The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to explore race and gender intersectionality and the role it plays in the viability of Black women as politicians and candidates. The aim of the study was to create an informative account of the Black female experience in American politics and to specifically explore how race and gender intersectionality influenced their political experiences. A qualitative phenomenological method was selected to better understand the lived experiences of Black women participants in the study, particularly as it relates to their intersectional identities. Findings suggest that the intersectionality of race and gender plays both a positive and negative role in the viability of Black women in politics. Positive themes: "Sense of Responsibility to Act"; "Confidence, Belief, and Experience"; and "Encouragement and Support" were identified as assets and portended that Black women bring positive attributes to politics that help them thrive and succeed. Liability or negative themes: "Lack of Respect," "Lack of Time and Energy," and "Lack of Financial Support" reflect how Black women's identities can be a hardship to their success in politics. These hardships provide insight into the underlying issues behind the lack of Black women in politics. The proposed solution is to create the "Sisters' Political Action Network" (SPAN), a leadership training, support, and enrichment program for Black women at all stages of the political pipeline. SPAN would use the knowledge obtained from this study as a roadmap to provide explicit and intentional training modules and resources designed to mitigate the issues that contribute to the lack of Black women in American politics. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]