The first Black woman to become a general in the U.S. Army was Brigadier General Hazel Johnson-Brown.
Who Was Hazel Johnson-Brown?
- Born in 1927 in Pennsylvania, she grew up in a segregated America.
- Despite facing racial discrimination, she pursued a career in nursing and later joined the U.S. Army Nurse Corps in 1955.
- In 1979, she became the first Black woman to be promoted to Brigadier General in the U.S. Army.
- She also became the Chief of the Army Nurse Corps, overseeing 7,000 nurses across the Army.
Her Legacy
- She played a key role in modernizing military nursing education and policies.
- She paved the way for more Black women to achieve leadership roles in the U.S. military.
- She retired in 1983 after an impressive career and later worked as a professor.
