The 100 Professional Black Women Dressed in Black event held on Saturday was an inspiration.
Black women were asked to dress in black and gather downtown to celebrate the strength of black women as professionals. In the end, the powerful show of more than 150 Fayetteville community leaders aimed to demonstrate the importance of empowerment and unity. The event began at Segura Stadium at around 2 p.m.
During the event, the women walked to the market house. The Market House is a historic building downtown where enslaved people were sold for part of history. At the Market House, women posed for photos and held hands around the roundabout.
The group occasionally broke into song, singing anthems such as Bill Withers’ “Lean on Me” and later Club Nouveau, Sister Sledge’s “We Are Family.”
Event organizer Tiffany Campbell said she met many women through social media and it took less than a week to gather them.
“We are very excited about the turnout and the energy in the room,” Campbell said.
Some of the participants include:
Tiffany Campbell
Ms. Campbell, 37, is a youth counselor and technician working in youth justice.
“We don’t have a place where African American women can come together and collaborate and support each other even when we’re apart,” Campbell said. “We are all in this together.”
Christina Woods
Christina Woods, 9, a student at Johnsonville Elementary School in Harnett County.
“Having a family business (4YourMemories Photography) means a lot to me. I like taking a lot of pictures with my dad,” Christina said. “This event is important to me because I want to help my family business.”
Dr. Barbara Campbell
Dr. Barbara Campbell, 75, pastor of Victory Tabernacle Church and mother of Tiffany Campbell.
“Seeing my daughter reach out to people who mean something to her in the community…is essential to the growth of Fayetteville,” Dr. Campbell said.
Rochelle J
Rochelle J, Rochelle J., 44, of Rochelle J. Photography.
“This event allows me to connect with local business owners that I didn’t know about,” Rochelle said. “There is great power in this room.”
Demetria Davis
Demetria Davis, 44, world champion gold medalist, six-time NCAA champion, Force of Life pastor, and caterer at Dee’s Champion Cuisine.
“I believe this is the beginning of a legend. We’re making history,” Davis said. “It means a lot that one woman has a vision and all women come together to promote and highlight that vision.”
Sheila Hill
Sheila Hill, 53, is the sister of Tiffany Campbell, podcast host of The Sheila C. Hill Show.
“Meeting other professional Black women creates a sisterhood,” Hill said. “This makes a lot of sense because we are so divided with busy work that we don’t realize there are other people nearby.”
Judy Cage
Judy Cage, 44, chef at Uptown’s Chicken and Waffles, “Catering to You.”
“It gives me energy to participate in activities where Black women come together and empower each other,” Cage said. “I love seeing that.”
Kia Anthony
Kia Anthony, 42, Mayor of Spring Lake.
“This is a highly impactful event that showcases the excellence of Black women,” Anthony said. “It’s empowering to be surrounded by so much love and sisterhood. You could see the oncoming traffic and how excited they were to see a gathering like this.”
Public safety reporter Joseph Pierre can be reached at jpierre@gannett.com..
