Little Girl and Mother Recreate Photos of Inspiring African American Women

Little girls love to play dress up—especially when it comes to emulating their older sisters and mothers.

St Louis writer Chauncia Boyd Rogers transformed her daughter Ava Noelle’s propensity for costumes into an empowering educational opportunity by having her dress up as some of the most influential African American women in US history.

From media mogul Oprah Winfrey (with the same stunning red lip) to First Lady Michelle Obama (with the matching elegant chignon) to political activist Angela Davis (with the statement afro), this month-long project is a testament to how far little girls can dream—and how powerful having role models can be.

“To engage Ava and help her get into the project, I decided to have her dress up and ‘recreate’ a photo featuring each figure. One of the greatest lessons I wanted Ava to learn is that there are women who look like her that have accomplished great things. And because they have paved the way, her dreams can be realities,” Rogers captioned the Facebook album, aptly titled “Ava Noelle Rogers Is…”

This project may have just started out as a fun way to teach her daughter about history, but Rogers’ photo series is now educating the general public about these groundbreaking women, all of whom are worthy role models to all boys and girls, men and women, African American or not.