Throughout history, women have been the force behind numerous social movements and inspirational acts in our country. While women have always been working alongside men to further society and fight for justice, their actions have long been unheard. From the Daughters of Liberty to the suffragettes to modern feminists, women have shown that their power in society is unapparelled.
This International Women’s Day, we would like to honor powerful women everywhere and highlight the lives and actions of just a few of the many women who have left their stamp on history.
Rosa Parks
As undoubtably one of the most renowned activists in the Civil Rights era, Rosa made history in 1955 when she refused to give up her seat to a white man on a Montgomery, Alabama bus. In a time of heavy segregation, her actions were seen as an act of honorable defiance as she stayed sat in an area reserved for “Whites only”. While many claimed that she did not give up her seat due to exhaustion, Parks recalls “I was not tired physically… No, the only tired I was, was tired of giving in.” Parks was later arrested, fired from her job, and faced heavy harassment for years to come. Her protest was the light that inspired the leaders of a local black community to begin the Montgomery Bus Boycott which lasted over a year. This boycott gained attention from Dr. Martin Luther King and the rest of the nation as a sign that segregation did not have to continue.
Rosa Parks is often called “the mother of civil rights” as her actions on that fateful day led to an enlivened battle for desegregation and equality for all races in the United States.
Anna Wintour
Dame Anna Wintour has long been a symbol of prestige and power in the fashion world. At 73, Wintour is a British journalist based in New York City who has served as editor-in-Chief of Vogue since 1988 and Global Chief Content Officer for Condé Nast since 2020. Her editorial prowess is recognized as she has been the longest standing Editor in Chief for the world’s most influential fashion magazine, Vogue.
Her story shows the power of genuine hard work to rise to the top of the game. She began her illustrious journalism career as a junior fashion editor at Harper’s Bazaar in 1970 and went on to serve as an editor for notable publications such as Viva, Savvy, Home & Garden, and others before taking her throne as Editor and Chief of British Vogue in 1985. Since then under Wintour’s direction, Condé Nast Publications—Vogue’s parent company—launched several spin-offs, most notably Teen Vogue. She is also transformed the Met Gala (the Oscars of the fashion world) into a gathering for East Coast socialites into what it is today.
If there is one thing for sure in the fashion world, what Anna says, goes. Her critiques have launched and ended the careers of numerous fashion houses. Anna Wintour has shown the world the power of a women who knows what she wants and how to get it.
Serena Williams
Serena Williams is perhaps one of the most notable athletes in tennis, and possible the world. After a 28-year long career in tennis, her name has become synonymous with success. Her successful career began in 1994 at the young age of 5. While living in Compton, Serena’s father began teaching her two young daughters how to play while practicing in a local park. From the get-go, she was a rocket. Serena Williams turned professional in 1995, and her undefeatable athleticism and forceful serves soon garnered public attention.
During her long career, Williams showed herself to be a force who would not be stopped as she revolutionized women’s tennis with her powerful style of play and won more Grand Slam singles titles (23) than any other person during the open era. However, her career has not been without its hardships. Williams has faced much discrimination in the tennis world due to her skin color, physique, and bold fashion choices on the courts.
Alongside her successful tennis career, Williams has proved herself to be a tactful business woman. Throughout her career, Williams has enjoyed endorsements from multiple giants such as Ford, Gatorade, Gucci, Hanesbrands, Nike, Subway, Tonal, Wilson Sporting Goods. She has also invested in over 60 startups, written a children’s book, and partnered with many companies to promote new products. Williams is truly a force to be reckoned with as she has left her mark in both the tennis and business worlds.
Corinne Simpson
Since 1978, women have comprised the majority of realtors across the nation. While women have created their space in the industry, real estate has a long history of exclusion. When the industry took off in 1700s and 1800s, women were likely pushed to administrative roles. When the National Association of Realtors (NAR) first began in 1908, it was made up entirely of men. At the time, women were working in real estate alongside men, but were often either the widows or daughters of men in the industry, half of a mother-son or husband-wife real estate team, or newly working professionals pushed to sell due to financial necessity.
Progress for women in the real estate world can be attributed to professionals such as Corinne Simpson, who became the first female NAR member in 1910. Simpson had become a prominent agent in the Seattle area prior to becoming an official member of the NAR. While not much is known about her career, her actions inspired many women to follow her lead taking the real estate market by storm, joining local NAR groups, and eventually establishing women’s-specific groups like the Women’s Council of REALTORS?.
Simpson’s initiative to join the NAR and become the first female realtor in the nation is an example of the power and bravery that women possess.
Here’s to the trailblazing women throughout history who have fought to earn their mark in the world. We are in complete awe of the work that women have achieved over the centuries and we look forward to seeing what they will achieve next.
Responses