Mary Eliza Mahoney: An African American Woman

2153 Words5 Pages

In this paper I will be investigating about how African American Woman’s worked hard to become successful in the elegance of the society in the 1880s and years beyond that. Being African American woman who is demanding to profitable to Nursing profession is a story of colored women fighting to overcome racial, social and economic injustice. It was not long ago that this was the lifestyle we use to live in, in the 1879s there was institution's, policy that only one African American students and one Jewish students could be enrolled in each training class at a time. Nevertheless, beforehand in general African American weren’t supposed to be educated to become anything not only men but particularly women. There was a time of the period that if …show more content…

Mary Eliza Mahoney was one of the first nurses that was known for her incredible work. She was a pioneer who refused to succumb to the restrictions imposed by racial prejudice. In 1879, Mahoney became the first registered black nurse: when she graduated from a training program in New England. As a student, she had endured 16 hours of backbreaking labor every day, seven days a week. The program was so difficult that only three students out of the entire class of 40 graduated. And Mahoney was one of them. Effectively, Mahoney proved that African Americans could not only become nurses, but that they could do the job with excellence, compassion and efficiency. The world of nursing changed from that moment on, she opened many doors for women of color and many others, and she broke the segregation. Mahoney went on to co-establish the National Association of Colored Graduate Nurses in 1908. In recognition of her contribution to the nursing profession, in 1936 the American Nurses Association instituted the Mary Mahoney Award, to be awarded to nurses who go above and beyond when it comes to integration and equal opportunities for minorities in the field of …show more content…

Johnson-Brown tried to gain admission to a local hospital, she was told, “We’ve never had a black person in our program, and we never will.” Fortunately, despite the racial obstacles in her path, Johnson-Brown persevered and did become a nurse. She studied at the Harlem Hospital School of Nursing, where she graduated in 1950. She then joined the army, working in Japan and later Korea during her service. In the 1960s, she also trained Vietnam-bound surgical nurses. Johnson-Brown’s abilities in the operating theater led to her climbing the ranks in the army. She eventually became the first black woman to be promoted to brigadier general and the first to head the 7,000-strong US Army Nurse Corps. As well as her Harlem diploma, Johnson-Brown achieved a nursing bachelor’s degree, a master’s degree, and an educational administration PhD. And to top it all off, she was awarded a number of distinguished military decorations in addition to being named Army Nurse of the Year

Open Document