top of page

Centennial of a Pioneering Pilot: Bessie Coleman

Tue, Nov 02

|

https://airandspace.si.edu/events/centennia

Bessie Coleman has been an inspiration and role model to generations of pilots and an enduring symbol of perseverance. Join us for a panel discussion celebrating Coleman’s centennial achievement, boundary-breaking life, and lasting legacy.

Tickets Are Not on Sale
See other events
Centennial of a Pioneering Pilot: Bessie Coleman
Centennial of a Pioneering Pilot: Bessie Coleman

Time & Location

Nov 02, 2021, 8:00 PM – 9:00 PM EDT

https://airandspace.si.edu/events/centennia

About the Event

100 years ago Bessie Coleman became the first African American woman to earn her pilot’s license. In the 1920s she toured the U.S. as a barnstormer, entertaining crowds with her aerial aerobatics and inspiring contemporaries with her boundless determination to fly despite significant racial and gender prejudice. A champion of other early aviators, she planned to open a flight school for African Americans, a dream unfulfilled due to her untimely death in 1926. Coleman has been an inspiration and role model to generations of pilots and an enduring symbol of perseverance. Join us for a panel discussion celebrating Coleman’s centennial achievement, boundary-breaking life, and lasting legacy.

Ellen Stofan, the Smithsonian’s Undersecretary for Science and Research, will moderate a panel discussion featuring:

  • Lonnie Bunch, Secretary of the Smithsonian
  • Philip Hart, author, educator, filmmaker, and descendent of early aviator James Herman Banning
  • Carole Hopson, pilot and author

This program will be presented live on YouTube with live closed captioning. Sign up to get a reminder.

The GE Aviation Lecture Series is made possible by the generous support of GE Aviation.

Share This Event

bottom of page