Today we wanted to share the story of three amazing Black women in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math): Maya, Emma, and their mom Kenya.
From presenting at national science conferences to studying nuclear physics as a 16-year-old (yes, 16!), these sisters truly embody Black excellence. But it isn’t easy being a trailblazer — Maya and Emma say that their math and science classmates are often all white guys, and the only woman of color they’ve known in STEM is their mom.
Luckily, their mom is also an absolute badass!
But it shouldn’t be this way. As Kenya says, all groups of people have excellence. It can be hard to imagine yourself doing something if you’ve never seen someone who looks like you doing it. Heartbreakingly, Emma even said that sometimes she feels associated with whiteness just because of her success in STEM. She told us “it’s almost like hearing I’m too smart to be Black.”
Excellence isn’t limited to one race or one gender; it’s all around us if we take the time to look. Let’s keep celebrating Black history — and Black futures — not just in February, but all year long.
