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HERSTORY |

The New York Coalition of One Hundred Black Women, Inc. (The Coalition) was founded in 1970 by
twenty-four Black women for the purpose of giving back to the community. The desire to organize grew
out of the fermenting years of the 1960s. The Civil Rights Movement was in full swing only to be jolted
by the deaths of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and President John F. Kennedy. During this time Black
women across the United States found themselves trying to gain acceptance into the Civil Rights and
Women’s Movements.


A group of students who had participated in sit-ins throughout the South in protest of various
discriminatory policies were invited to be guests in the home of Coalition founder, Ms. Edna Beach. The
courage of these young people activated Ms. Beach’s sense of responsibility and she galvanized other
like-minded Black women to become involved in the struggle. The women worked hard, empowered
themselves and recruited other women to serve as positive role models for young Black women.


By 1972, the group had recruited more than the targeted 100 members, the majority of whom were
visible in many facets of the community and who were unsung sheroes themselves. The Coalition
cultivated strong involvement with mentoring and grass roots community activities which gave it
national exposure and triggered the creation of a national entity in October 1981. The vision and spirit
of the founders of the New York Coalition on One Hundred Black Women, Inc. remains vibrant within
the organization until today.

PAST PRESIDENTS |

Evelyn Payne Davis

1970 – 1973

 

Dorothy Gordon

1974 – 1975

 

Audraine Wilson

1976 – 1977

 

Jewell Jackson McCabe

1978 – 1981

 

Bernice F. Powell

1982 – 1985

 

Betty Adams

1986 – 1989

 

Cora Fields

1990 – 1993

 

Robin Bell Stevens

1994 – 1995

 

Madeline Moore

1996 – 1999

 

Ambassador Suzan Johnson Cook

2000 – 2001

 

Edith Davenport

2002 – 2003

 

Natatia L. Griffith

2004 – 2007

 

Virginia M. Montague

2008 – 2011

 

Avalyn P. Simon

2012 – 2016

 

Cheryl Green-Foster

2016 - 2019

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