Women in History

Edmonia Lewis This woman paved the way for African Americans...

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 16:17:05 -0600

Edmonia Lewis

This woman paved the way for African Americans through art. She was the first identified African American sculpter. She shocked those who believed that African American’s didn’t have the capacity for such intelligence and artistic capabilities. She combined perspective, talent, and emotion. She also insisted on making sculptures of those who were her heros. Black abolitionists and courageous women like Cleopatra.

After being accused of poisoning white women and stealing supplies for her art, Edmonia moved east to Europe. She first went to Florence where she was welcomed by Hiram Powers, America’s most famous sculptor. After Florence she made her way to Rome where she worked with other famous women sculptors of the time.

Her masterwork was The Death of Cleopatra, a striking portrayal of Cleopatra after she was bitten by her asp. It gave Edmonia both acclaim and controversy for showing Cleopatra in such in intimate way. This was atypical of the often portrayed beauty and strength.

a-riot-in-the-heart: “The most difficult thing is the decision...

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 07:48:15 -0600

a-riot-in-the-heart:

“The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity. The fears are paper tigers. You can do anything you decide to do. You can act to control and change your life; and the procedure, the process is its own reward”

— Amelia Earhart

Isadora Duncan This innovated woman is known to the world as the...

Wed, 25 Jul 2012 15:52:33 -0600

Isadora Duncan

This innovated woman is known to the world as the mother of modern dance. She founded the New System of interpretive dance. She put poetry, music and the rhythms of nature.

Isadora didn’t believe in the formality of conventional ballet. She gave birth to the more free form of dance. She danced barefoot and in simple Greek apparel. The viewers of her dancing recognized her for being a passionate dancer and became the most famous dancer of her time world wide.

"Sometimes questions are more important than answers."

Wed, 25 Jul 2012 13:16:44 -0600

“Sometimes questions are more important than answers.”

- Nancy Willard

faineemae: World’s youngest mayor: 15-year-old teenage girl in...

Wed, 25 Jul 2012 13:09:35 -0600

faineemae:

World’s youngest mayor: 15-year-old teenage girl in Palestine

A 15-year-old Palestinian girl took office as the mayor of a West Bank town and became the youngest person in the world to occupy this position.

As part of an initiative to empower youth and involve them in the decision-making process, Bashaer Othman will be the mayor of the town of Allar in the city of Tulkarm in the northwestern West Bank for two months.

Othman is in charge of all matters related to the municipality of Allar and which include supervising employees and signing all official documents with the exception of financial ones.

Othman is working under the supervision of elected mayor Sufian Shadid who expressed his enthusiasm for the teengar’s appointment as a step towards supporting youth.

“There are many ways of supporting youth other than financial means. First, we should make sure we remove obstacles that might stand in their way and with determination and perseverance we can do so,” he said.
For Othman, the new position constitutes a major challenge that she is hoping she can be up to.

“I want to go through this experience in order to be able to share it with other youth so that they can be prepared for running state institutions in the future,” she said.

coolchicksfromhistory: Patsy Mink (1927-2002) -The first woman...

Wed, 20 Jun 2012 01:39:11 -0600

coolchicksfromhistory:

Patsy Mink (1927-2002)

-The first woman of color in the US Congress

-The first Asian American to run for president (1972 Democratic primaries)

-Represented Hawaii for 12 terms

-Authored Title IX

-Served as Assistant Secretary of State for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs under Carter

-As a student at the University of Nebraska, mobilized a coalition to end segregated student housing

-Mother of social justice advocate Gwendolyn (Wendy) Mink

Clelia Duel Mosher December 16, 1863 – December 21, 1940, A...

Tue, 15 May 2012 21:15:49 -0600

Clelia Duel Mosher December 16, 1863 – December 21, 1940,

A physician and women’s hygienist who disproved the theory that women are physically inferior to men. Her most famous work, published posthumously, was a survey that she began in 1892 as an undergraduate when preparing to lecture on the “Marital Relation”. It is the only known existing survey of Victorian women’s sexual habits. Mosher has done research on menstruation as well as sexual habits, promoting healthy sexual activity for Victorian women. Mosher dedicated her life to women’s health research, and as a result never married.

Every woman is worth celebrating.

Tue, 17 Apr 2012 22:41:09 -0600

Gertrude Ederle This is one truly strong woman! Both physically...

Tue, 17 Apr 2012 16:03:15 -0600

Gertrude Ederle

This is one truly strong woman! Both physically and emotionally for she was the first woman to swim across the English Channel!

In 1924 this strong woman won 3 medals in the Olympic Games and only 2 years later she was taking on a challenge for the history books!

It took her 14 hours and 31 minutes to swim across, a challange that rewarded her with much praise. It also happened to be the shortest time, beating out any man’s time to swim across the English Channel.

Jeannette Rankin The first woman elected to be in the House of...

Tue, 17 Apr 2012 07:53:47 -0600

Jeannette Rankin

The first woman elected to be in the House of Representatives. This American woman was the first and she continued to do our country proud.

She was a republican pacifist that voted against all bills of war, even if she was the only one to speak. Serving in many anti-war campaigns, she deffinately made her mark in history!

She was active in campaigning for women’s suffrage. This woman was also the first to serve in the US Congress, she served on the 77th congress.

Since Jeannette had paved the way in 1917, only 277 women have served in the US House of Representatives or Senate.

Victoria Woodhull Victoria and her sister were the first woman...

Mon, 16 Apr 2012 17:10:27 -0600

Victoria Woodhull

Victoria and her sister were the first woman to operate a brokerage in Wall Street. She was the first woman to start a weekly newspaper which advocated women’s rights andd labor reforms. and in 1872, she was the first woman candidate for the President of the United States.

Now, I don’t know about you, but I cannot think of a woman as the President of the United States, because I never thought it would be possible.But this daring young woman believed anything could happen! No matter what repercussions may come, she believed that a woman could be president, and she was that woman!

Now I bet you are wondering why this woman’s name is not celebrated or taught in History books, when she clearly had gone where no other would dare.. well this is for a few reasons:

The government declined to print her name on the ballot.
She was younger than the constitutionally mandated age of 35.
She did not receive any electoral and/or popular votes.
Women could not legally vote until August 1920.
She was a woman.

No matter if the government would recognize this bold woman as a legitimate candidate for the Presidency or not, I idolize her nerve. If this young woman could run for president in the 1800’s, than why can’t a woman be president in the 2000’s?!

Susie King Taylor If we want to talk about firsts, this...

Mon, 16 Apr 2012 13:46:29 -0600

Susie King Taylor

If we want to talk about firsts, this African-American woman had a few herself!

She was the first African American woman to teach openly to freed African-American slaves in Georgia, the first African American Army nurse, and the only African-American woman to publish a memoir of wartime experiences.

These are some powerful firsts that paved the way to many other women of color that follow behind her!

Maria Mitchell This extrodinary woman was the first of many...

Mon, 16 Apr 2012 11:51:30 -0600

Maria Mitchell

This extrodinary woman was the first of many people and things that all have to do with woman advancement in STEM careers! She became the first woman recognized as a professional astronomer. She was the first woman member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. She was the first woman member of the American Assocciation for the Advancement of Science. And she was the first person (male or female) appointed to faculty at Vassar College.

And even after all these advancements in woman’s rights movements, here is one more.

After she had been teaching at Vassar for a while, she learned she had a lower salary than male professors of less experience and reputation. She insisted on a salary increase, and got it.

Who Needs Feminism?

Mon, 16 Apr 2012 10:02:39 -0600

Who Needs Feminism?

Carrie Chapman Catt This amazing leader of the...

Mon, 16 Apr 2012 10:00:38 -0600

Carrie Chapman Catt

This amazing leader of the women’s suffrage really had an impact on American History. She organized the International Woman Suffrage Alliance (IWSA) and was president of the North American Women’s Suffrage Alliance when Susan B. Anthony had died.

With Catt’s leadership, on August 26, 1920, the Nineteenth Amendment officially became part of the United States Constitution.

After the amendment passed, she founded the League of Women Voters.

This amazing woman helped women today in one of the biggest ways; giving us the right to vote! So don’t dishonor her by not voting this year when this election may have a real impact on the rights of other Americans!

Mary Mahoney The first African-American woman to study and...

Wed, 02 Nov 2011 04:52:00 -0600

Mary Mahoney

The first African-American woman to study and professionally work as a nurse.

She paved the way for other African American women to study professionally to become a nurse.

The training/study to actually become a nurse then was so rigorous that of the 18 women who were training to become trained nurses, only 4 women, including Mahoney, actually finished and graduated with diploma.

Just because a woman’s name is not heard of often, does not mean she is not important!

Dorothea Dix This strong woman was an advocator and educator of...

Wed, 02 Nov 2011 01:26:06 -0600

Dorothea Dix

This strong woman was an advocator and educator of the mentally ill.

After volunteering to teach classes to inmates at a jail and noticed some mentally ill women shivering for they had no furnace.

The excuse of the keepers was that “lunatics do not feel cold”, they might burn down the building or such. She found this unjust and toured other jails and hospitals and became a spokeswoman for those she found were kept in unjust conditions.

As an advocator of human rights, Dorothea Dix deserves to be recognized.

Just because a woman is unheard of.. does NOT mean she is unimportant!

Tue, 01 Nov 2011 22:08:48 -0600

I will be searching through pages of names of famous women to find the best ones to share with you all.

Some names will be ones I have never heard of until now.

Some may be people who affect my history and who have changed my life for the better.

I want to educate you with what I have learned after researching.

Emilie Autumn A savior to many girls and boys through the...

Tue, 01 Nov 2011 21:48:39 -0600

Emilie Autumn

A savior to many girls and boys through the industrial world.

She made it to where girls felt okay with themselves and made the whole abnormal world of young adults feel more normal.

She made mental illness more understandable and helped many suicidal kids cope with their own beings and gave them a figurative “home” inside her Asylum. One home where we can come and go, and anyone is welcome.

Her music is brilliant and helps keep me, along with many people I know, going every day of their lives.

Her fan-base has become a sister&brotherhood of those who feel outcast in their own worlds, she is a brilliant and powerful woman who will never stop caring and will always Fight Like A Girl.

Juliette Gordon Low The founder of Girls Scouts USA. “In...

Tue, 01 Nov 2011 21:34:00 -0600

Juliette Gordon Low

The founder of Girls Scouts USA.

“In developing the Girl Scout movement in the United States, Juliette brought girls of all backgrounds into the out-of-doors, giving them the opportunity to develop self-reliance and resourcefulness. She encouraged girls to prepare not only for traditional homemaking, but also for possible future roles as professional women—in the arts, sciences and business—and for active citizenship outside the home. Girl Scouting welcomed girls with disabilities at a time when they were excluded from many other activities. This idea seemed quite natural to Juliette, who never let deafness, back problems or cancer keep her from full participation in life.

“From the original 18 girls, Girl Scouting has grown to 3.7 million members. Girl Scouts is the largest educational organization for girls in the world and has influenced the more than 50 million girls, women and men who have belonged to it.”

-GSUSA website.

She is at the top in my personal list of women to admire. I am a proud Girl Scout of 12 years, she is one of my idols. A woman who had an idea and developed it into something extrordinary.