This weeks’ honoree gives praise to Nichelle Nichols (aka Nyota Uhuru), an actor that helped
young girls dream the size of a universe.
Starting out as an actor, singer, and dancer, she ended up in a role that became a lifetime gig. She became a television icon on the TV show Star Trek as Nyota Uhuru, a communications officer, and a bad ass. The first Black actress cast as a major player in a tv role. As a communications officer on Star Trek, she broke all the stereotypes usually portrayed by African Americans, especially female roles. Not only was she beautiful to look at, but she was also intelligent, strong and a force to be reckoned with. My favorite scene of her is in an episode called Mirror, Mirror where she must pretend to be someone else. That scene with her costar George Takei proved that she could demand respect from anybody and still be a badass. Check it out for yourself!
Wanting to leave Star Trek for a role on Broadway, she was approached by Martin Luther King Jr. who urged her to stay by stating, 'you cannot, you cannot...for the first time on television, we will be seen as we should be seen every day, as intelligent, quality, beautiful, people who can sing dance, and can go to space, who are professors, lawyers. “If you leave, that door can be closed because your role is not a black role and is not a female role; he can fill it with anybody even an alien." Lucky for us, she stayed and became a television icon and a role model for many people.
“It made me believe that all things good are possible.” Nichelle Nichols
She was one of six children, born on December 28, 1932, in Robbins, Illinois. Born Grace Dell Nichols, but she disliked that name, so she asked her parents for a new one, they offered “Nichelle, a name that means “victorious maiden” (from NIKE and the suffix -elle) * Sadly, Nichelle Nichols passed away on July 30th of this year. Her legacy will live on, and she will be missed.
May her spirit rest in peace.
Sistah Girl
*For more information on this BAD ASS SISTAH GIRL, go to: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nichelle_Nichols