Читать книгу Many Blessings - Sonnee Weedn PhD - Страница 8

Preface

African American women hold a unique place in the history of the United States of America. The prejudice and discrimination they have experienced has been well documented and need not be reviewed here. Suffice it to say; overcoming the particular obstacles of racism and sexism, sometimes combined with poverty and poor educational opportunities, previously advertised as separate but equal, takes great courage, creativity, perseverance, and strength of character.

What is it within the characters of so many African American women that sets them apart and allows them to claim their destiny, bringing forth their particular gifts and talents in order to support themselves and contribute to their families and communities? There are likely to be many theories about this. However, in this book, I identified seven character strengths that are apparent to me in the development of African American women’s ability to thrive despite the challenges they experience as a result of being subject to the unique circumstances that are the historical legacy of all African American women today.

Women typically identify themselves in any number of ways. We are daughters, sisters, wives, mothers, teachers, cooks, nurses, and on and on. The titles and categories are endless. As children, we are full of possibilities and may grow up to embody any number of roles as we form our personalities. In this process of forming our adult identities we, hopefully, begin to see our characteristic strengths, combined with our particular gifts and talents.

Some women have had the good fortune to be able to nurture these strengths in ways that have allowed them to bring them to full fruition. For others, one or two of their strengths have been identified and utilized, while others are less well developed. Some women, though adults, are just beginning the process of self-awareness. Everyone starts somewhere.

This book is meant to honor all women, who despite many forward strides, still face discrimination in the workplace, and make up large numbers of the disenfranchised. However, this book is especially meant to honor and highlight the strengths of African American women, who have usually had to face the double discrimination of being female and black, and thus have had to work harder than their sisters of other ethnicities to rise to their full potential. They have much to offer all of us with their examples of faith and perseverance, as well as their sage advice.

It is my hope that this book provides you, the reader, whether you are African American, or not, the opportunity to think about your own characteristic strengths. In order to do this, I requested the help of the women you will read about in these pages. Each of them was generous with her time and her story, sometimes delving into material she had not previously discussed publicly. I am grateful for their assistance. Some of them have written books of their own, and if you are intrigued by their interviews here, I encourage you to get their books and learn more about them.

In addition, many men have expressed interest in this project. Men have much to learn from the women around them, who, so often have enhanced their lives in some supportive role, whether in the workplace or at home. So, I hope that my male readers are equally inspired by these stories.

The interviewees often had opinions about which of the seven strengths I identified most exemplified them. I often agreed with them. But, mostly I saw that each of them had all the strengths in some measure, and had really utilized them all to achieve their goals. Their wisdom, generosity of spirit, and amazing grace will be quite obvious to you as you review their unique stories and understand their contributions. They do, indeed, provide many blessings to the rest of us!