According to James Brown, “this is a man’s world,” but the following 15 women prove feminine power is undeniable in shaping the world we live in today. These women have revolutionized everyday tasks with their inventions, smashed the glass ceiling to smithereens in the business world, fought for our freedom during the Civil Rights Movement and continue to push for further inclusion and diversity in the media for future generations to come. Let these ladies inspire you to think outside of the box and to find a window when it seems like all the doors are closed. Happy Women’s History Month!
Rosa Parks
Best known for her refusal to leave her seat for a white passenger on a segregated bus in Montgomery, Alabama, Rosa Parks sparked a citywide boycott of buses that led to a law desegregating buses across the nation. She was a trained civil rights activist, who worked as the secretary to the President of the NAACP until 1957. Her trial inspired further efforts to desegregate public places in a peaceful manner, solidifying her name in the history books as one of the most influential people in the fight for racial equality.
Rosa also worked with Planned Parenthood and founded the Rosa and Raymond Parks Institute for Self-Development, which uses bus tours to educate young people about Black history. She has published two books and received numerous accolades for her work in the Civil Rights Movement. After her passing in 2005, she was also immortalised in a statue and postal stamp on the anniversary of what would have been her 100th birthday by President Obama in 2013.
Marjorie Joyner
Marjorie was a beauty salon owner, who changed the game of hair styling when she invented the “permanent wave machine.” Her perm machine simplified the process of straightening and curling hair for all women; it allowed women to achieve a long-lasting style without the hassle of heating up numerous rods in an oven. She also invented a scalp protector to make the experience less painful. The perm machine made Marjorie the first Black woman in history to receive a patent for her work, but unfortunately all the royalties and rights to her invention went to Madame C.J. Walker’s business, as a stipulation of her employment with her as a National Supervisor of her Beauty Colleges.
In addition to her inventions, Marjorie worked tirelessly to improve the lives of her fellow beauticians and hair stylists. She did this by co-founding the United Beauty School Owners and Teachers Association in 1945 with Mary McLeod Bethune. She also raised money for Black colleges and founded the Alpha Chi Pi Omega sorority and fraternity to raise the standards for beauticians.
Mary Kenner
Mary received five patents in her lifetime for household items including the sanitary belt (maxi pads), the bathroom tissue holder, a back washer that mounted on the wall of the shower and the carrier attachment on walkers for disabled people. She worked as a florist and credited her father for encouraging her creativity during her childhood. Despite her major success, Mary maintained that she created these items because she enjoyed making life easier for people and it was never about the money.
Ruane Jeter
Ruane was most notably the inventor of the toaster, but along with the help of Sheila Lynn Jeter, they created many items of stationery. This included sheathed scissors, the stapler, a staple remover and many multi-purpose office supplies. Her toaster had a digital clock that timed how long food should stay in depending on how well done you wanted it. This toaster could also be used for bagels, waffles and pop tarts, in addition to bread. They were prime examples of how to follow through on your ideas.
Alice Parker
Alice designed a gas heating furnace, which led to the modern version of central heating that we use today. Her design negated the need to stock and burn wood in a traditional furnace for heat, making the system a lot safer for people to operate and regulate. She recognized the need for this improved design, when like the rest of us, she grew tired of being freezing and found the fireplace ineffective in warming the rest of her house.
Anna Tibaijuka
Anna was the second highest-ranked Black female in the United Nations, as the Executive of the UN-HABITAT program, until her resignation in 2010. During her time at the UN she greatly increased the budget and role of the program and has fought tirelessly for the rights of impoverished women. The program helps to improve the living conditions of people around the world and to tackle the issues surrounding urbanisation, poverty and overcrowding.
Anna now works as a member of parliament in Tanzania, where she was raised. She has worked as an economics professor and in various factions of the UN. She has also held various positions of power within the Tanzanian government and has won numerous accolades for her contributions.
Mary McLeod Bethune
Mary was a pioneer for education and a civil rights activist. She believed in the importance of education as a vehicle for racial advancement and worked hard to make sure that young people had the knowledge they needed to move forward. She founded Daytona Normal and Industrial Institute for Negro Girls, which later became the Bethune-Cookman College, one of the few places where African-Americans could get a college degree. She also worked with the National Association of Colored Women and eventually became its leader in 1924.
She aided several presidents and offered advice on child welfare and minority affairs. She started the National Council of Negro Women, worked with NAACP and went on to be the director of the Division of Negro Affairs of the National Youth Administration, helping young people to find employment. After her passing in 1955, she was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame, immortalized on a stamp and has her own council building.
Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf
Ellen is the world’s first elected Black female President and Africa’s first female Head of State. During her campaign for Presidency, she vowed to boost Liberia’s economy and get rid of the corruption and civil war plaguing the country. Liberia’s President also spoke out against Charles Taylor’s brutal regime of violence and worked towards getting him extradited in 2006. In 2011 she shared a Nobel Peace Prize with Leymah Gbowee and Tawakkol Karman “for their nonviolent struggle for the safety of women and for women’s rights to full participation in peace-building work.”
Coretta Scott King
Coretta is known as the wife of Dr Martin Luther King, but she was also a famed activist in her own right for civil rights, women’s rights and against war. She participated in the Montgomery bus boycott, worked to pass the Civil Rights Act and founded the Center for Non-Violent Social Change after her husband’s assassination. She was a talented singer and violin player with multiple degrees, which is how she met Martin, while studying at university in Boston.
After his death, she worked as a syndicated columnist writing about social issues and became a regular commentator on CNN. Coretta wrote a book and pushed for a retrial of Martin’s alleged killer, as well as ensuring that Martin’s birthday became a national holiday. She also fought hard for LGBT rights and left behind a legacy of peace and equality, similar to her husband’s: “I believe all Americans who believe in freedom, tolerance and human rights have a responsibility to oppose bigotry and prejudice based on sexual orientation.”
Condoleezza Rice
Condoleezza was the first Black woman to serve as the US National Security Adviser and Secretary of State. She was also the first Black female to hold the position of provost at Stanford University, where she also worked as a professor and went back to after her time in the White House. She has written several political books and has broken down many typically male employment structures. Her heart lies in education reform, despite her childhood dreams of being the first female President, but who knows what is in store for her bright future.
Josephine Baker
As a dancer and singer, Josephine was one of the most popular and highest-paid entertainers of her time. She also toured France and the States as a comedian and Broadway actress. She performed in controversial, revealing outfits, such as a skirt made entirely out of bananas, which made her memorable to French audiences. In her home country of America, her performances were met with racist reactions and so she tended to embrace her French audiences more.
She married multiple times and earned military honours for her efforts during the French resistance. She had 12 adopted children from different ethnic backgrounds, who she referred to as the ‘rainbow tribe’, and used as an example of how different races can live together harmoniously. She participated in several boycotts and demonstrations against segregation, which the NAACP honoured by giving her her own day.
Beverly Bond
The model slash DJ has impressed crowds and celebrities alike with her passion for music and ability to read her audience. In 2006 she took these talents a step further and founded the Black Girls Rock mentoring organization and Awards show on BET. She used this platform to celebrate the achievements of women of color and highlight the diverse skills this group of women have to affect change in the world. Her efforts have been recognised by the NAACP and various media publications to uplift her community and help to motivate the younger generation to achieve better.
Debra Lee
As the Chairman and CEO of BET, Debra is responsible for bringing quality programming to 89 million homes in America. She is a highly respected businesswoman, who has received multiple accolades for her work in broadcasting. Debra has also worked in publishing and sits on the board of directors at Revlon and Marriott, among other profitable businesses. She created the Centric network and aims to broadcast TV shows “with a message” that portray African-Americans in a better light. She has shifted the focus of BET from women-degrading music videos to more female empowerment programming.
Iman
Iman used her impressive career as a model to create a platform for her cosmetics line, which is aimed at women of color. She started her business after growing tired of being put in the wrong shade of make-up and not being able to find alternatives without mixing her own. She is an author and a philanthropist for Congolese women and girls. During her time in fashion, she was known for refusing to portray negative stereotypes in her shoots and for challenging journalists on their offensive portrayals of Black women. She is highly educated and was happily married to the late singer David Bowie. She also worked with the BBC to make a documentary about her home country of Somalia to challenge stereotypes further and to help raise awareness of the poverty there.
Oprah Winfrey
Media mogul, Oprah Winfrey, is one of the most influential people in the media industry and one of the few female billionaires in the world. She is a producer, philanthropist, actress, publisher and talk show host. She has her own television network and magazine and is one of the most respected interviewers in the world, often getting her subjects to reveal deeply personal stories. She has given authors a huge platform on her shows and has written many books about her experiences. She also inspired people with her weight loss journey and has raised more than $51 million for charity programs. She is a dedicated activist for children’s rights and in 2013 she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Obama for her contributions to society.
These women are just a handful of the many who have made a huge difference to the world through their work and hopefully they will inspire even more women to go on and do great things.