ICONS & IMPACT™
Many stories · many kinds of impact

Black community,
lasting change.

Meet a few Black artists, scientists, leaders, performers, and organisers whose work has opened doors and changed how the world sees what is possible.

Black communities are diverse across countries, languages, generations, and lived experiences. These profiles are a starting point, not the whole story.

Explore the people ↓
A growing collection

Different paths. Shared possibility.

Open a profile for sourced stories, milestones, and a little person-specific interactive surprise.

Beyoncé performing at a concert in Lisbon in 2009
Photo: José Goulão · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Photo source
Musicians · Performers

Beyoncé

Read a little about Beyoncé

Beyoncé Knowles-Carter is an American singer, songwriter, producer, and performer. Her work ranges from vocal group beginnings to solo albums and large-scale visual projects.

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Stevie Wonder speaking at a conference in Salvador, Brazil in 2006
Photo: Antonio Cruz/ABr · CC BY 3.0 Brazil · Photo source
Musicians · Changemakers

Stevie Wonder

Read a little about Stevie

Stevie Wonder is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. As a Motown artist, he became known for his expressive voice and inventive use of keyboards and synthesizers.

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Maya Angelou visiting York College in February 2013
Photo: York College ISLGP · CC BY 2.0 · Photo source
Writers · Changemakers

Maya Angelou

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Maya Angelou was an American poet, memoirist, performer, and teacher. Her autobiographical writing brought her childhood and life experiences to readers with candour and artistry.

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NASA portrait of astronaut Mae Jemison
Photo: NASA · Public domain · Photo source
Scientists · Changemakers

Mae Jemison

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Mae Jemison is an American engineer, physician, and former NASA astronaut. In 1992 she flew aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour, becoming the first Black woman in space.

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Chadwick Boseman speaking at San Diego Comic-Con in 2017
Photo: Gage Skidmore · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Photo source
Actors · Changemakers

Chadwick Boseman

Read a little about Chadwick

Chadwick Boseman was an American actor, writer, and producer. He portrayed Jackie Robinson, James Brown, Thurgood Marshall, and T’Challa in Black Panther.

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Naomi Campbell at the Cannes Film Festival in 2017
Photo: Georges Biard · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Photo source
Models · Changemakers

Naomi Campbell

Read a little about Naomi

Naomi Campbell is a British fashion model who began working as a teenager and became one of the most recognisable models of her generation.

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Iman at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2009
Photo: David Shankbone · CC BY 3.0 · Photo source
Models · Changemakers

Iman

Read a little about Iman

Iman is a Somali-American model and entrepreneur. She became one of fashion’s most recognisable figures and later founded a cosmetics company designed with women of colour in mind.

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Wangari Maathai at a Capitol Hill event in 2001
Photo: Kingkongphoto / John Mathew Smith · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Photo source
Scientists · Activists · Changemakers

Wangari Maathai

Read a little about Wangari

Wangari Maathai was a Kenyan environmental and political activist, professor, and founder of the Green Belt Movement.

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Bayard Rustin at a news briefing before the 1963 March on Washington
Photo: Warren K. Leffler / Library of Congress · Public domain · Photo source
Activists · Leaders · Changemakers

Bayard Rustin

Read a little about Bayard

Bayard Rustin was a civil rights organiser, strategist, and advocate for nonviolent protest. He helped organise the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom.

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Portrait of Nelson Mandela in 1994
Photo: John Mathew Smith · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Photo source
Activists · Leaders

Nelson Mandela

Read a little about Nelson

Nelson Mandela was an anti-apartheid leader and South Africa’s first democratically elected president. He received the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize.

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