Josephine Baker

The Unstoppable Josephine Baker, born June 3, 1906. Dancer, singer, and civil rights activist, Baker began her unstoppable rise early on in life. At eight years old, Baker was supporting her family by cleaning house and babysitting for wealthier white families, who did not always treat her very well and, at 13, she ran away and found work as a waitress. It was around this time that she found a love for dance and developed her skills in club performances.⠀
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Baker’s belief in herself and what she was capable of not only helped her ascend out of poverty, but achieve her dreams of performing on Broadway and becoming one of Europe’s most popular entertainers in the 1920s after moving to France. Baker was unstoppable because she did not define herself by her past or the actions of others. She decided what she wanted for her life and she made it happen: becoming the first African-American to star in a major motion picture in 1927; aiding the French Resistance during World War II; and fighting racism and segregation alongside Martin Luther King, Jr. in the March on Washington in the 1950s.