National Nurses Week arrives each year from May 6 to May 12, creating space to honor the invaluable contributions nurses make to healthcare systems worldwide. As the celebration begins, attention turns to the historical figures whose determination shaped the profession despite facing formidable barriers of racism and gender discrimination.
The nursing profession’s evolution in America cannot be fully understood without recognizing the pioneering Black women who pushed against systemic racism to create opportunities for those who followed. Their stories encompass not only medical care but advocacy, education, and social justice, elements that remain central to nursing practice today.