The Network Journal celebrate and honor the 25 Influential Black Women in Business 2002.

Black women are the cornerstones of society, but their achievements and their heroism often go unnoticed. Yet, in order to realize their dreams, black women must have a stronger willpower than anyone else in society, a society that discriminates against them as women and as blacks.

Moreover, black women’s road to success, unavoidably tortuous in itself, calls for either their sacrificing excellence at work or sacrificing time with their families. All of the 25 honorees above refused to yield against odds, and their profiles are an extraordinarily inspiring story to people of African descent throughout the globe. The time is ripe to honor the influential women not only for their ingenuity, drive, vision, determination, love and beauty but also for shattering some of the most virulent myths about black people propagated by the mainstream media on a daily basis. In this Women’s Month of March, right on the heels of Black History Month, we know that everything we put our minds to is possible; we have a future as a race.

—Njeru Waithaka, Editor