It’s February, horror fans and that means that it’s not only Women in Horror Month but also Black History Month. With that in mind now is the perfect time to celebrate where the two overlap.

Black actresses have had an interesting relationship with the genre. While they were wholly ignored for decades, when they did finally begin to snag roles, they were treated differently than their white counterparts.

Rather than the often weaker, damsel in distress, roles that white actresses in the genre were written, black actresses were often stronger characters with more backbone and survival grit even though those roles were often smaller and especially in the beginning, a part of the “blaxpoloitation” era.

Still, these actresses have made an indelible mark on the genre and for that we owe them a debt of gratitude.

Naomie Harris

Anyone who’s seen 28 Days Later… will remember Harris’s machete wielding Selena who was not only a take no prisoners survivor, but also exquisitely vulnerable. That talent has been evident each time she has stepped into genre work.

Of note, Harris also appeared in a theatrical production of Frankenstein as Elizabeth opposite Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller who alternated playing the doctor and his creation. The production was directed by Danny Boyle who also directed 28 Days Later… and filmed for broadcast in theaters across the globe.

Jada Pinkett Smith

Long before she married, Will, Jada Pinkett Smith was making a name for herself as a smart actress who made interesting choices. One of those choices was Jeryline in Tales from the Crypt: Demon Knight, a role she took when she was only 24 years old.

Jeryline was a tough as nails young woman dealing with a checkered past who fought side by side with William Sadler trying to save the world from the evil Collector.

Only two years later, she made her mark as Maureen in Scream 2. Stabbed in a raucous movie theater, her slow ascent up the stairs in front of the film screen and the gut-churning scream she released before dying was the most amazing first-kill in a series full of them.

Grace Jones

Born in Jamaica and raised in New York, Grace Jones was a force to be reckoned with in 1980s genre films whether she was playing Zula in Conan the Destroyer or Bond Girl May Day in A View to Kill, but it was her role in 1986’s Vamp where she became an icon to cult horror fans.

Playing ancient vampire queen, Katrina, Jones put her androgynous beauty and enormous presence on full display. She was fierce and fearless and she doesn’t speak a single word in the film.

If you’ve never seen Vamp, check it out, and while you’re at it, watch her performance in “Wolf Girl” a TV movie in which she played an intersex circus performer.

Angela Bassett

Does Angela Basset even age? Seriously…

While she’s not spent a lot of time in the genre, she never fails to make an impression, even in the flops (I’m looking at you Vampire in Brooklyn).

I don’t think any of us will ever forget her bold portrayal of Voodoo Queen Marie Laveau, however in Ryan Murphy’s “American Horror Story: Coven”. She radiated power and control, even in the face of Papa Legba, right until the end.

Marlene Clark

The blaxploitation movement of the 1970s was a strange time in film. While they were exploitative of stereotypes, for many black actors and actresses, it was the only work they could get, and because of that some of those films and their stars have reached a cult iconic status.

This is especially true of the actresses whose roles were caricatured portrayals of powerful women that nonetheless struck a chord among audiences. Marlene Clark was one of the most popular of those actresses.

Appearing in numerous films including the over-the-top Ganja & Hess, Clark never failed to steal scenes right out from under her co-stars.

Unfortunately, Clark’s career waned as the 70s came to a close. She made a few appearances in television shows into the late 80s but we’ve not seen her in the medium since.

Halle Berry

Say what you will about Halle Berry and her career, but she was the first black actress to win the Academy Award for Best Actress and no one can take that away from her.

Berry has been no stranger to the genre, however, and though it has a somewhat infamous reputation, Gothika is one of her finest examples. She played Miranda Grey, a psychiatrist who wakes up a patient in the asylum where she was employed.

Miranda was a strong lead, fighting her way out of the asylum to prove her sanity and expose the men who killed the young woman who is haunting her.

It’s a twisting, turning film that was much maligned by critics and audiences alike, and yet it was still effective enough that it became the highest grossing production from Dark Castle Films earning $141 million dollars on a budget of $40 million.

Ruby Dee

Arguably one of the finest actresses of the last century, Ruby Dee was also a playwright, poet, activist, and so much more. She was a force to be reckoned with, possessing a commanding presence that could quiet the noise of thousands while she spoke.

It was a natural fit, then, when she was cast as Mother Abigail, the aged prophet of good in the television adaptation of Stephen King’s apocalyptic epic, The Stand. In her hands, Abigail left no doubt that while she might be frail, her spirit was still strong enough to fight back the devil himself.

Sadly, Ruby Dee passed away at the age of 91 in New Rochelle, New York because there’s a new big screen adaptation of The Stand coming and I just don’t know how they’ll do it without her.