From poverty to glory is perhaps how the story of Samuel Fuller could be best described. But is was not an easy journey by far. In-fact, it was a long hard road for S.B. Fuller before he could even begin to assemble the wildly successful business that would become Fuller…
Kathryn Finney.
In her Pulitzer Prize-winning book on the great American migration,
The Warmth of Other Suns, Isabella Wilkerson tells the story of Ida Mae Gladney, who uprooted her life from Mississippi to Chicago, drawn by the idea of economic mobility and safety that the Promised Land had to offer. In the early 20th century, Chicago offered opportunities for paying jobs and a growing Black middle class. Though the city was segregated and brutalized by policies redlining Black neighborhoods, it offered relief from the threat of lynching. Even in the face of economic and racial barriers, Ida Mae remained optimistic and built a life for herself and her family.
The Black CPA Centennial: Meet the first Black woman CPA accountingtoday.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from accountingtoday.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Opening doors for others: The first Black woman to become a CPA
By Anita Dennis
Mary T. Washington Wylie in 1943 became the nation’s first Black woman to earn the CPA license, a notable achievement in a remarkable life filled with many accomplishments. Washington Wylie also made it her life’s mission to hire and mentor Black aspiring CPAs. Her story illustrates the importance of early Black CPAs’ success and the advances they made for future generations of accountants.
A decision to pay it forward
Born in Mississippi, Washington Wylie (1906–2005) was a child when she was sent to live in Chicago with her grandparents after her mother’s death. Eager to escape a home life with an abusive grandmother, she was about to drop out of high school in her junior year, but a caring teacher took her in so she could finish her studies. “I think this was life-changing for her and helped her to become a giver,” said Washington Wylie’s granddaughter, Angie Spencer. “She decided