Marha Rolle
HUM 2020; 12:30PM
The first African-American female millionaire, inventor, civil rights activist, and
philanthropist was famously known for these achievements and many more. Her birth name was
Sarah Breedlove, she was born December 23, 1867. Sarah did not have an average childhood, in
fact it was a very rough one. Her family worked on Cotton fields that were owned by the Burney
family. Her parents died from yellow fever when she was just seven years old. Sarah married at
14-years-old but soon after lost her first husband. During all the hard-hitting moments in her life
she developed a scalp disorder that made her hair begin to fall out. This is what inspired her to
become the woman we all know today by the name of Madam C.J. Walker. (Hudson)
Walker the entrepreneur experienced a scalp disorder which made her peruse in inventing
her own products to help grow her hair back. This scalp disorder was very common among many
women during this time because many people had very poor hygiene, multiple illnesses and
damaging hair treatments (Conrads). Madam realized that she wasn’t alone in wanting to look
beautiful. The cream she created grew her hair back quickly. In the 1900’s how much hair you
had and the style that was created resembled your status in society. Madam became an
exceptional businesswoman with very little education on how to read and write until late in her
life. Her products began being sold by going door-to-door. Soon after her business flourished.
With the money she had she owned luxurious homes and opened factories to manufacture her
products and laboratories to test her new products and bring them to the market. She never
placed her house in a tucked away area instead she built it near the street so other young African–
American men and women can see what one soul is capable of accomplishing. Madam decided
to spread her products nationwide and across the sea in the Caribbean(Benson). In several cities
across the United States she established training schools for those who worked for her. Madam
C.J. Walkers Manufacturing Company made her very successful and made her become the first
black female millionaire in 1905 (Benson).
I supported and joined multiple organizations throughout my lifetime but the most
important one that made a change in the United States was the Civil Rights Movement. I wasn’t
around to see the good works of the movement, but I know that they made a positive impact in
America for African American citizens. The Civil Rights Movement was put in place in 1954
and lasted for 14 years. The Civil Rights Movement protested peacefully to bring change to
America; they fought for equality. I and a few other African American leaders such as Booker T.
Washington, W.E.B. DuBois, and Mary McLeod Bethune traveled to the White House in 1917.
We all wanted to appeal Woodrow Wilson to make lynching a federal crime and to have laws set
in place to protect African Americans from being lynched any further (Biography). I also
