By Emily Potoczak, 2025-2026 Research Collaborator at Power in Place
Hallie Quinn Brown had accomplished a lot in terms of service in her lifetime. She dedicated her life to it from a very young age. After she graduated from Wilberforce University in 1873, she began teaching. This is where she started to change the lives of others through education. She knew that education was so important and taught all over. She started teaching in plantations to allow slaves to get the education they deserved. She taught in many states across the United States, including Mississippi, Alabama, South Carolina, and Ohio. In Alabama, she worked alongside Booker T. Washington.
She continued her dedication to service to many things outside of teaching as well. But in all that she did, educating people was her underlying message. This was a major part of all the organizations that she was a part of and she even helped found some of them. Some examples include the Colored Women’s League of Washington, D.C., where she was the principal promoter principal promoter (1893), the National Association of Colored Women (NACW), where she was the founder (1893), president (1920-1924) and, honorary president (1924-1949), the A.M.E church, where she was the Secretary of Education (1900), and the Ohio Federation of Colored Women’s Clubs, where she was president (1905-1912). It was obvious that she was highly involved and wanted a better place for the women like her. She advocated for and represented so many women.
On top of all of the organizations that she was a part of, she traveled the United States and Europe spreading her message through speeches and articles. Her message was against racism, against repression, for women’s suffrage, and for African American culture and temperance. She even won some awards for her hard work. These awards include honorary degrees and memorials. It is clear that she was busy working hard while advocating for her people. It is definitely justified in why she got these awards.
I believe that she can be connected to the future in many ways. The first way is that all of her work helped the United States be where it is today. She and many others fought for the rights of African American women and women in general. Without their work, women may not have the right to vote today. She is also an inspiration to many young women and shows that hard work does pay off and it helps more than ever. She can also be connected to the future by current politicians. One example is Ayanna Pressley, who is an American politician currently serving in the U.S. House of Representatives, representing Massachusetts' 7th congressional district since 2019. Brown and Pressley are connected because they both have been in multiple places in the United States, both broke down many barriers, both fight for racial justice, women’s rights, and educational equity, and both take part in community driven leadership. It is empowering and inspiring to see women like Brown representing our country today and she would be proud for her legacy to be continued.
References
[1]Kenny, Miles. 2024. “Ayanna Pressley | Biography, District, Massachusetts, Election, & Age.” [2]Encyclopedia Britannica. August 2024. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ayanna-Pressley. “[3]Hallie Quinn Brown C. 1850 – 1949 – a History of Speech – Language Pathology,” n.d.]https://ubwp.buffalo.edu/history-of-cds/hallie-quinn-brown-c-1850-1949/. Cited Source Material for Question N: “Brown, Hallie Quinn (C. 1845–1949) | Encyclopedia.com,” n.d. https://www.encyclopedia.com/women/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/brown-hallie-quinn-c-1845-1949#:~:text=honorary%20Master%20of%20Arts%2C%20Wilberforce%20University%20%281890%29%3B%20member,in%20St.%20Paul%2C%20Minnesota%2C%20named%20in%20her%20honor. Hallie Q. Brown Community Center. “Hallie Q. Brown Community Center,” March 2, 2021. https://www.hallieqbrown.org/site/index.php/about/our-legacy/.
Emily is a sophomore at The Ohio State University and majoring in political science and minoring in Spanish and Law & Public Policy. She is a strong advocate for human and women's rights. In her free time, she hangs out with her friends, plays volleyball, and travels to different places.