Thanks to Wonder Women: 25 Innovators, Inventors, and Trailblazers Who Changed History, by Sam Maggs , I heard about Ogino Ginko, the first woman doctor in Japan. This woman broke barriers by means of intelligence and persistence, and to the question “marriage or career?” she answered, “Why not both?” Ogino was born in 1851. She married a banker when she was sixteen and divorced him three years later after he gave her gonorrhea. Her treatments … Continue reading Kickass Women in History: Ogino Ginko→
Today’s Kickass Women doubles as a SQUEE grade book review. Balloonomania Belles by Sharon Wright is a comprehensive, fun, and sometimes harrowing look at female aeronauts (who flew balloons) and parachutists (who jumped out of them) from the first days of ballooning through the Edwardian Era. This book is easy to read, well organized, and comprehensive. However, it’s not very technical so for the mechanics of ballooning and parachuting, you’ll want to look elsewhere. Additionally, … Continue reading Kickass Women in History: Balloonomania Belles→
This month in Kickass Women in History, we celebrate the life of Manuela Sáenz y Aizpuru, “La Libertadora del Libertador.” This woman saved the life of Simón Bolívar and worked tirelessly to end Spanish colonial rule over South America. Sáenz was born in 1797 to an unwed mother. She was a tomboy and loved riding horses. Sent to a convent at one point, she got kicked out when she was seventeen after being seduced by … Continue reading Kickass Women in History: Manuela Sáenz y Aizpuru→
During the fight for women’s suffrage in California, the support of Latinx voters was essential. Maria Guadalupe Evangelina Lopez fought for suffrage, taught at the high school and university level, flew an airplane, and was an ambulance driver in WWI. She was the first (confirmed) Latina to teach at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) and, as of 1902, their youngest professor. She was also the first person in The United States of America … Continue reading Kickass Women in History: Maria Guadalupe Evangelina Lopez→
This month’s Kickass Women is also a book review (Grade: A!). In Marmee and Louisa, we learn of a well-known kickass woman, Louisa May Alcott, and one much less well known – Louisa’s mother, the amazing Abigail. Marmee and Louisa: The Untold Story of Louisa May Alcott and Her Mother, is a biography that focuses on the relationship between Louisa May Alcott (author of Little Women) and her mother, Abigail May Alcott. It is a … Continue reading Kickass Women in History: Louisa May Alcott and Abigail Alcott→
Many of us today know of Malala Yousafzai, the Pakastani activist for women’s education. This month’s Kickass Women is in honor of her namesake, Malalai of Maiwand (1861-1880). Malalai was a heroine in the Afghanistan rebellion against the British in the Second Anglo-Afghan War. This war, which lasted from 1878 to 1880, involved Afghanistan’s attempt to prevent British colonization. Malalai’s story involves the fight against colonialism, women at war, and the power of romantic poetry … Continue reading Kickass Women in History: Malalai of Maiwand→
This month I give you not one Kickass Woman but rather twenty-nine, as profiled in the graphic non-fiction book Brazen: Rebel Ladies Who Rocked the World . I loved this book so much that I couldn’t resist sharing it with you all. The panels are simple and classical in style (mostly rectangles), which allows for the focus to be on the information presented. The art is clever and colorful and the text is packed with … Continue reading Kickass Women: Brazen by Pénélope Bagieu→
This month our Kickass Woman is Audre Lorde, poet, librarian, and activist who is famous but not as famous as perhaps she should be. I recently read her book Zami: A Biomythography and knew I had to feature this amazing woman in our column. Audre Lorde was born “Audrey” in 1934 but as a child she dropped the ‘y’ because she liked the way ‘Audre’ looked on a page. Her parents came to New York … Continue reading Kickass Women in History: Audre Lorde→
Thanks to a recommendation from Dennis, we have Fannie Sellins as this month’s Kickass Woman in History. Sellins was a labor rights activist who lived from 1872 to 1919. She was murdered while fighting for the rights of miners in Pennsylvania. For much of her life, Sellins (born Fannie Mooney) lived a typical urban working-class life. Sellins was born in Cincinnati, but her family soon moved to St. Louis. Her father was a house painter … Continue reading Kickass Women in History: Fannie Sellins→
This month’s Kickass Women in History doubles as a book review. Jill Heinerth is a cave diver who recently published Into the Planet: My Life as a Cave Diver. Heinerth specializes in exploring new underwater caves. She is also a writer, photographer, and filmmaker. Heinerth grew up in Canada, near Toronto. She learned to dive recreationally while working as a graphic artist. She loved diving so much that she left her lucrative business to become … Continue reading Kickass Women in History: Jill Heinerth→
This month’s Kickass Women features Zelda Jackson (Jackie) Ormes, the first Black woman to be a professional cartoonist. Her cartoon strips discussed racism and sexism as well as fashion, dating, and family. Ormes was born in Pittsburgh in 1911. Her father died when she was six and she was raised by an aunt and uncle and, later, by her mother and stepfather. She launched her professional career as a sports reporter, proofreader and freelance news … Continue reading Kickass Women in History: Jackie Ormes→
