INDIANAPOLIS — Down the street from the legacy center bearing her name, the spot that was once the headquarters and manufacturing plant of Madam C.J. Walker Hair Care and Beauty Products, dozens gathered Thursday for the unveiling and dedication of a mural.
Madam C.J. Walker was this country’s first female self-made millionaire. The artwork pays tribute to the woman whose legacy reaches far beyond the city where she built an empire.
“We are walking, standing, holding space on ground that belongs to the madam,” said Januarie York, the first poet laureate of the Marion County Public Library Center for Black Literature and Culture, reading from a poem she wrote, commissioned for the event.
“Through humble beginnings, she made her own living and manufactured opportunities for herself and others,” York continued.
Walker was born Sarah Breedlove, the daughter of former slaves.
“We are 154 years removed from her first breath, yet her last one holds no end. Forever alive in our Indiana and along our avenues, she rests in the bosom of Naptown hearts,” said York.
And it was the hearts of dozens speaking Thursday about how Walker inspired them, as they gathered to see her larger than life depiction for the first time in the Madam C.J. Walker Bicentennial Legends Mural.
Among them, the mural's artist, Tasha Beckwith, who created the work over two months’ time.
“I’m hoping that this mural will provide inspiration for people to follow their dreams, as well as understanding that it doesn’t matter where you come from or where you start, it’s about where you finish,” Beckwith told the crowd.
“I hope they see success. I hope they see resilience, but I hope that they see Black, Black women,” said Januarie York, later reflecting on what the mural and Walker mean to her.
“I want people to sit here and say, ‘Wow! She didn’t quit, and not only did she not quit, but I can go down the street and see what not quitting did for her,’” York added.
Not to mention what Walker did for thousands of other Black women.
“There are other women who are on that mural because she was a giver, not just of her time and money, but helped other Black women figure out how they could also become an entrepreneur and make a way for themselves and their family,” said Kristian Little Stricklen, the president of the Madam Walker Legacy Center on Indiana Avenue.
“This is not the Walker’s mural. This is our mural. This is everyone’s mural,” Stricklen added.
Walker was remembered not only for her example as an entrepreneur, but as an activist who spoke out against lynching during the Jim Crow era and as a philanthropist who supported the arts, cementing her place in history as a trailblazer.
“We salute the heart that beat her here and revere the ground she made history on,” York said in her poem.
Walker, whose trail left an indelible mark not only on Indianapolis, but on the world, so that generations from now, when people walk by the mural of her in the Circle City, they can be reminded of all that is possible when you believe in yourself and others.
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