Women’s History Month: Badass Edition

No matter what anyone else is saying right now my God is still an awesome God and my 2020 is still going strong. I know we’re in the midst of the Coro Coro pandemic and basically isolating ourselves in our homes. But use this as an opportunity to work on a craft, read a good book or check out my old posts. *wink*

Women’s history month is a month meant to appreciate one of the biggest underdogs of society: women. It’s good we celebrate the achievements of women all across the world. This shines a light on issues not a lot of people think about like gender disparities and women’s rights. Not a lot of people realize how bad women are still being left out of the loop. As a society, we have come a long way, but there is still a lot of work that needs to be done. I mean for example why are there still pay shortages! Celebrities such as Gabriel Union, Taraji P. Henson, and Ellen Pompeo all very successful women have complained about not getting paid as much as their male counterparts. Even though they would do the same work or even better, be the main star of the show!

Women who have made a change

I obviously can’t list every woman that has made a difference in the world. I honestly think every woman that’s not evil or has killed babies has done something to make an impact on someone’s else life. But to keep this list short and sweet I have compiled a list of women I feel are badass females.

Gladys Bently

Did you know that the life expectancy for trans women in the U.S is 35? 35?! Gladys Bently was a gender-fluid blues performer in the 1920s. She was one of the first in her era to identify as a trans woman. Which broke the glass ceiling for a lot of performers who were still struggling with their sexual identity.

Miss. Bently with her masculine built wasnt afraid to sing her very provocative suggestive lyrics to women on stage. Even though Harlem renaissance was a time of all types of artistic expression it was still the 1920s so homosexuality was highly criticized.

Gladys Bently passed away at the age of 52. Her life might have been cut short but the impact she left is still being cherished.

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/obituaries/gladys-bentley-overlooked.html

Malala Yousafzai

I promise you if you click any link that talks about women empowerment Malala will pop up. At the age of 17, she became the youngest noble peace prize recipient after surviving an assassination attempt by the Taliban. Yousafzai became an advocate for girl’s education when this basic right was taken away from her and so many other girls at the time. Her story really makes you appreciate the little things that we can sometimes take for granted.

Nancy Pelosi

https://gph.is/g/ZPmX8DV

This is one badass female. I mean who has the type of courage to sit in a room dominated by white privileged testosterone. I’ve been a stan of her less conservative viewpoints and her undeterred rise to political stardom. But when I saw her tear Trump’s state State of the Union speech…I HAD TO STAN!

Beyonce

This is an artist I grew up listening to. Someone that I truly believe in and has lead a very unproblematic rise to stardom. I mean I will always celebrate this Houston hottie, Miss. Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter. She has consistently dominated the music industry for more than a decade which says a lot as a black female. She continues to use her platform to uplift all types of women. Her lemonade album is a powerful ode to strength, resilience, and courage. Beyonce might not say much but she is someone who uses the power of imagery to speak for what she believes in.

Meghan Markle

There was no way I wasnt going to put Miss Markle herself on this list. The first black lady to infiltrate the royal family. I mean that’s pretty iconic to me. I’m glad that she decided to leave that royal status to protect the mental health of herself and family. I mean that’s not something a lot of women are willing to give up. But she already had stardom and was making her own money from the jump. This is why; side note: Ladies never depend on a man for your livelihood!

Roxanne Gay

If you have been following me you know I have been a big fan of Miss. Gay for years now. One of my first blog posts was about her book difficult women. Just like Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie- another notable woman that I already talk about way too much about on this blog- Roxanne has been a leading voice in the feminist movement for years. Using her essays and short novels; She has also been a voice for women learning how to cope with traumatic memories such as sexual abuse.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read my blog in the midst of a crisis and I hope you all are staying safe and washing your hands! Love yall.

featured image is from HALE Collection.com