Today is International Women’s Day! To celebrate, Her Campus Lasell has made list of eight inspiring women who have really made a difference in the past year.
Disclaimer: This is in no way an inclusive list, women do awesome things every day that are worthy of recognition. However, we can’t make a 3.52 billion person list, so we’ve narrowed it down to eight in honor of March 8th.
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Cecile Richards
Cecile Richards is the CEO of Planned Parenthood, and has been an outspoken advocate for female reproductive rights this past year. Cecile joined Planned Parenthood in 2006, and since then has been using her influential position to work toward inclusive female healthcare for all. This past year, Planned Parenthood has been viciously attacked by conservative politicians with lies and threats to cut their funding. Cecile has handled this all with grace and resilience, never wavering from her belief that women everywhere have the right to reproductive healthcare. Her dedication to such an important cause has made her the face of the movement and definitely worthy of this list of women!
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Hillary Clinton
All politics aside, no one can deny that Hillary Clinton has made quite the impact this past year. Though she has been an influential figure in politics for many years, she has made history this year by being the first woman to win the caucus in Iowa, as well as be the triumphant candidate on Super Tuesday. Her strong presidential campaign is an inspiration to women everywhere who hope to pursue a career in politics, as well as a groundbreaking step towards parity in the US government. Though you may not agree with her politics, it’s impossible not to be inspired by this woman’s intelligence, resiliency, and influence.
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Lady Gaga
The Mother Monster may seem like an odd choice in a list mostly filled with politicians, business women and activists, but this lady has been anything but silent on the issues that impact women this past year. In the fall of 2015 she released her new music video for the song, ‘’Til it happens to You”. This song was written for the documentary, “The Hunting Ground”, which investigates the prevalence of sexual assault and rape on college campuses. Her music video conveyed a strong message that sexual assault can happen to anyone, is not the fault of the victim, and can only be overcome through the support of others. Gaga continued on with this inspiring message with her performance at the 2016 Oscars, where she was joined on-stage by survivors of sexual assault. Lady Gaga has used her art to empower women and bring awareness to an important issue, making her more than worthy of this list.
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Emma Watson
Emma Watson has previously been known for her role as Hermione in the wildly popular Harry Potter films. However, this year, she has been making a name for herself in a different way. As a Global Ambassador for the United Nations, Emma has been raising her voice around the world for the equality of women. She has given speeches encouraging women to not be afraid of feminism, and started a campaign called HeforShe, which encourages men to become involved in the feminisist movement. She has started an online book club for women, creating a platform where people can discuss their thoughts or feelings on feminist literature with women across the globe. Her activist work is inspiring to say the least, and proves that she really is, “the brightest witch of her age”.
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Michelle Obama
In honor of our last year with this amazing woman as our First Lady, it seems fitting to include her on this list. Michelle has been an inspirational figure in the United States ever since she set foot in the White House, exuding a confidence and intelligence that has truly helped change our nation. She has spearheaded many campaigns to help solve social issues in the US, such as her Let’s Move Campaign to help end childhood obesity, and her Let Girls Learn initiative, which strives to help girls all over the world receive the education they deserve. She has also partnered up with the Duchess of Cambridge to end the stigma that surrounds mental health. As the highest educated First Lady in US history and an overall amazing women, I cannot wait to see what Michelle will do after she leaves the White House next January.
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Malala Yousafzai
Words really cannot describe my respect and admiration for this girl. As the youngest ever winner of a Nobel Peace Prize, Malala has dedicated her life to the issue of girls education. She began speaking out for her rights at a young age, and at 16 years old was targeted and shot by the Taliban. She survived the attack, and has continued on to become one of the most influential activists in her field. This year alone, Malala visited the Nigerian government and discussed ways to bring back the girls that were abducted by Boko Haram. She also met with President Obama, and asked him to stop funding wars and start funding education. This led to her campaign, #BooksNotBullets, that asked politicians everywhere to reassess the way they were tackling the issue of terrorism. Malala is bold, outspoken, and compassionate. Her global influence will be felt for years to come, making her an obvious choice for this list.
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Alicia Garza, Opal Tometi, and Patrisse Cullors
I know I said there would only be eight women on the list, but a list honoring inspiring women without all three of these civil rights pioneers would be incomplete. I recognize that it is an injustice to their individuality to group them all together, but since they are all working toward the same common cause, it seemed the practical thing to do. These women are the creators of the #BlackLivesMatter movement, a reinvigoration of the demand for civil justice that has been heard throughout our country’s history. Alicia Garza coined the slogan after hearing about the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the Trayvon Martin case, and with the assistance of Tometi and Cullors, has turned it into a full force movement. #BlackLivesMatter is more than a hashtag, it is a civil rights movement that has brought attention to police brutality, racial inequality in prisons, and the strong undertone of racism that persists in our country. This movement has been particularly visible in this past year, and thanks to these women, the issue of racial inequality has become a common topic of conversation. Their work in civil rights has definitely made them worthy members of this group of amazing women.
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Laverne Cox
Laverne Cox has made huge strides for the visibility and rights of transgender people this year. She was the first ever trans-woman to be nominated for an Emmy, and also the first trans person to be featured on the cover of Time magazine. She is an advocate for trans-rights, and has partnered with Huffington Post to write numerous essays about gender expression and gender identity. She has funded two documentaries about transgender people, and brought attention to a much needed issue. The courage she has to be her true self has been an inspiration for transgender people everywhere, making her an obvious choice to conclude this list of inspiring people.
Of course all of these women are inspiring and amazing, but don’t forget to look to the strong women surrounding you for inspiration as well. Happy International Women’s Day!http://www.quotesgiant.com