It wasn’t just Ora Brown Stokes’ persistence that made her a force to be reckoned with. There was something much more powerful about her, and the best part is that her actions always made this quality even more evident.
This quality led her to work as a probation officer WITHOUT PAY to protect imprisoned girls and women in the early 1900s. It led her to create an organization that not only provided homes for women and children, but that also offered a daycare. And yet she was compelled to do even more.
Black women were frequently prevented from participating in voting rights conventions by white women and made to stand outside and wait. Stokes set up a phone system that let them know when it was safe to come without being made to wait. There was something else, too.
She lectured across the nation about protecting Black women and girls, women’s rights, and uplifting Black people. Others were moved by her work and her words and took action. So what compelled her to do such work, sometimes without pay or recognition?
Love for her people. It helped Stokes protect and organize Black women and girls to fight for liberation. We must never underestimate the power of extending our kindness to each other – it can literally inspire greatness!