Women’s history has always been severely overlooked and written over. Although in recent years more effort has gone toward acknowledging it, it is nowhere near enough. This especially applies to the history of women of color. Here are a few women I found really interesting and that I wish had been taught about in school!
- Dorothy Irene Height
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Born March 24, 1912, in Richmond, Virginia, Dorothy Irene Height attended New York University, Columbia University, and the New York School of Social Work. She began her activist work at the age of 25 focusing on the inequalities faced by African Americans and women. She the only woman to work at the face of the Civil Rights Movement with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Asa Phillip Randolph, James Farmer Jr., John Lewis, Whitney Young Jr., and Roy Wilkins, and she was also the first person in the movement to merge the issues of African-American prejudice and prejudice against women as the same issue rather than separate. Because of her work for equality, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Bill Clinton in 1994.
- Phillis Wheatley
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Born in Senegal/Gambia around 1753, Phillis Wheatley was kidnapped and brought to Boston, Massachusetts in 1761 to be a personal slave for the Wheatley family. Phillis was educated in ancient history, theology, English, Latin, and Greek by the Wheatley wife and her children. By the age of 13, Phillis had written her first published poem and many more would follow. In 1773, Phillis’ first book, Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral, was published making her the first African-American woman, the first U.S. enslaved person, and the third American woman to have a book published.
- Patricia Bath
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Born November 4, 1942, in Harlem, York, Patricia Bath attended Howard University for her medical degree. After completing her residency in ophthalmology — she was the first African-American woman to do so — she made great advances in the field. In 1976, she co-founded the American Institute for the Prevention of Blindness, becoming the first woman in the nation to hold a position like this. In 1986, she invented the Laserphaco Probe, becoming the first African-American female doctor to receive a patent for medical purposes.
- Marian Anderson
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Born February 27, 1897, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Marian Anderson had a passion for music. She grew up singing in her church choir until she began to train with a voice teacher. By 1930, she became well known for her talents and was receiving requests to perform. When her manager tried to secure a show at Washington D.C.’s Constitution Hall, the Daughters of the American Revolution denied this request on the grounds of race. When First Lady Elanor Rosevelt heard of this news, she invited Anderson to perform at the Lincoln Memorial on Easter Sunday. Along with performing at the New York Metropolitan Opera in 1955, becoming the first African-American to perform here, Anderson performed at John F. Kennedy’s inauguration in 1961 and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Honor in 1963.
- Jane Bolin
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Born April 11, 1908, in Poughkeepsie, New York, Jane Bolin attended Yale Law School where she graduated in 1931 as the first African-American woman to earn a law degree from this university. In 1939, she was sworn in as a judge for Family Court, becoming the first African-American woman to be a judge. Throughout her three additional terms, Bolin worked to dismantle segregationist policies and implement prevention programs for young boys that were susceptible to becoming involved in crime.
I don’t know if it’s just me, but I think it’s a little too evident how biased our educational systems are when it comes to history. It’s not fair that it is focused on men — white straight men, to be specific. Maybe its time for that to change?