MOTHER’S DAY SHOW – Shirley Chisholm: Unbossed & Unbowed

MOTHER’S DAY SHOW – Shirley Chisholm: Unbossed & Unbowed

About the Show

Shirley Chisholm: Unbossed & Unbowed is an immersive and interactive solo show, written and performed by Ingrid Griffith, about the first African-American woman to run for the Presidency of the U.S. In the 1960s and ’70s, this Brooklyn-born daughter of Caribbean parents was on a mission. They called her the Black Joan of Arc. She called herself Fighting Shirley as she faced off against the political machine in the name of justice.

Many know her as a heroine of African-American history, but may not know that she was also Caribbean-American.

“Unbossed and Unbowed” journeys back to Chisholm’s childhood to show how race and gender determined how far she would go in life, why she chose to fight for the disenfranchised and what it took for her to rise. Her parents arrived in the U.S. in the early 1920s. By the end of the decade came the Great Depression, and in order to make ends meet, they sent 3-year-old Shirley and her younger siblings to live with their maternal grandmother in Barbados. Chisholm’s years in Barbados reinforced her Caribbean heritage, which manifested itself in her bearing and speech patterns. Vauxhall Primary School, which Chisholm attended on the island, was named in her honor on April 4, 2023.

Chisholm’s father hailed from Guyana, the birthplace of playwright and performer Ingrid Griffith. 

The matinee show will be performed at the Pompano Beach Cultural Center.

Get your tickets at: islandspacefl.org/mothersdayshow

“Women Warriors of Social Justice” series is made possible by the following funds at the Community Foundation of Broward: Mary N. Porter Community Impact Fund, Jack Belt Memorial Fund, Ginny and Tom Miller Fund, Stearns Weaver Miller Fund for the Arts, Harold D. Franks Fund.

Powerful Words

“Women in this country must become revolutionaries. We must refuse to accept the old, the traditional roles and stereotypes. We must replace the old negative thoughts about our femininity with positive thoughts and positive action affirming it, and more. But we must also remember that we will be breaking with tradition, and so we must prepare ourselves educationally, economically and psychologically in order that we will be able to accept and bear with the sanctions that society will immediately impose upon us.”

~ Shirley Chisholm

“I’ve been moved to write and share Shirley Chisholm’s story in the hope that more people will become aware of her contributions and appreciate how her voice resonates today,” shared Griffith. “I’m drawn to tell stories about the immigrant experience, about being an outsider and daring to be one’s self.”

Learn more about Ingrid Griffith and her one-woman play in her full media kit and on social media at:

• www.unbossedunbowed.com
• Instagram: @unbossedunbowed
• Facebook: Unbossed & Unbowed
• Email: info@unbossedunbowed.com