In honor of Women’s History Month I compiled a list to commemorating the brown faces that that shaped my childhood as a budding black woman. 

How many of these do you remember? 

 
Tia and Tamara Mowry from Sister Sister  

Who didn’t want to be the Mowry twins growing up? From their beautiful hair to their cute twin rhetoric, down to “Go home roger” they were sweet, classy and entertaining.

Brandy as Moesha  

Brandy, as the first black Cinderella and the queen of the silver screen, Brandy was the queen of the 90s. Growing up I would hear Brandy on the radio, turn on the television and she would be there too! She showed the versatility of black femininity while only a child herself! 

 
Angela from Boy Meets World  

This show was intoxicating, and it was pretty cool that Angela tamed bad boy Shawn Hunter. 

 
Kellie Shanygne Williams, as Laura Winslow on Family Matters  

Laura stole simultaneously stole the hearts of Steve Urkel and America  as the girl next door. 

 
Lark Voorhies, as Lisa Turtle on Saved By the Bell  

 

Stylish, assertive and cute: Lisa paved the way for many of the young black actress that would arise in the 90s. 

 
Stacy Dash as Dionne from Clueless  

 Even though Cher was pegged the beauty,Dionne’s brown skin and thick locks stole every scene. It was also admirable that although Dionne looked like a model, she wanted to be a doctor.  

 
Patti Mayonaise from Doug

 Even though it was later revealed that Patty was just tan, as a child I admired Patti for her brown skin and raspy voice.   

 
Tatyana Ali as Ashley from the Fresh Prince of Bel Air

With her sepia skin, lush dark locks and the pipes to tackle Aretha Franklin’s “Respect” Tatyana was the girl we all wanted to be!    

 
Reagan Gomez Preston as Zaria from the Parenthood
Zaria had the silkiest press in the nineties! 

Meagan Good as Nina from Cousin Skeeter  

Although a supporting character, this was the beginning go several roles Good would launch in the early and mid 2000s 

 
Andrea Lewis as Hazel on Degrassi 

 
Lewis brought my shade to the forefront of my favorite series!  

Sarah Barrable Tishauer as Liberty from Degrassi  
As the cliche overachiever, I admired Liberty’s ambition, curly locks and assertive confidence!

Gabrielle Union as Keesha Hamilton from 7th Heaven 

I was only eight years old when I watched the first episode of 7th Heaven. Seeing a young Gabrielle Union on my favorite show contributed to my confidence as a budding black woman. 

 
Susie from The Rugrats

Donning a hair style close to the hearts of many black women all the way down to the berets at the end -Susie literally mirrored black female childhood.  As a natural leader, Susie depicts black girls as beginning their reign as queens in their sandbox days. 

 Collaboratively these images capture the beauty, resilience, and intelligence of black womanhood. As an adult I can conceptualize just how meaningful these images were in crafting my confidence as a black woman. Cheers to these actresses for showcasing the many sides of black femininity.

Happy Women’s History Month!