Isabel Wilkerson is the first Black woman to win a Pulitzer Prize for feature writing. This talented journalist recently penned a powerful book titled “The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration” (Random House, $30), telling the story of one of the nation’s population shifts: the migration of six million Black Americans out of the South and into cities throughout the North and West.
Jill Scott, 38, got her start as a prominent Philadelphia poet and in 2000, she made it big with her Grammy-nominated debut album, “Who is Jill Scott?” Several albums later, Scott has crossed over as a successful actress, starring in movies like “Why Did I Get Married,” and the HBO series, “The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency.”
Nicole Bell, 26, a mother of two, took her fiance’s last name after he was killed by a hail of cop bullets in Jamaica Queens, New York, on their wedding day. Bell has started a non-profit organization in honor of her husband. Now, the young woman is running for City Council in Queens.
Kimberly Anyadike, 16, flew a single-engine plane cross-country from Compton, California to Newport News, Virginia. She is the youngest female pilot to complete the journey, which took 13 days. “No matter how young or old you are, you can accomplish whatever you [want].” Anyadike says. “My dad always teaches us that we have to work to the point of honor.”
Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins is CEO of Green For All, an advocacy group for lifting minority communities out of poverty through the green economy. The organization recently helped secure federal funds in the stimulus bill for green jobs training and other poverty-alleviating programs.
Kenyan-born visual artist Wangechi Mutu is an art-world darling. Trained as an anthropologist and sculptor, her collage pieces combine glamour (images cut from fashion magazines) with anthropology and comment on sexism and colonialism. She recently won the coveted Deutsche Bank Artist of the Year award for 2010.
As a teen, 28-year-old Tina Wells began writing product reviews for teen girls, a hobby that blossomed into a wildly successful youth marketing company, Buzz Marketing Group. Today, she provides market research for the likes of Sony BMG, Sesame Workshop, PBS and Proctor and Gamble — as well as writing a tween series, “Mackenzie Blue.”