Actress and our favorite style architect Tracee Ellis Ross received an honorary doctorate of fine arts from the illustrious Spelman College and left the graduating class with inspiring words for the next part of their journey.
After being nominated by the student body and voted in by the Spelman Board of Trustees, the 50-year-old Black-ish star stood before the sea of Black women and expressed her joy to be among them. “When I get to swim in the particularly special current of Black sisterhood, my heart rate settles, my shoulders drop, and I am reminded of my worthiness because I see yours,” she told the graduates.
“The world view of Black women is not elastic in its ability to see our worthiness and our wholeness,” she continued, “even as we continue to exceed, excel, and shine.”
Ross knows all about the majesty
of Black womanhood and celebrates its existence in her family, friendships, and working relationships. Along with launching her haircare line, PATTERN Beauty, she also produced an extensive series on the relationship between Black women, our crowns, and the world entitled “Hair Tales.”Ross credits her own journey to total self-acceptance for a large part of her current success. And her advice to the newly-minted Spelman graduates was to embrace all of who they are.“Make space for yourself, for your whole self,” she said. “Your joy, your power, your fear, your loneliness, your insecurities, your pleasure, your passion, your dreams. Let there be space for all of it. In the private moments when you meet yourself, allow all of you to be present without judgment.” Ross, who first visited the institution in February, encouraged the graduates to remember the safety and love they found within
their community as they move into a world that does not often provide the same comforts. “May the safety and belonging of these walls send you forward in your choice to change the world with the protection of your sisters and your ancestors—and with me, your best friend in your head,” she said.