Black HER-Story #SheFact: Ruby Dee

Source: Anthony Barboza / Getty

In February during Work with Karen its Black HER-Story Month where we are celebrating Black History month with #SheFacts of female trailblazers.

Why We Love Her: Ruby Dee was not only a woman of the arts, but an activist who used her platform to make her voice heard. As it pertains to her husband Late and Great Ossie Davis, these two were the original Hollywood power couple that many inspired to be and admired.

Stats: Born October 27, 1922 – June 11, 2014. Graduated 1945 from Hunter College with a degree in Romance Languages. She was an Emmy winner and Oscar nominated actress, poet, screenwriter, playwright, journalist, and civil rights activist.

Ladies First: In 1965 Ruby Dee became the first African American actress to appear in major roles, such as Kate in “The Taming of the Shrew” and Cordelia in “King Lear” at the American Shakespeare Festival in Stratford, Connecticut.

Impact: Ruby Dee was such a gracious women who broke barriers for many black women to succeed. Her skill set obtained is a prime example of what the women walking in her paths acquire to be while mimicking her direction of class.

Watch a clip of her as Mother Sister in “Do The Right Thing.”