Breaking Boundaries: Stella Thomas and the rise of Black Women in Law
Happy Women’s Month!!
Welcome back to another blog article. I'd like to start by saying that I appreciate everyone who engages with my blogs, those who message me privately to say they enjoy reading my blog posts, and everyone who contributes by sharing, liking, and commenting. It's nice to know that I'm educating others about issues I'm passionate about and making a difference, no matter how big or small, but that you're also interested in what I write about.
Since March is the month dedicated to celebrating women around the world and their success stories, I wanted to talk about someone who inspires me in the legal world. Her life story and career success have inspired me and given me a driving force to do better and do more in my future career as an aspiring barrister. I believe what drew me to her story was her heritage, as she comes from the same background as me, and many of her qualities and areas of practice are things I am personally interested in, which I found fascinating.
Today I’m going to talk about Stella Thomas and her journey and what we can learn as women specifically black women and women like myself aspiring to have a career in law.
Stella Jane Thomas was born in 1906 in Lagos, Nigeria. She was a black African female barrister of Yoruba Nigerian and Sierra Leone Creole origin. She was the first Black African woman in the UK to be called to the bar at Middle Temple in 1934, and the first female magistrate in West Africa, in 1943. Stella had a broad educational background, having attended school in Freetown, Sierra Leone, before travelling to England in 1929 to study law at Oxford.
What amazes me about Stella Thomas is that she was a trailblazer through her enthusiasm and dedication to others. It was described that while Stella was a student, Thomas was a founding member of "The League of Coloured Peoples," a multi-racial civil organisation with a Christian liberal-humanitarian ethos that aimed to promote the rights and interests of African, Asian, and Caribbean minorities in Britain and the Commonwealth, which I think is just exceptional given the fact that as a law student, the degree is very demanding, and to be part of a movement like that with the time.
When Stella was called to the bar, she practised in the UK for short amount of time before returning to West Africa where she enrolled at the Sierra Leonean bar. December 1935 she opened up her own law firm on Lagos Island Nigeria, focusing on criminal cases and family matters. Stella’s diversified background led her to work in several courts during her legal career.
She retired in 1971. At the time, she served as a magistrate in Sierra Leone, and she died at the age of 68. Stella Thomas’ story is inspiring, and she strikes me as a person who is tenacious, bold and daring. She’s not afraid to help others and she doesn’t dim her light for anyone.
Stella Thomas' life and work spanned 1906 to 1971, and if you're familiar with world history, you'll know that this was a difficult time for women, people of colour, particularly black people, not only in Africa but also in the UK and around the world. During this time, many African countries were struggling for independence from colonial powers, and I believe racism and prejudice were at their peak. To be able to work hard, attend the world's number one university, volunteer within the community, and still have an impact on those around you while fighting the odds that were stacked against her, because she definitely had odds maybe due to her gender, race, or background. Especially in a job sector that was and continues to be dominated by white men. I believe aspiring female barristers, black people and women in the workforce should sit with this story.
What are 3 things we can learn from Stella’s Thomas’ story:
1. Our background, race or gender should not limit our pursuit of our goals - as women live in a society with certain expectations, it’s important to highlight this empowering lesson. We can see that determination and passion can overcome any barriers regardless of societal expectations, and this is something that we see throughout Stella Thomas’ life.
2. Whilst your talent may open doors for us, it is our character that allows us to stay there - Stella likely face challenges such as racism and hate, but she remained committed to helping others and pursuing her goals. This serves as a powerful reminder that our actions and integrity can rise above the obstacles, we face ultimately shaping our success and the impact it has on those around us.
3. Pursue something even if you are scared - A lot of people talk about wanting to do things when the time is right, but I genuinely believe that there’s no such thing as the right time if you want to do something if you’re passionate about it and if you’re committed to it then the time to start is now. One thing we see with Stella Thomas’ story in becoming a barrister is that she was very passionate and committed to helping people, and she may have had thoughts of what people may think, or she may have even been scared to do these things, but she did it anyway, and it amounted to success, but the most important thing to me and what I believe success to be is making an impact in people's lives, building community and educating people.
Doing research on Stella's life sparked something in me, and I learned many lessons from her story. I saw things that I even struggle with and wish to improve as an aspiring barrister, and I believe that all black women who want to work in law should take in these lessons when pursuing their ambition.
I really hope you enjoyed today’s read, please like comment and share and let me know your thoughts and opinions :)