RUTH BADER GINSBERG WAS AN AMERICAN LAWYER AND ONE OF THE NINE
JUSTICES OF THE SUPREME COURT IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA FOR
TWENTY-SEVEN YEARS. “THE NOTORIOUS R.B.G.” WAS THE SECOND WOMAN - AND
FIRST JEWISH WOMAN - TO SERVE IN THE U.S. SUPREME COURT. OVERCOMING A
GREAT DEAL OF GENDER DISCRIMINATION THROUGHOUT HER OWN CAREER,
GINSBURG WAS A RELENTLESS ADVOCATE FOR GENDER EQUALITY AND WOMEN’S
RIGHTS, AS WELL AS NATIVE AMERICAN RIGHTS. HER VICTORIES IN COURT LED TO
SIGNIFICANT LEGAL ADVANCES FOR WOMEN AND OTHER MARGINALIZED GROUPS.
SHE ALSO CO-FOUNDED THE ACLU'S WOMEN'S RIGHTS PROJECT. GINSBURG DIED IN
SEPTEMBER 2020 DUE TO COMPLICATIONS FROM CANCER.
ALEXANDRIA OCASIO CORTEZ, ALSO KNOWN AS AOC, HAS BEEN THE U.S
DEMOCRATIC REPRESENTATIVE FOR NEW YORK'S 14TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT
SINCE 2019. SHE HAS FOUGHT FOR A GREEN NEW DEAL AND WAS A KEY SPEAKER IN
THE 2019 WOMEN'S MARCH.
AYANNA PRESSELY IS AN AMERICAN POLITICIAN SERVING IN MASSACHUSETTS AS A
U.S REPRESENTATIVE FOR THE 7TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT SINCE 2019. SHE HAS
FOUGHT FOR LIVABLE MINIMUM WAGES AND ENDING THE QUALIFIED IMMUNITY ACT.
GEORGIA O’KEEFFE (1887 – 1986) WAS AN AMERICAN ARTIST. SHE WAS KNOWN
FOR HER PAINTINGS OF ENLARGED FLOWERS, NEW YORK SKYSCRAPERS, AND NEW
MEXICO LANDSCAPES. O'KEEFFE HAS BEEN RECOGNIZED AS THE "MOTHER
OF AMERICAN MODERNISM". O'KEEFFE’S LEGEND BEGAN IN THE 1920S, WHEN SHE
BECAME KNOWN AS MUCH AS AN INDEPENDENT SPIRIT AND FEMALE ROLE MODEL AS
SHE DID FOR HER DRAMATIC AND INNOVATIVE WORKS OF ART. AT THAT TIME, EVEN IN
EUROPE, THERE WERE FEW ARTISTS EXPLORING ABSTRACTION, YET O’KEEFFE
RECEIVED UNPRECEDENTED ACCEPTANCE AS A WOMAN ARTIST FROM THE FINE ART
WORLD DUE TO HER POWERFUL GRAPHIC IMAGES AND, WITHIN A DECADE OF MOVING
TO NEW YORK CITY, SHE WAS THE HIGHEST-PAID AMERICAN FEMALE ARTIST. SHE
WAS KNOWN FOR HER DISTINCTIVE STYLE IN ALL ASPECTS OF HER LIFE.
DOLORES DOLORES CLARA FERNÁNDEZ HUERTA (1930- ) IS AN AMERICAN
LABOR LEADER AND CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVIST WHO, WITH CESAR CHAVEZ, IS A COFOUNDER OF THE NATIONAL FARMWORKERS ASSOCIATION, WHICH LATER BECAME
THE UNITED FARM WORKERS (UFW). DOING BACKBREAKING WORK IN EXTREME
HEAT AND SLEEPING IN ROUGH SHACKS WITH DOZENS OF PEOPLE TO A ROOM FOR
BELOW-POVERTY-LEVEL WAGES WAS A COMMON EXPERIENCE FOR IMMIGRANT FARM
WORKERS IN THE EARLY 20TH CENTURY, UNTIL DOLORES HUERTA AND OTHERS LIKE
HER CAME ALONG. IN 1965 SHE BEGAN LEADING BOYCOTTS, PICKETING, PROTESTING
AND, LOBBYING TO IMPROVE WORKING CONDITIONS, EVENTUALLY LEADING TO THE
CREATION OF UFW. HUERTA WAS INSTRUMENTAL IN BRINGING ABOUT LEGISLATION
THAT PROTECTS SOME OF THE MOST VULNERABLE PEOPLE IN OUR SOCIETY.
ELLEN OCHOA (1958- ) IS AN AMERICAN ENGINEER, FORMER ASTRONAUT AND
FORMER DIRECTOR OF THE JOHNSON SPACE CENTER. ON APRIL 8, 1993 OCHOA
BECAME THE FIRST HISPANIC WOMAN TO GO TO SPACE WHEN SHE SERVED ON A NINEDAY MISSION ABOARD THE SPACE SHUTTLE DISCOVERY. SHE WOULD GO ON THREE
MORE MISSIONS, LOGGING OVER 1,000 HOURS IN SPACE. AND IF HER FIRST
PIONEERING MISSION WASN’T ENOUGH, IN 2013 SHE BECAME THE FIRST HISPANIC
DIRECTOR, AND SECOND FEMALE DIRECTOR OF THE JOHNSON SPACE CENTER IN
HOUSTON, TEXAS.
NAOMI OSAKA (1997- ) IS A JAPANESE PROFESSIONAL TENNIS PLAYER. OSAKA HAS
BEEN RANKED NO. 1 BY THE WOMEN'S TENNIS ASSOCIATION AND IS THE FIRST ASIAN
PLAYER TO HOLD THE TOP RANKING IN SINGLES. SHE IS A FOUR-TIME GRAND SLAM
SINGLES CHAMPION. AT THE 2020 U.S. OPEN SHE WORE A DIFFERENT FACE MASK
EACH DAY TO HONOR THE MEMORIES OF BREONNA TAYLOR, TREYVON MARTIN,
GEORGE FLOYD AND OTHER VICTIMS OF POLICE BRUTALITY AND RACIAL PROFILING.
"EVEN THOUGH IT CAN BE AT TIMES RISKY OR SCARY, I KNOW THAT IT'S THE RIGHT
THING TO DO". OSAKA RECENTLY INVESTED IN AND BECAME A CO-OWNER OF THE
WOMEN'S PROFESSIONAL SOCCER TEAM, THE NORTH CAROLINA COURAGE. SHE SAYS
THAT SHE HOPES SHE CAN INSPIRE OTHER WOMEN TO SEEK LEADERSHIP POSITIONS IN
THEIR OWN ORGANIZATIONS.
STACEY YVONNE ABRAMS (1973 - ) IS AN AMERICAN POLITICIAN, LAWYER, VOTING
RIGHTS ACTIVIST, AND AUTHOR WHO SERVED IN THE GEORGIA HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES FROM 2007 TO 2017, SERVING AS MINORITY LEADER FROM 2011
TO 2017. SHE WAS WIDELY HERALDED AS THE ARCHITECT OF THE DEMOCRATS’
UNEXPECTED VICTORIES IN BOTH OF GEORGIA’S US SENATE RUNOFF ELECTIONS.
THEY GAVE THE PARTY CONTROL OF BOTH HOUSES OF CONGRESS AND SAW THE STATE
ELECT ITS FIRST BLACK SENATOR IN RAPHAEL WARNOCK AND FIRST JEWISH SENATOR
IN JON OSSOFF. HER EFFORTS ON VOTER REGISTRATION AND TURNOUT IN THE STATE
ALSO MADE JOE BIDEN THE FIRST DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE TO WIN
GEORGIA IN ALMOST THREE DECADES, DEFEATING DONALD TRUMP BY LESS THAN
12,000 VOTES.
ANNE FRANK (1929-1945) WHEN SHE WAS GROWING UP, ANNE FRANK WANTED
TO BE A WRITER OR A JOURNALIST. UNFORTUNATELY, HER LIFE WAS CUT SHORT BY
ANTI-SEMITIC PERSECUTION DURING THE HOLOCAUST. ALTHOUGH SHE WAS UNABLE
TO WITNESS IT, ANNE FRANK’S WRITING IN HER DIARY BECAME ONE OF THE MOST
RECOGNIZED ACCOUNTS OF LIFE FOR A JEWISH FAMILY IN EUROPE DURING WORLD
WAR II. THE BOOK GREW IN POPULARITY AND WAS LATER TRANSLATED INTO OVER 70
LANGUAGES. IN 1960, THE SECRET ANNEX WHERE SHE AND HER FAMILY HID WAS
TURNED INTO A MUSEUM CALLED THE ANNE FRANK HOUSE.
MISSY ELLIOTT (1971- ) ELLIOTT ENDURED FORMIDABLE STRUGGLES
THROUGHOUT HER CHILDHOOD, SURVIVING TRAUMA AND DOMESTIC ABUSE AT THE
HANDS CLOSE FAMILY MEMBERS. SHE OVERCAME THIS, AND AT ONLY EIGHTEEN YEARS
OLD, ELLIOTT FORMED THE ALL-FEMALE RAP GROUP SISTA WITH FRIENDS. IN 2002
SHE RELEASED UNDER CONSTRUCTION, THE BEST SELLING FEMALE RAP ALBUM OF ALL
TIME. THROUGHOUT HER CAREER, THE FEMALE RAP SUPERSTAR HAS
NEVER CONFORMED TO MALE BEAUTY STANDARDS. IN 2019 ELLIOTT BECAME THE
FIRST FEMALE HIP-HOP ARTIST TO BE INDUCTED INTO THE SONGWRITERS HALL OF
FAME AND THE FIRST FEMALE RAPPER TO RECEIVE AN HONORARY DOCTORATE FROM
BERKLEY. SHE CONTINUES TO BE AN ICON IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY TODAY.
WANGARI MAATHAI (1940-2011) WAS AN ENVIRONMENTAL AND POLITICAL
ACTIVIST FROM KENYA. HER GREEN BELT MOVEMENT RESULTED IN THE PLANTING
OF MORE THAN 30 MILLION TREES IN AFRICA AND HELPED TO EMPLOY ALMOST 1
MILLION WOMEN. IN 2002, SHE WAS ELECTED TO PARLIAMENT WITH 98% OF THE
VOTE AND WAS APPOINTED ASSISTANT MINISTER OF ENVIRONMENT, NATURAL
RESOURCES, AND WILDLIFE IN KENYA. IN 2004, MAATHAI WAS THE FIRST AFRICAN
WOMAN TO BE AWARDED THE NOBEL PEACE FOR HER CONTRIBUTION TO
ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY, DEMOCRACY, AND PEACE.
JUNKO TABEI (1939-2016) WAS A JAPANESE MOUNTAINEER AND ACTIVIST. SHE
LEFT A LEGACY FOR ALL WHO TRULY ARE PASSIONATE ABOUT ADVENTURE;
SPEARHEADING PROJECTS TO ELEVATE WOMEN’S ROLES IN JAPANESE SOCIETY, AND
LEADING CAMPAIGNS TO PRESERVE MOUNTAIN ECOSYSTEMS WITH A SPECIFIC FOCUS
AROUND CLEANING UP DEBRIS LEFT BY HIKERS ON MOUNT EVEREST AND OTHER
MOUNTAINS. TABEI CO-FOUNDED THE JOSHI-TOHAN (LADIES CLIMBING CLUB OF
JAPAN) AND WAS THE FIRST WOMAN TO SUMMIT MOUNT EVEREST WHEN SHE LED AN
ALL-FEMALE CLIMBING TEAM TO “THE ROOF OF THE WORLD” IN 1975. JUNKO
ULTIMATELY BECAME THE FIRST WOMAN TO HIKE ALL SEVEN SUMMITS (THE HIGHEST
PEAKS ON EACH CONTINENT) AS WELL AS CLIMB THE HIGHEST MOUNTAINS IN 76
COUNTRIES!
EMILY DICKINSON (1830-1886) ALTHOUGH SHE WAS NOT FAMOUS DURING HER
LIFETIME—ONLY SEVEN OF HER ALMOST 1800 POEMS WERE PUBLISHED WHILE SHE
LIVED, ALL HEAVILY EDITED—SHE BECAME KNOWN AFTER HER DEATH AS ONE OF THE
MOST INFLUENTIAL AMERICAN POETS. HER EXPERIMENTAL SYNTAX AND OFF-RHYMES
WERE REJECTED BY MOST PUBLISHERS. DESPITE THIS, SHE CONTINUED TO WRITE
PROLIFICALLY AND METICULOUSLY STORED HER POEMS IN A BOX. DICKINSON’S SISTER
LAVINIA DISCOVERED HER WORKS AFTER EMILY’S DEATH IN 1886 AND PUBLISHED
MUCH OF IT IN A BOOK IN 1890. EVEN THOUGH DICKINSON’S COMPLETE WORKS WERE
NOT PUBLISHED IN A SINGLE COLLECTION UNTIL 1955; HER WORKS AND STYLE
BECAME HIGHLY INFLUENTIAL IN SHAPING THE DIRECTION OF TWENTIETH-CENTURY
POETRY.
SUSAN B. ANTHONY (1820-1906) WAS AN AMERICAN WRITER, LECTURER AND
ABOLITIONIST WHO WAS A LEADING FIGURE IN THE WOMEN'S VOTING RIGHTS
MOVEMENT. RAISED IN A QUAKER HOUSEHOLD, ANTHONY WENT ON TO WORK AS A
TEACHER. SHE WAS ALSO A KEY FIGURE IN THE ANTI-SLAVERY MOVEMENT LEADING UP
TO THE CIVIL WAR, DURING WHICH TIME SHE PARTNERED WITH ELIZABETH CADY
STANTON. TOGETHER THEY WOULD EVENTUALLY LEAD THE NATIONAL AMERICAN
WOMAN SUFFRAGE ASSOCIATION AND HELP SECURE VOTING RIGHTS FOR WOMEN IN
THE UNITED STATES IN 1920, FOURTEEN YEARS AFTER ANTHONY’S DEATH.
WILMA RUDOLPH (1940- 1994) WAS A SICKLY CHILD WHO HAD TO WEAR A BRACE
ON HER LEFT LEG. SHE OVERCAME HER DISABILITIES TO COMPETE IN THE 1956
SUMMER OLYMPIC GAMES, AND IN 1960, SHE BECAME THE FIRST AMERICAN WOMAN
TO WIN THREE GOLD MEDALS IN TRACK AND FIELD AT A SINGLE OLYMPICS. LATER IN
LIFE, SHE FORMED THE WILMA RUDOLPH FOUNDATION TO PROMOTE AMATEUR
ATHLETICS. RUDOLPH IS REMEMBERED AS ONE OF THE FASTEST WOMEN IN TRACK AND
AS A SOURCE OF GREAT INSPIRATION FOR GENERATIONS OF ATHLETES. SHE ONCE
STATED, "WINNING IS GREAT, SURE, BUT IF YOU ARE REALLY GOING TO DO SOMETHING
IN LIFE, THE SECRET IS LEARNING HOW TO LOSE. NOBODY GOES UNDEFEATED ALL THE
TIME. IF YOU CAN PICK UP AFTER A CRUSHING DEFEAT, AND GO ON TO WIN AGAIN, YOU
ARE GOING TO BE A CHAMPION SOMEDAY."
FRIDA KAHLO (1907-1954) WAS A MEXICAN PAINTER BEST KNOWN FOR HER
UNCOMPROMISING AND BRILLIANTLY COLOURED SELF-PORTRAITS THAT DEAL WITH
SUCH THEMES AS IDENTITY, THE HUMAN BODY, AND DEATH. ONE OF THE MOST
INFLUENTIAL ARTISTS OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY, HER EMBRACE OF MEXICO’S
INDIGENOUS ROOTS AND HER DEDICATION TO SOCIAL AND POLITICAL REFORM IN
MEXICO, COMBINED WITH HER COLORFUL CLOTHING AND BRIGHT PAINTINGS HAVE
MADE HER A FAVORITE DAUGHTER OF MEXICO AND AN ICON IN THE WORLD OF ART,
ACTIVISM AND FEMINISM.
SACAGAWEA (C. 1788 - C. 1812/1884?) WAS A NATIVE AMERICAN OF THE SHOSHONE
TRIBE. SHE WAS AN INTERPRETER AND GUIDE FOR MERIWETHER LEWIS AND WILLIAM
CLARK’S EXPEDITION WESTWARD FROM THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER TO THE PACIFIC
COAST. SHE FACED THE SAME DANGERS AND DIFFICULTIES AS THE REST OF THE
EXPEDITION MEMBERS, IN ADDITION TO CARING FOR HER INFANT SON. WHEN THE
EXPEDITION’S VALUABLE SUPPLIES FELL INTO THE RIVER WHILE RAFTING THROUGH
TURBULENT WATERS MANY MEMBERS PANICKED; WHILE SACAGAWEA STAYED CALM
AND RESCUED INSTRUMENTS, BOOKS, GUNPOWDER, MEDICINES, AND CLOTHING FROM
THE WATER. WITHOUT THESE SUPPLIES, THE EXPEDITION WOULD HAVE BEEN IN
SERIOUS TROUBLE. LITTLE IS KNOWN ABOUT SACAGAWEA’S LIFE AFTER THE
EXPEDITION.
MAYA ANGELOU (1928-2014) WAS A POET, DANCER, AUTHOR, SINGER, ACTIVIST,
AND SCHOLAR. SHE IS BEST KNOWN FOR HER UNIQUE AND PIONEERING
AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL WRITING STYLE. AS A TEENAGER, SHE BROKE RACE AND GENDER
BOUNDARIES WHEN SHE BECAME THE FIRST AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMAN TO WORK AS
A STREETCAR CONDUCTOR IN SAN FRANCISCO. AFTER GRADUATING FROM HIGH
SCHOOL, SHE BECAME ACTIVE IN THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT AND WORKED WITH
MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. AND MALCOLM X, BECOMING THE NORTHERN
COORDINATOR OF THE SOUTHERN CHRISTIAN LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE. SPANNING
OVER 50 YEARS, THIS MAGNIFICENT WOMAN HAS PUBLISHED SEVEN
AUTOBIOGRAPHIES, THREE BOOKS OF ESSAYS, AND SEVERAL BOOKS OF POETRY. SHE
HAS ALSO BEEN CREDITED WITH A LIST OF PLAYS, MOVIES, AND TELEVISION SHOWS.
HER WORK HAS EARNED HER DOZENS OF AWARDS AND MORE THAN 50 HONORARY
DEGREES.
BESSIE COLEMAN (1892-1926), ALSO KNOWN AS “QUEEN BESS” AND “BRAVE
BESSIE,” WAS THE FIRST BLACK FEMALE PILOT IN THE UNITED STATES, AND ONE OF
THE FIRST IN EUROPE. SHE WAS ALSO THE FIRST WOMAN OF NATIVE AMERICAN
DESCENT TO HAVE A PILOT’S LICENSE. SEXISM AND RACISM KEPT COLEMAN FROM
PURSUING HER DREAM OF BEING A PILOT IN THE UNITED STATES, SO SHE STUDIED AT
THE FAMOUS FÉDÉRATION AÉRONAUTIQUE INTERNATIONALE IN FRANCE AND
BECAME THE FIRST BLACK PERSON TO EARN AN INTERNATIONAL PILOT’S LICENSE.
SHE HAD PLANS TO OPEN A FLIGHT SCHOOL IN THE U.S. THAT CATERED TO MINORITY
GROUPS, BUT SHE DIED TRAGICALLY IN A PLANE CRASH BEFORE REALIZING THAT
DREAM. HER PIONEERING CAREER IN AVIATION HAS INSPIRED COUNTLESS AFRICAN
AMERICANS AND NATIVE AMERICANS TO JOIN THE AVIATION COMMUNITY.
OCTAVIA BUTLER (1947-2006) WAS AMONG THE GREATEST AMERICAN AUTHORS OF
THE TWENTIETH CENTURY. IN HER LIFETIME, BUTLER CHANGED THE LANDSCAPE OF
SCIENCE FICTION AND COMPLETELY IGNORED SOCIETY’S LIMITS ON BLACK
AUTHORSHIP. SHE IS THE FIRST SCIENCE FICTION WRITER AND ONLY PERSON OF ANY
RACE OR GENDER TO RECEIVE THE MACARTHUR FELLOWSHIP (MORE COMMONLY
KNOWN AS THE “GENIUS GRANT”). SHE INSPIRED WRITERS OF COLOR BY PROVING
THAT IT WAS INDEED POSSIBLE TO BE A SUCCESSFUL BLACK WRITER. HER POWERFUL
PROSE, REFLECTED THROUGH THE LENS OF BLACK FEMALE CHARACTERS, REMAINS AS
IMPORTANT TODAY AS IT WAS NEARLY 50 YEARS AGO WHEN SHE SOLD HER FIRST
STORY. WITHOUT BUTLER, THE WORLD OF SCI-FI LITERATURE WOULD VERY LIKELY BE
A DREARY, MONOCHROMATIC PLACE.
HARPER LEE (1926-2016) WAS AN AMERICAN FEMINIST AND AUTHOR. GROWING UP
IN ALABAMA IN THE '20S AND '30S, LEE BROKE FREE OF ANTIQUATED GENDER NORMS
TO LIVE THE LIFE SHE WANTED. REFUSING TO GIVE INTERVIEW FOR DECADES, LEE
WAS AN EXTREMELY PRIVATE PERSON, BUT HER LIFE CHOICES AND PULITZER PRIZEWINNING BOOK, TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, ESTABLISHED HER LEGACY AS A FEMALE
ROLE MODEL AND A CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVIST. THE NOVEL IS FULL OF BOTH FEMINIST
AND RACIAL IDEALS THAT WERE NOT POPULAR WHEN IT WAS PUBLISHED IN 1960,
INCLUDING THE MAIN CHARACTER, SCOUT, NOT ADHERING TO TRADITIONALLY
FEMALE TRAITS. LEE WAS A ROLE MODEL FOR WOMEN WHO PUT THEIR CAREER AND
THEMSELVES FIRST, AND NOT LETTING SOCIAL OR GENDER NORMS INFLUENCE THEIR
CHOICES.
AMY TAN (1952-) IS AN AMERICAN AUTHOR OF NOVELS ABOUT CHINESE AMERICAN
WOMEN AND THE IMMIGRANT EXPERIENCE. SHE IS KNOWN FOR HER LYRICALLY
WRITTEN (USING FLOWING, MELODIC LANGUAGE) TALES OF EMOTIONAL CONFLICT
BETWEEN CHINESE AMERICAN MOTHERS AND DAUGHTERS SEPARATED BY
GENERATIONAL AND CULTURAL DIFFERENCES. HER SEMINAL, BESTSELLING 1989
NOVEL THE JOY LUCK CLUB OFFERED A PORTRAIT OF ASIAN-AMERICAN FAMILY LIFE
THAT WAS BOTH SPECIFIC TO HER COMMUNITY AND UNIVERSALLY ACCESSIBLE. SHE IS
BOTH A BELOVED WRITER AND TRAILBLAZER IN THE LITERARY WORLD.