Film celebrates history of Black women on corporate boards [Video]

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) — In 1971, Patricia Roberts Harris became the first Black woman to serve on a corporate board for a Fortune 500 company. She served on IBM’s board, and just six years later, then-President Jimmy Carter appointed her to the Presidential Cabinet to allow her to become the first Black woman to serve in such a position.

More than 50 years later, a global organization called Black Women on Boards (BWOB) is celebrating Harris’ accomplishments with the release of a feature film titled OnBoard: Story of Black Women on Boards.

The film retraces some of Harris’ journey and profiles several American women within BWOB and their achievements and aspirations.

“I took roles that I was the first woman in. The first Black in. A lot of the time. Especially because I was in research or engineering,” said retired corporate executive Gina Loften. “But you have to be OK being the trailblazer. I was really OK being the first. It …