Brittany Lee Lewis made history as the 49th Miss Black America, walking in the legacy of former winners like Oprah Winfrey and Toni Braxton, and continuing the legacy of Black protest via the country’s first nationally televised pageant for Black women. Brittany’s national title dovetailed perfectly as a professor of African-American, women & gender, urban, and U.S. 20th-century history. Today, Brittany utilizes her platform as a thought leader through her role as a community activist, public speaker, and television personality.
Brittany completed her undergraduate studies at Temple University with Broadcast, Telecommunications, Mass Media, and African-American Studies degrees. She was accepted into the highly competitive Teach for America program after undergraduate school. She obtained a Master of Secondary Education degree through the program and graduated with distinction. She also led her region’s first Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiative by challenging recruitment practices and promoting antiracist pedagogy.
Brittany is a professor of Africana Studies at the University of Cincinnati and a Ph.D. candidate in the History Department at George Washington University. She specializes in social movements, political ideology, and the nation-state. Her commitment to teaching afforded her the George Washington University Herber Prize for Best Teaching. Her most recent scholarship, “White Philanthropy Won’t Save Black Education: Tracing an “Ordinary” Segregated School’s Life in Delaware,” is available in the Journal of Black Studies.
Not a newcomer to pageants, Brittany has held national, state, and local titles in multiple pageant systems. She was crowned Miss Delaware for the Miss America Organization in 2014 and Miss Black America in 2017. During her pageant career, she tirelessly advocated for domestic violence awareness after losing her sister to domestic violence in 2009. She has worked alongside former Governor Jack Markell, the Delaware Department of Justice, the National Network to End Domestic Violence, and the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence. Brittany has also served as the chair of Miss America’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Taskforce.
In addition to her academic and pageant endeavors, Brittany is a political commentator and host. She’s a regular contributor for Fox5 DC, Revolt T.V., CGTN, Black News Channel, Roland Martin Show, R.T. News, Sakshi T.V., WVON Radio, and a range of syndicated shows through the Sinclair Broadcast Group. Brittany is also a proud member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. and a rising disc jockey. Her activism, research, and pageant ventures have been featured in Essence, USA Today, Colorlines, Southern Living, and NPR, among others.
Most recently, Brittany starred in the critically acclaimed, award-winning documentary, Subjects of Desire. The film explores the intricacies and politics surrounding race, beauty, and historical stereotypes that continue to affect Black women. Subjects of Desire debuted at the SXSW film festival and is now available on STARZ.
