Abstract
The idea or presence of a Black First Lady does not originate with Michelle Obama. During her last visit to Africa, Michelle Obama was photographed with other African first ladies at the African First Ladies Summit. While first ladies, though often-powerful women themselves, access power through marriage to a man who becomes president or prime minister, there is a growing body of women writing of their own experiences of engagement with power, as first woman presidents or prime ministers themselves. In this chapter, Dr. Carole Boyce Davies addresses issues of leadership in two different arenas, the first wife pathway to leadership, the rise of women as presidents themselves. It also examines issues of sexuality in the construction of both versions of Black women’s political leadership.
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Davies, C.B. (2018). First Ladies/First Wives, First Women Presidents: Sexuality, Leadership and Power in the African Diaspora. In: Duster, M., Seniors, P., Thevenin, R. (eds) Michelle Obama’s Impact on African American Women and Girls. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-92468-7_4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-92468-7_4
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