We Have Come...James Weldon Johnson

We have come over a way that with tears has
    been watered,
We have come, treading our path through the
    blood of the slaughtered.

James Weldon Johnson
Author, Educator, Lawyer, Diplomat, Songwriter, and Civil Rights Activist
Best known for writing "Lift Ev'ry Voice And Sing"

Defining Myself...Bell Hooks

“I will not have my life narrowed down. I will not bow down to somebody else’s whim or to someone else’s ignorance. ” 

--Bell Hooks

Image: WashingtonPost.com

Life's Invaluable Things...Myrlie Evers-Williams

“Don't measure your wealth by how many things you have. Measure your wealth by how many things you have that you wouldn't take money for.”

― Myrlie Evers-Williams

Leadership Tuesdays: What Women Should Know...Ann Fudge

"Sometimes women feel that they have to exhibit a certain male-like behavior in order to be successful, particularly as they move up to the ranks and find that there are less women. And I think that's the biggest mistake that women make. It's be yourself. And your smarts, your ability to relate with people, don't try to diminish that in any way because it's a combination of that intelligence and that ability, perhaps unique to women, to work with people, that I think gives us the edge over the long term."

--Ann Fudge, Former CEO of Young and Rubicam, Philanthropist

Every other Tuesday, WOMEN AT LIBERTY presents Leadership Tuesdays, a platform for a variety of voices and resources to develop, encourage, and strengthen women leaders. Ann Fudge is the former CEO of Young and Rubicam (Y&R) Brands, a marketing and communications company specializing in advertising, and digital and social media, etc. A trailblazer, Ms. Fudge was the first African American to lead a major advertising firm. She led the global company, then worth $3.4 billion, from 2003-2006.

Before coming to Y&R, she was President of the $5 billion Beverages, Desserts and Post Division at Kraft Foods.  She managed many familiar brands including Maxwell House Coffee, Kool Aid, and Crystal Light.  Ms. Fudge also spent several years at General Mills where she started as a Marketing Assistant and rose to Marketing Director.

Currently, Ms. Fudge serves on the Board of several companies and organizations including General Electric, Novartis, Unilever, Morehouse College, Rockfeller Foundation and the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. A philanthropist focused on education, she also serves as chair of the U.S. Programs Advisory Board of the Gates Foundation. She graduated with a B.A. from Simmons College and a M.B.A. from Harvard Graduate School of Business. She and her husband, Rich, are the proud parents of two sons and five grandchildren.

In this brief video, she gives advice to women who are leading in today's business environment. "Be authentic" is one of Ann Fudge's core messages. In fact, she directs her advice to both men and women. To view this video, click here. For more information on Leadership Tuesdays and our recent features please visit our website, womenatliberty.com.
 

Paying The Highest Tribute...Thurgood Marshall

"In recognizing the humanity of our fellow beings, we pay ourselves the highest tribute." 

--Thurgood Marshal, First African American Supreme Court Justice

The Truth About Injustice...James H. Cone

The truth about injustice always sounds outrageous. 

--James H. Cone, B.A., B.D., M.A., Ph.D.

Professor James H. Cone, known as the founder of black liberation theology, is the Charles A. Briggs Distinguished Professor of Systematic Theology at Union Theological Seminary in New York. For more information on Dr. Cone, go to: http://www.utsnyc.edu/jamescone.

Professor James H. Cone, known as the founder of black liberation theology, is the Charles A. Briggs Distinguished Professor of Systematic Theology at Union Theological Seminary. - See more at: http://www.utsnyc.edu/jamescone#sthash.g0KXvqk0.dpuf

Professor James H. Cone, known as the founder of black liberation theology, is the Charles A. Briggs Distinguished Professor of Systematic Theology at Union Theological Seminary. - See more at: http://www.utsnyc.edu/jamescone#sthash.g0KXvqk0.dpuf

Professor James H. Cone, known as the founder of black liberation theology, is the Charles A. Briggs Distinguished Professor of Systematic Theology at Union Theological Seminary. - See more at: http://www.utsnyc.edu/jamescone#sthash.g0KXvqk0.dpuf

Greatness Occurs...Quincy Jones

"Greatness occurs when your children love you, when your critics respect you and when you have peace of mind."

-- Quincy Jones, Record Producer, Conductor, Arranger, Composer, Television Producer, Film Producer, Instrumentalist, Magazine Founder, Record Company Executive, Humanitarian, and Jazz Trumpeter

Faith Is Necessary...Mary McLeod Bethune

"Without faith, nothing is possible. With faith, nothing is impossible."

--Mary Mcleod Bethune, Educator and Civil Rights Activist, Civil Servant, Founder of Daytona Normal and Industrial Institute (now Bethune-Cookman College) and the National Council of Negro Women

You Can Really Make A Difference...Marian Wright Edelman

You really can change the world if you care enough.

--Marian Wright Edelman

You Were Meant To Be...Benjamin Mays

Every man and woman is born into the world to do something unique and something distinctive and if he or she does not do it, it will never be done.

--Benjamin E. Mays, former President, Morehouse College

Advice From A Dream Girl...Jennifer Holliday

Don't try to figure out the ending of the movie, stay to see it. It'll get greater later! But you have to stick around to see your life turnaround. If you don't stick around then you'll never know.

--Jennifer Holliday, Tony and Grammy-award winning Singer and Actress

On January 21, 2014, Jennifer Holliday released her first CD in 23 years entitled, "The Song Is You". She recently spoke at length to Michel Martin of NPR's Tell Me More about her new CD and what's been happening in her life.  She shares real wisdom in this very candid interview with Michel Martin. I highly recommend that you will take a listen.


NPR's Tell Me More Program: Singer Jennifer Holliday On Making The Best Of Each Day

Unconditional Human Value...Melissa Harris-Perry

“Loss of social standing is an ever-present threat for individuals whose social acceptance is based on behavioral traits rather than unconditional human value.” 

-- Melissa V. Harris-Perry, Author, "Sister Citizen: Shame, Stereotypes, and Black Women in America"

A Great Man...Myrlie Evers-Williams

“He was a man who never wanted adoration, who never wanted the limelight, ... He was a man who saw the work that needed to be done and did it.”


--Myrlie Evers-Williams

Medgar Evers, (1925 - 1963)
Civil Rights Activist

To learn more about Medgar Evers, visit Medgar Evers on biography.com.

Vision = Hope...George Washington Carver

Where there is no vision, there is no hope. 

--George Washington Carver

Leadership Tuesdays: Be Persistent & Determined!...Suzanne Shank

“While education and talent are extremely important to attaining success, nothing can replace persistence and determination.”

 --Suzanne Shank, CEO, Siebert Brandford Shank & Co. LLC and Acting CEO, Siebert Financial Corporation

Every other Tuesday, WOMEN AT LIBERTY presents Leadership Tuesdays, a platform for a variety of voices and resources to develop, encourage, and strengthen women leaders. Today we featured Suzanne Shank, the 1st Black Woman to Head a Publicly Traded Financial Institution. In fact, she is heading two Wall Street organizations, Siebert Brandford Shank & Co. LLC and Siebert Financial Corporation.

Black Enterprise Magazine featured Ms. Shank along with two others women, Gale King, Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer-Nationwide Insurance and Glenda McNeal, Senior Vice President and General Manager-American Express, on their February 2014 "Women Of Power" cover (see below). The article gives an overview of the two Wall Street firms that Ms. Shank leads as well as the challenges she currently faces. She discusses what strategies she is currently pursuing to grow business in each of the two firms.

Siebert Financial Corporation is a brokerage and banking business founded by the legendary late Muriel Seibert, the first woman to own a seat on the New York Stock Exchange. Siebert Brandford Shank & Co. LLC is a black owned municipal bond underwriting firm. To the read article, click here. For more information on Leadership Tuesdays and our recent features on women like Karen Dale of Amerihealth and Michelle D. Freeman of the Carl M. Freeman Companies, please visit our website, womenatliberty.com.

______________________

Also, 

BLACK ENTERPRISE’s Women of Power Summit is an opportunity to connect with powerful women, develop professional strategies, and get expert advice from today’s leading female executives and decision makers.

To get more information on their upcoming conference, Embrace Your Power: The Moment is Now! Attend the Black Enterprise Women of Power Summit hosted by State Farm, Feb. 26 to ­March 1, 2014, at Boca Raton Resort and Club, a Waldorf Astoria Resort, Boca Raton, FL, go to: http://www.blackenterprise.com/events/2013/09/12/overview-2/.

Pursue Knowledge...Natasha Trethewey

“A man's [woman's] pursuit of knowledge is greater than his shortcomings, the limits of his vision.” 

--Natasha Trethewey, United States Poet Laureate (2012 --  ), Author of Thrall

For more information on Ms.Tretheway, go to:
http://www.blueflowerarts.com/natasha-trethewey

Finding Joy and Peace In Your Heart...Howard Thurman

“Whatever may be the tensions and the stresses of a particular day, there is always lurking close at hand the trailing beauty of forgotten joy or unremembered peace.”

 --Howard Thurman, Author, Philosopher, Theologian, Educator and Civil Rights Leader, "Meditations of the Heart"

Your Actions Says It All...Theodore Roosevelt

“There are good men [women] and bad men [women] of all nationalities, creeds and colors; and if this world of ours is ever to become what we hope some day it may become, it must be by the general recognition that the man’s [women's] heart and soul, the man’s [women's] worth and actions, determine his standing.”

--Theodore Roosevelt