Women making history
For this blog post, I want to dedicate it to a wide range of influential female figures that have made significant contributions to the US. These women serve as role models for young girls, other women, anyone who identifies as female, and men as well. They lead in their unique career fields and all have worked tirelessly to get to where they are today. I hope to inspire you as well, to defy racial, sexual, cultural, or societal limitations you feel and work hard to achieve your goals. Maybe you can join the list of historical women figures.
First Black Female Doctor
Rebecca Lee Crumpler made history in 1864. She became the first African American woman in the US to earn an M.D. degree and became a role model for many girls. She continued her path to becoming a physician and went on to write a book of medical advice for women and children that became published in 1883.
Her book, Book of Medical Discourses, provides a brief background on Crumpler’s life and path to her career. She practiced medicine as a physician in Boston for a short period of time before moving to Richmond, Virginia in 1865 after the Civil War. There, she became aware of the great diseases women and children were facing and saw the lack of medical care they received.
Using her knowledge and voice, she wrote the book, Book of Medical Discourses, to bring awareness for the need of public healthcare and the situations that these women and children face. Dr. Crumpler overcame several obstacles and overcame social mores of the norm for women in that time period. She made remarkable contributions and became a role model for other black girls who wished to work in a field that was dominated by men at the time. Book of Medical Discourses is one of the first medical books published by an African Americans.
LGBTQ+ and Civil Rights journalist
An LGBTQ+ activist and lesbian journalist herself, Helen Zia uses her articles, essays, and books to write unapologetically about a wide range of subjects. This includes her strong advocacy for LGBTQ+ youth, the negative experiences she encounters as a second-generation asian in the United States, and sexual assault on college campuses. She spent time on her tenure as the associate editor of Metropolitan Detroit magazine. She used her voice to discuss the date rape at the University of Michigan. Her advocacy led to powerful protests and an overhaul of campus policies to increase college sexual safety.
Zia also played a crucial role in writing about justice against the crime’s perpetrators after a the largely publicized, racially charged murder of Vincent Chin in 1982 that was pushed under the rugs. At that time, United States Asian immigrants had no protection under laws that protect federal civil rights. Using her voice as a journalist, she co founded the organization American Citizens for Justice (ACJ) and fought for a retrial for the case. The American Citizens for Justice would go one to fight against unjust treatment for all people of color.
First Hispanic Female Astronaut
Ellen Ochoca was the first HIspanic female astronaut and later became the first Latina to go to space. She earned a degree in electrical engineering at Stanford University and continued her education to earn her master’s and doctorate degree as well. She specialized in the mechanical science of optical systems and spent time working as a research engineer at Sandia National Laboratories and later at the Ames Research Center for NASA.
With her work, she contributed to the creation of various methods such as optical systems for detecting discrepancies in a pattern. After completing her training at NASA astronaut program in 1991, Ochoca became the first Hispanic female astronaut. Aboard the STS-56 mission of Discovery, Ellen served as a mission specialist and became the first Latina to go to space in April 1993. She is an inspiration for young girls who want to enter the space field and for them to see people like them go to space.
First Korean-American Women in Congress
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It wasn’t until 2020 that the first Korean Americans became elected for a seat in Congress. 3 ladies making history together in 2020 Young Kim, Michelle Steel and Marilyn Strickland became the first Korean American women elected to the U.S. House of Representatives.
Young Kim was born in South Korea but grew up in Guam before she then moved to Hawaii. She worked hard to be able to earn a degree at University of Southern California. A mother of four, she closely observed and supported her husband’s own congressional pathway to the US House. In 2014 to 2016 Young served in the California Assembly and decided to run for office to later win in 2020.
Michelle Steel, immigrated to the US and worked hard to be able to attend Pepperdine University and earned her MBA at the University of Southern California. She started her political journey serving as the State Board of Equalization in California and has served the Orange County Board of Supervisors since 2015. She won a seat in the House in 2020.
Marilyn Strickland, made history together with Young and Steel as the first Korean American woman to serve Congress. She also became the first Black Congressman to serve the Washington State Delegation. Strickland was born in Seoul and her father was a US veteran met her mother while in South Korea. She emphasizes how her campaign focuses on the key issues that are important to her voters, not the labels and partnerships. She seeks to use this same approach in the House of Representatives and is passionate about her work.
Sources:
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ellen-Ochoa
https://www.teenvogue.com/story/4-asian-american-women-who-changed-history
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-11-15/korean-american-women-in-congress
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