In honor of Women’s History Month, I wanted to write about women throughout the past century. Read on for more information about women in history!
1930s – Amelia Earhart
Starting off with a woman from my home state of Kansas is Amelia Earhart. Earhart began taking flying lessons in 1920 and eight years later she was selected to be the first woman to fly across the Atlantic Ocean. She made her mark doing so. She became an international celebrity after this and begun her writing career, focusing on her experience flying that famous flight. She continued her career in flying as well as writing about her experiences. Finally, in 1937, Amelia Earhart begun her final journey as she attempted to fly around the world. After traveling 22,000 miles out of her 29,000-mile journey, she and her navigator were declared lost at sea. Some final materials that she had mailed to her husband were published in a book called, The Last Flight. Amelia Earhart was a pioneer for women in the flight industry as well as for many feminists.
1940s – Frida Kahlo
Frida Kahlo was a Mexican-born painter who was originally interested in pursuing science, but after a bus accident, she taught herself to paint through her recovery. She studied other artists and found an appreciation for creating self-portraits, which is what she has become well known for. She was also known as a surrealist. In the 1930s, she began to have solo art exhibitions. In the 1940s, she became a professor of painting at La Esmeralda. She frequently turned to drugs and alcohol for relief from her health issues, but still continued to create paintings. In one of her latest works, Self-Portrait with Portrait of Dr. Farill she is featured in a wheelchair and attended her first solo exhibition in Mexico lying on a bed. She never gave up on the joy she found through painting. She was never afraid of accepting who she was and portraying herself exactly as she looked. She is an inspiration for aspiring artists and women all over.
1950s – Rosalind Franklin
Rosalind Franklin was a British scientist known for her contributions to the discovery of DNA. She also contributed to building the foundation of what we know about the structure of viruses. Her discoveries about DNA’s structure led to the final description of DNA’s structure made by Francis Crick and James Watson. Although Crick and Watson based their discovery on Franklin’s important findings, the pair did not give her much credit in the book that they published about their findings. Rosalind Franklin’s findings are of extreme importance to the knowledge we have about DNA and viruses today. Her work often goes unnoticed because of the erasure that Crick and Watson created.
1960s – Betty Friedan
In 1963, Betty Friedan published The Feminine Mystique, a book about the “limited world of suburban housewives” and the many other inequalities that women of the 50s and 60s faced. The book is widely seen as one of the most influential books of the 20th century. Just three years after publishing her book, Friedan became one of the founders and the first president of the National Organization for Women. The organization first worked to demand that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission guarantee equality in employment. In the next few years, Friedan helped to found the National Association for the Repeal of Abortion Laws, organized a strike for women’s equality, and became a co-founder of the National Women’s Political Caucus. Betty Friedan’s work was incredibly influential in making society more equal for women and allowing women to have more authority in their lives.
1970s – Gloria Steinem
Gloria Steinem is a feminist, political activist, and editor who advocated for the women’s liberation movement from the late 20th century to the present day. Throughout the 60s, Steinem wrote articles discussing feminism and other political issues. Steinem co-founded the National Women’s Caucus with Betty Friedan, Bella Abzug, and Shirley Chisholm. Steinem created the Ms. magazine which looked at contemporary issues using a feminist lens. Additionally, she helped found the Coalition of Labor Union Women, Voters for Choice, Women Against Pornography, and the Women’s Media Center. She continued her career by creating her own television show, Woman with Gloria Steinem, writing multiple books, and being known as the “Mother of Feminism.”
1980s – Madonna
Madonna is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and entrepreneur who rose to fame in the 80s and 90s. She studied dance in college and performed with different rock groups before signing a record with Sire Records and having her first hit: “Holiday.” She is known for her success in creating music videos and incorporating sexual and satirical images such as in “Like a Virgin” and “Like a Prayer.” She went on to sell over 70 million albums by 1991 and the following year, she published a soft-core pornographic book featuring herself in a variety of erotic poses entitled Sex. After finding success with her music career, she went on to begin acting in movies. As of now, Madonna has released 14 studio albums, three soundtrack albums, six live albums, seven compilation albums, and 38 other limited releases as well as acted in over 40 films. Madonna is an inspirational woman because of her success, independence, and free sexuality.
1990s – Mae Jemison
Mae Jemison is a doctor, engineer, and NASA astronaut named the first African American woman to travel in space. As a young girl, Jemison was interested in dance as well as science. She graduated high school at 16 years old and went on to study at Stanford University immediately after. While in college, she choreographed a performance called Out of the Shadows about the African American experience. She went on to study at Cornell Medical School after graduating from Stanford. She joined the Peace Corps in 1983 and served as a medical officer for two years in Africa after graduating from Cornell. Jemison decided to apply to the astronaut program at NASA after seeing Sally Ride be named the first American woman in space. After working with the program for multiple years, she was selected to join six other astronauts who ventured into space aboard the Endeavor in September of 1992. This journey made her the first African American woman in space. She served as an astronaut for six years and started The Jemison Group, a consulting company that encourages science, technology, and social change. She even appeared in an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation after one of the actors found out that she was a fan.
2000s – Ruth Bader Ginsberg
Ruth Bader Ginsberg was the second female justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. She attended Cornell University and graduated first in her class. She faced gender discrimination and misogyny as she studied at the law school being one of eight female students in a class total of 500 students. She taught at multiple colleges and became the first female tenured professor at Columbia University. During the 70s, she was the director of the Women’s Rights Project of the American Civil Liberties Union during the 1970s where she argued six landmark cases on gender equality. She was named to the U.S. Supreme Court in 1993 by President Clinton. She wrote the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in United States v. Virginia, which stated that Virginia Military Institute could not refuse to admit women. She went on to serve as a Supreme Court justice until her death in 2020. Ginsberg became a prominent figure in the fight for equal rights for women.
Now – Zendaya
Zendaya is an American actor, singer, and dancer who started out on Disney Channel before acting in major roles such as Rue Bennet in Euphoria and MJ in the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Spider-Man films. She began performing at a young age and went on to study the performing arts at the Oakland School for the Arts where she performed on stage. Her first significant role was as Rocky Blue on Disney Channel’s Shake It Up. She went on to release her first album and star in other Disney Channel tv shows and made-for-TV movies. Her first non-Disney Channel role was as a guest star on Black-ish as well as appearing in music videos from Taylor Swift, Beyonce, and Bruno Mars. In 2017, she acted in Spider-Man: Homecoming as MJ and in The Greatest Showman. Likely her greatest success so far has been from her role on HBO’s Euphoria. She has so far received two Emmy awards and a Golden Globe for best actress in a drama series for her role in Euphoria. She made history in 2020 as the youngest actor to win the Emmy for outstanding lead actress in a drama series at age 24. Additionally, she became the first Black woman to win that Emmy award twice as well as the youngest two-time Emmy winner. She went on to perform in movies such as Malcolm & Marie and Dune as well as continuing her role in Euphoria. Zendaya is an icon for our generation and an incredibly inspiring woman.
Sources: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Amelia-Earhart, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Frida-Kahlo, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Rosalind-Franklin, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosalind_Franklin, https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/betty-friedan, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Gloria-Steinem, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Madonna-American-singer-and-actress, https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/mae-jemison, https://www.history.com/topics/womens-history/ruth-bader-ginsburg, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Zendaya.