By Jean Nash Wells

It is an honor and a privilege to present C. Vivian Stringers to our readers as our cover story for Women’s History Month. We believe that this woman’s achievements exemplify the values of faith, hope, perseverance and courage necessary to meet the manifold challenges of today’s society.

In a time when the image of African American women is under attack both from within our community and in the media, we are all strengthened by the character and integrity demonstrated by this woman of inspiration.

What Stringer and the Rutger’s Women’s Basketball team endured as a result of the now infamous statement by broadcaster Don Imus was a culmination of a disturbing trend. In the late 90s legendary songwriter/poet Gil Scott Heron wrote and recorded Message to the Messengers in which admonished young rappers.

You can’t talk about respect every other day
Or on every other record
What I’m talking about here
is the raps about the womenfolk
On one song she’s your African queen
On the next she’s a joke to you.”

His plea seems to have fallen on deaf ears, and many young women and men today seem to be at ease with the language of disrespect. We honor Coach Vivian Stringer for standing up for her team. The tears she shed were for all women and the fortitude and dignity she showed should surely have encouraged us all.

During this Women’s History Month we take time to celebrate the enormous contributions of the women of our community to America and the world. And it is not only the people you already know about—it’s the usher at church, the women who runs the food bank, a single mom who is doing her best to raise her children the right way, the caring teacher, the gentle nurse.

What about the groups , organizations and sororities that are dedicated to giving back? The Coalition of One Hundred Black Women, the Links, Sisters Network, Doll League, The Drifters and mentoring organizations like My Daughter’s Keeper, National Council of Negro Women, Alpha Kappa Alpha, Delta Sigma Theta, Zeta Phi Beta, all the other sororities and the thousands of women’s ministries across the country—they each have taken on the responsibility of fostering the progress of our people.

And hat’s off to the women of Spelman College who took a stand and refused to allow a purveyor of negative lyrics about women to perform on their campus. It takes courage to go against the trend.

We salute the many exceptional women we have highlighted in this issue of The Positive Community.

Women are the nurturers, the encouragers—the very hands that rock the cradle of civilization.

Presidential candidate Barack Obama calls his wife, Michelle, “the rock” of his family, and she wears the title well. She will make a fine First Lady.