Cicely Tyson paved way for Black actors to follow footsteps

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Cicely Tyson was a Black actor who knocked down doors so other women of color could walk through them. She strategically selected powerful roles to elevate the perception of Black actors in films such as “Sounder” and on TV with “The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman.” Viola Davis, Kerry Washington and Zendaya are among those inspired to follow the Tony and Emmy-winning actor’s footsteps. Davis says Tyson made her feel “valued in a world where there is still a cloak of invisibility for us dark chocolate girls.” Tyson died Thursday at age 96. Her death comes just days after the release of her memoir “Just As I Am.”