“The air is the only place free from prejudices” ~Bessie Coleman
Elizabeth "Bessie" Coleman spent her entire life facing and fighting back against racism. As a young woman, she dreamed of taking to the sky, but to achieve that dream, she had to go to a different country because she wasn't allowed to get her pilot’s license in America. She never gave up and defied all the odds to become an incredible aviator, proving to the world that she was more than just her skin color.
As a young Black and Native American girl growing up in Texas, Coleman attended a segregated school. She excelled in her studies but had to take a break from school every year to help pick cotton to support her family. She was accepted into Langston University in Oklahoma but could only attend for one semester before her money ran out, and she had to return home to her family. She then moved to Chicago to live with her brothers, where she worked as a manicurist.
While working at the barbershop, she met Robert Abbott, the publisher of The Chicago Defender. The two became good friends, and she told him about her dream of flying. She confided in him that her goal was to one day amount to something and that she was inspired to fly by the stories of the World War I pilots who came into the barbershop. Unfortunately, at the time, the United States did not allow any person of color, man or woman, to get a pilot's license. Abbott suggested she go study abroad, where she would be allowed to receive a license. He wrote an article, sharing her story, and helped her receive financial support from The Chicago Defender and pioneering Chicago banker Jesse Binga. Thanks to this support, Coleman had the funds she needed to attend flight school in France. She took a French language class in Chicago and was off to Paris!
Once Coleman reached Paris, she finally achieved her dream of taking to the sky. She attended flight school and learned to fly in a Nieuport 564 biplane. On June 15, 1921, she became the first Black woman and first Native American to be awarded a pilot's license and the first American to receive the credentials directly from the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) instead of applying through the National Aeronautic Association.
When she returned to America, Coleman realized she would have to become a barnstormer – a professional stunt flyer – to earn a living as a civilian pilot. This would require additional training to perform all the daring, dangerous, and exciting stunts needed to be a competitive flyer. She couldn't find anyone in the U.S. willing to teach her, so she returned to Europe. There, she took advanced aviation courses, met with highly respected aircraft designers to better understand how her planes worked, and trained directly with chief pilots. She worked hard to learn her aircraft inside and out and became a master of her machine. Once she completed her stunt training, she returned to the U.S.
Coleman quickly became a media sensation. Her trailblazing career as a talented flier got her invited to countless aviation events, and people traveled everywhere to see her stunts. She became known as “Brave Bessie” because she was always willing to attempt the stunts everyone else was scared to do. She even performed a jump from the wing of her plane!
Coleman used her newfound fame to fight back against the racism she faced her whole life. She refused to fly in any airshows where the audience was denied entry due to the color of their skin. In a famous dispute with the owners of a Texas airshow, she refused to participate until they changed their policy about separate admission gates. At the height of her career, she was offered a part in a movie but walked off the set when she discovered she had been cast as an offensive stereotype.
During her career, the media often called Coleman the world's greatest woman flier. After her death, Coleman was recognized with multiple honors, including streets named after her at various airports and an exhibit at the Atlanta, Texas Regional History Center. She has also been inducted into the National Women Hall of Fame and National Aviation Hall of Fame.
The design for the Bessie Coleman Quarter was discussed at the April 19, 2022, Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee (CCAC) meeting. Her great niece, Gigi Coleman, was in attendance and shared her thoughts on the design. She loved the image of Coleman looking up at the sky, toward the freedom of flight, her dreams, and her achievements. She also appreciated the inclusion of the date Coleman was awarded her pilot's license.
The design of this coin purposefully highlights her aviation career. The plane behind her is her Curtiss JN-4 “Jennie” plane, the type of craft she was known for flying. She is wearing her pilot uniform, preparing to put on her goggles and take flight. Even her name reflects her career, as it is positioned between two pilot wings, further highlighting her accomplishments.