a member of the Judiciary Committee.” It was in this position that she gained further fame and recognition—her remarks about President Richard Nixon and the Watergate scandal were lauded by the people of Texas. Read more about Jordan’s remarks, and her impressive career, here.
Simone Biles
ANTWERP, BELGIUM – October 08: Simone Biles of the United States on the podium with her gold medal after her victory in the Women’s Balance Beam Final at the Artistic Gymnastics World Championships-Antwerp 2023 at the Antwerp Sportpaleis on October 8th, 2023 in Antwerp, Belgium. (Photo by Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty Images)
Spring, Texas native Simone Biles is “the most decorated American gymnast in history,” with a whopping 25 medals under her belt. She rose to meteoric fame during the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, where she earned four gold medals and one bronze.
At the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, she won a silver medal and a bronze medal, but ultimately had to withdraw from the competition after developing the “twisties,” a condition that “can cause gymnasts to lose their sense of space and dimension in midair,” according to NBC News.
Her most recent accomplishments include receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Joe Biden in 2022, and winning a record-breaking eighth US gymnastics title in 2023.
For more about Biles’ life and career, click here.
Sheryl Swoopes
Basketball player Sheryl Swoopes #22, Shooting Guard for the United States women’s basketball team during a portrait photo session circa June 1994 at the Allen Fieldhouse indoor arena on the University of Kansas campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States. (Photo by Tony Duffy/Allsport/Getty Images)
Sheryl Swoopes, a native of Brownfield was the first player to be signed by the WNBA when the women’s professional basketball league was established in 1996. She’s considered “one of the 15 greatest players” in the history of the WNBA, and she’s won three gold medals at the Olympics (1996, 2000, 2004).
Swoopes also won four championships in a row with the Houston Comets between 1997 and 2000, and was a six-time WNBA All-Star (1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006). Since playing her final WNBA game in 2011, Swoopes has been inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 2017, and became an assistant coach for the women’s basketball program at Texas Tech.
Learn more about Swoopes’ many accomplishments here.
Bessie Coleman
1/24/1923- Photographic portrait of Bessie Coleman, first black woman aviatrix. BPA2# 364 (Photo by George Rinhart/Corbis via Getty Images)
Bessie Coleman was born in Atlanta, Texas, in 1892. She made history as the first woman of Black and Native American descent to earn her pilot’s license in the US, and was known for her daring flying tricks. Of course, it wasn’t enough for the woman also known as “Brave Bessie” and “Queen Bess” to make history in the US; she also became the first Black person to earn an international pilot’s license. Though she tragically died young in a plane crash in 1926, her legacy has inspired countless women and Black Americans to pursue their aviation dreams.
To learn more about Coleman’s history-making life and career, click here.
Opal Lee
WASHINGTON, DC – JUNE 13: Opal Lee speaks during a Juneteenth concert on the South Lawn at the White House in Washington, DC, on June 13, 2023. (Photo by Elizabeth Frantz for The Washington Post via Getty Images)
Opal Lee, a Marshall, Texas native, moved to Fort Worth as a child. Throughout her life she has served the Fort Worth community in numerous capacities—she is a founding member of Citizens Concerned with Human Dignity, has volunteered at and served as a board member for Habitat for Humanity, and currently serves on Habitat’s Land Acquisition Board.
Lee is often referred to as the “Grandmother of Juneteenth.” For over 40 years, she’s been advocating to raise awareness of Juneteenth, a holiday commemorating the end of slavery in the United States. June 19, 1865 is the day when Black Texans finally learned they were freed from slavery—two years after President Abraham Lincoln first issued the Emancipation Proclamation. Working alongside the National Juneteenth Observance Foundation and leading local events in her Texas community, Lee was one of the key figures in the fight to make Juneteenth federally recognized—a fight that eventually led to President Joe Biden signing a bill to mark the day as a federal holiday.
To learn more about Lee’s remarkable life and activism, click here and here.
Andrea “Vocab” Sanderson
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In 2020, Andrea “Vocab” Sanderson became the first Black Poet Laureate of San Antonio when she was appointed to the office. She served as the Poet Laureate until 2023. In addition to this accomplishment, Sanderson “performs as ‘Vocab’ in her hometown of San Antonio,” where she also teaches poetry workshops and acts as a mentor for members of her community.
Her poetry has been published in several notable outlets, including The Texas Observer, and her debut poetry book, “She Lives In Music,” was published in 2017.
Learn more about Sanderson’s life and writing on her website.
Dr. Gloria Randle Scott
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Dr. Gloria Randle Scott was born in Houston in 1938. She’s most widely known for becoming the first Black leader of the Girl Scouts of America in 1975. When Scott first joined the organization in 1950, it was still segregated.
In addition to that history-making stint, Scott was also the first African American to graduate from Indiana University with a degree in zoology. You can discover more about Scott’s impressive accomplishments here.
