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Robin Roberts

by Micah from San Diego

(http://madamenoire.com/261609/robin-roberts-return ())
(http://madamenoire.com/261609/robin-roberts-return ())

"Be patient and persistent. Life is not so much what you accomplish as what you overcome." This quote by Robin Robert's demonstrates her ability to have courage and overcome personal adversity in winning her battle against breast cancer. To better understand Robin Robert's, one must be aware of her history and background. Robin Roberts was born on November 23, 1960. Her hometown is Pass Christian, Mississippi and she is the daughter to Lawrence and Lucimarian Roberts, two very influential role models in her life. Lawrence was once a retired Air Force Colonel and Lucimarian Roberts, was a Mississippi state school board chairperson. Robin is a successful journalist who now serves as the anchor of NBC's, Good Morning America (GMA). She started her career as a sports commentator and continued to work her way up to where she is now. Typically a hero is one who possesses courage, perseverance, and the ability to overcome great adversity. Her many successes and her ability to overcome race and gender bias allowed her to become a prominent journalist and an inspiration for African American women and many of her viewers. Her perseverance to overcome adversity in the face of breast cancer, and her personal loss with the death of her mother, make her a role model and a hero for many to emulate.

Robin Roberts overcame both race and gender bias in the sports broadcasting industry, to land her the co-anchor position at Good Morning America. If it weren't for Roberts having the ability to get over her differences in the color of her skin and being a female, she may have never gone on to succeed and be where she is now. "Roberts' parents taught her that race and gender do not matter; she could succeed no matter what. Roberts excelled at sports, and her early confidence-building successes were in sports." (Newsmakers. Vol. 1. Detroit: Gale, 2014.). One of the reasons why Robin was able to succeed at overcoming race and gender bias is because her parents led her to believe that no matter the gender, or skin color, she could do anything she wanted to do and that her race and gender could not stop her from succeeding and achieving what she had dreamed of doing. Robin Roberts followed in her parents footsteps, saw beyond her race and gender, viewed herself the same as anybody else, and found success. People were shocked to see that someone of such skin color and gender could succeed and get offered the job oppurtunities of a lifetime. Roberts was one to inspire others to look past the stereotypes of race and gender to become anything they had aspired to be. "I was the first black woman to be a "Sportscenter" anchor at ESPN when I was hired in 1990." ( News & Notes 26 Apr. 2007.). Not only was Robin Roberts the first African American woman to be a "Sportscenter"anchor at ESPN, but she also had a series of major successes in her basketball career as a star basketball player. She won a variety of different awards, was the soul of GMA, and had viewers who looked forward to seeing her every morning on GMA. For Robin, overcoming race and gender bias was the first move that got her one step closer to her multiple successes in her career. Although being an African American woman is hard a hard job for both a professional athlete and the news industry her race and gender did not stop her from being hired to do the job she had always dreamt of doing.

Robin Roberts is often looked upon by many young women, minorities, and people dealing with cancer, because they can relate to the challenges Roberts was forced to overcome. Young women, minorities, and people fighting cancer all have seen Roberts in the face of having to persevere to excel at what she does while overcoming adversity. They have observed her rise above race and gender bias, deal with the loss of loved ones, survive a bone marrow disorder, and defeat breast cancer. Having observed everything Roberts has experienced and overcome, viewers, young women, minorities, and breast cancer fighters are inspired that they can do the same with the challenges they are facing."She is the heart of GMA, the emotional center of the show, has a special bond with the new news anchor Amy Robach, who is battling breast cancer just as Robin once did and who credited Roberts with encouraging her to do the on-air mammogram that ultimately saved her life." ( News & Notes 26 Apr. 2007.). After Robin survived her breast cancer fight, she was a living testimony to many other women having to fight their own cancer battles, these women looked at Robin's success story of surviving breast cancer and were inspired to overcome breast cancer as well. Roberts had the courage and bravery to not only fight cancer, but to publicly allow the world to experience her fight alongside with her. "Her bravery in coping publicly with her illnesses has been widely recognized, including a Peabody Award in 2012 and ESPN's Arthur Ashe Courage Award in 2013." (Meg Grant, AARP The Magazine, Apr.-May 2015.). Robin's walk through cancer allowed her to come out a newer, stronger, and more alive person, and she got right back to what she loved doing most, her job. Cancer never once slowed her down or stopped her from being a successful co-anchor for Good Morning America and an inspiration to others.

(https://twitter.com/robinroberts ())
(https://twitter.com/robinroberts ())

Robin Roberts was able to persevere through the loss of her mother, in the midst of a busy career and a battle with breast cancer. In the middle of her career, Robin faced her first difficult challenge, having to cope with the loss of her role model and mother, Lucimarian Roberts. After the death of her mother, she says, "In fact, the memoir's title is inspired by one of Roberts's mother's sayings, which underscores the idea that everyone has a cross to bear. Roberts seizes on her mother's determined, positive, and inspirational attitude and makes it her own, and she accordingly approaches her own illness in the same manner. ( People, 28 Jan. 2014.). Robin had a very difficult time coping with the loss of her mother, but through her loss, she was able to take the experience and be inspired to become an even better co-anchor and thrive at what she does. This also made her even more of an inspirational person and role model to follow. She used the experience of grieving the loss of her mother to reflect on the path that she paved, and the life she had left behind, to motivate her to write her autobiography, "Everybody's Got Something." Her autobiography reached out to others in a way that inspired them to believe anything is possible in the face of adversity. Soon after the death of her mother, Robin was faced with another difficult obstacle, her diagnosis with breast cancer." In 2007 during a self-examination, Roberts discovered a lump in her breast. A biopsy found the lump to be malignant; after surgery to remove the lump and some surrounding tissue, Roberts underwent radiation and chemotherapy, causing her hair to fall out." (Contemporary Black Biography. Vol. 54., 2006.). Roberts continued to persist, never giving up or losing hope and kept her career in sight. In the end, she came out a courageous woman, surviving her battle with breast cancer. Most people would not have the willpower and drive to stay strong while dealing with the loss of a mother and fighting breast cancer. Robin was one of the few that did. Having breast cancer and dealing with the loss of her role model and mother, were only some of the major challenges Roberts had to overcome. She also overcame a bone marrow disease, which she was diagnosed with in 2012 and had to deal with the loss of her father when he passed away. Roberts believes that "through all of the trials and tribulations, it only shows you what you're made of." In this case, all of these obstacles in Robin's life were only seen as tiny bumps in the road that she could easily overcome. Robin's ability to achieve anything she put her mind to allowed her to overcome adversity and persevere at everything she did. This is what makes her the unsung hero she is today.

(http://www.fullcourt.com/kelly-kline/6053/robin-ro ())
(http://www.fullcourt.com/kelly-kline/6053/robin-ro ())

As a result not only of Robert's success in overcoming race and gender bias to become a successful nationally recognized journalist, but also her victory with cancer, she has become a hero to women of color, as well as women fighting their own battle with cancer. Additionally, despite her own personal challenges she is dedicated to serving and helping others overcome their own personal challenges. To me this is the ultimate hero, one who not only overcomes their own struggles, but one who is selfless and gives back to the community and seeks to serve others in the midst of their own adversity. Robin Roberts inspires both myself and others to never give up on my hopes and dreams, because she has proven that with the help of perseverance and courage one can overcome adversity to face any problem and nothing can stop you from achieving your goals. Never, Never, Never Give Up!!! This is the ultimate hero, as modeled by Robin Roberts, one who never gives up and demonstrates selfless devotion and service to others.

Page created on 2/15/2016 12:00:00 AM

Last edited 2/15/2016 12:00:00 AM

The beliefs, viewpoints and opinions expressed in this hero submission on the website are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the beliefs, viewpoints and opinions of The MY HERO Project and its staff.

Related Links

ABC News - A video of Robin Roberts speaking about how she is determined to beat her breast cancer
Us Weekly Magazine - other biographies on Robin Roberts
ABC news - other biographies on Robin Roberts