A rare vintage photograph of an onna-bugeisha, one of the female warriors of the upper social classes in feudal Japan.
Often mistakenly referred to as “female samurai”, female warriors have a long history in Japan, beginning long before samurai emerged as a warrior class.
Mary Alexander – early African-American model
February is Black History Month in the United States, and I thought you might be interested in a story about one of our first African-American models.
http://www.coca-colaconversations.com/2008/02/mary-alexander.html
Minimal Posters - Six Women Who Changed Science. And The Word.
I want these in my room.
Jeannette Pickering Rankin June 11, 1880 – May 18, 1973 was the first woman in the US Congress. She was elected statewide in Montana in 1916 and again in 1940. A lifelong pacifist, she is the only member of Congress to have voted against the entry of the United States into both World War I in 1917 and World War II in 1941. Rankin argued that the enemy was not abroad, but rather residing in the US itself in the form of hunger, poverty, unemployment, and disease. She defended her vote by saying, “As a woman, I can’t go to war and I refuse to send anyone else.” Republican leaders demanded that Rankin change her vote, but she refused. Once her term ended in 1943, Rankin knew she didn’t have the support to win another election, and so she returned home to Montana to care for her aging mother. She then spent a few years traveling to different countries around the world, becoming even more determined her political views for international cooperation and peace. On the 18th of May 1973, just weeks before her 93rd birthday, Jeannette Pickering Rankin died of old age in Carmel, Ca. However, Rankin remained as active in politics as she could right up until her death. She continued to produce writing promoting women’s rights, peace, child welfare, and civil rights from her home which remained relevant in the civil rights movement of era. Her career has left behind a legacy of controversy with some viewing her as impossibly idealistic, and others identifying her as an inspiration to be pursued. Her contributions to various feminist movements cannot be ignored, and continue to be relevant today. Rankin bequeathed her property in Watkinsville, Georgia to help “mature, unemployed women workers.”
Mae Jemison Became 1st Black Woman To Fly In To Space On This week In 1992
On September 12, 1999, Jemison fulfilled a lifelong dream she held ever since she was a small girl in Chicago by becoming the first African-American woman to fly in to space.
Graduating in 1977 with a dual degree in chemical engineering and African-American Studies, Jemison faced racism from professors as a Black woman taking up engineering.
Jemison later obtained a Doctor of Medicine in 1981 from Cornell University and travelled to developing countries to provide primary care.
Christine de Pizan (1365 - 1434)
After the deaths of her father and her husband, Christine de Pizan supported herself and her children through her literary work. She moved gradually from primarily writing poetry to primarily writing prose, and produced a wide range of works including letters, narratives, memoirs, treatises, and meditations. Around 1418, Christine entered a Dominican convent at Poissy, and wrote little more.
Bessie Coleman, c.1922
Elizabeth “Bessie” Coleman was an American civil aviator. She was the first female pilot of African American descent and the first person of African American descent to hold an international pilot license.
Beryl Markham (1902 – 1986), adventurer and aviation pioneer. Learn more here.
Kathleen Cleaver of the Black Panther Party breaks down “Why We Wear Our Hair Like This”
Black is Beautiful
(Source: sluteverbabe)
