Content warning: Anti-Black racism and discrimination Black people have long been barred from academia and entrepreneurship opportunities due to institutionalized racism and prejudice. In honour of Black History Month, The McGill Tribune highlights notable scientists and inventors who succeeded in making important scientific progress in spite of systemic anti-Black racism. Madam C.J. Walker (1867-1919) Walker was one of many Black women afflicted with scalp ailments in the early 20th century. Exposure to harsh lye soap and sulphur, commonplace at the time among laundresses like Walker, contributed to severe hair loss. In 1904, she started working as a sales agent with Annie Turbo Malone, a Black chemist and entrepreneur who designed hair products specifically for Black women. With the help of her four barber brothers, Walker developed a scalp conditioning and healing formula by experimenting with both store-bought and homemade products. She used this to launch her own business and embarked on a successful door-to-door marketing campaign. Walker expanded her line and went on to launch a factory and salon. She employed 40,000 other African-Americans during her lifetime and pursued a wide variety of philanthropic work.