Influential Women of the Month

Courtesy of The Social Work Exam

Courtesy of The Social Work Exam

Grace Rector '17, Staff Writer

We know Malala Yousafzai. We know Rosa Parks. We know Amelia Earhart.

But do you know Dorothy Height? Nellie Bly? Jerrie Cobb?

It is extremely important to appreciate the incredible works of the more recognizable and known women. However, many other women who have devoted their lives to issues that are not easy to solve are often overlooked. Though these women have names that do not sound as familiar as the ladies above nor are they alive today, their contributions to society should still be noted and applauded.

Dorothy Height thoroughly supported African-American and women’s rights movements. She was also the president of the National Council of Negro Women from 1957 to 1997 where she worked tirelessly to raise awareness about issues such as poverty, voting rights, and AIDS. Due to her incredible contributions, she was named as the “godmother of the civil rights movement” after her death.

Courtesy of The Social Work Exam

 

Nellie Bly worked as an investigative journalist; her most notable work was an expose depicting the realities and inner workings of a mental institution. She had obtained the information for the literary piece by actually pretending to be mentally ill and immersing herself in their world. She was one of the first investigative journalists to go undercover in order to achieve such a detailed assessment, in an effort to highlight the abuse, neglect, and mistreatment that mental patients endure. Her compositions were so influential that many people were compelled to donate money to reform mental hospitals.

Courtesy of The Daily Beast

 

Jerrie Cobb is most known for her contributions to aviation and space travel. Her father served as a military pilot, and his talents encouraged her to start working as a pilot at the mere age of 19. By age 21, she flew military fighters and bombers all over the world. Because she was a woman, she experienced a lot of hardship and discrimination from her male counterparts. However, she pushed their insolence aside and went on to set new world records for speed, distance, and absolute altitude. Because of her brilliant feats, she was not only invited to be a consultant for NASA, but she would go on to become NASA’s first female astronaut candidate.

Courtesy of Women You Should Know

These are only a few of the many notable women who contributed to society through the talents they possessed. These ladies show us that one does not need to do something huge to do good; in fact, simply using one’s talents to better the society in any way possible is really the best way to change the world.

Look around you and see what female heroes you have in your life.

You know Dorothy Height. You know Nellie Bly. You know Jerrie Cobb.

Are you next?