Mary Taylor was one of Charlotte Bronte’s best friends. She was a businesswoman, and author, and an ardent and vocal feminist. She had good business sense mixed with an adventurous spirit, which let her to study in several European countries, sell cattle and run a store in New Zealand, and climb Mont Blanc in Switzerland. Over time, her fame has been eclipsed by Charlotte’s, but Mary was so much more than just “Charlotte’s friend.” Mary … Continue reading Kickass Women in History: Mary Taylor→
Welcome back to Kickass Women! This month we are talking about Dr. Patricia Bath. If you’ve had cataracts, and you’ve had those cataracts treated, you can thank Dr. Bath for saving your eyesight. Patricia Bath, an ophthalmologist, was the first African-American female doctor to patent a medical invention. Her patent is for the Cataract Laserphaco Probe. This terrifyingly named device removes cataracts from people’s eyes. Dr. Bath owns five patents and also developed new strategies … Continue reading Kickass Women: Dr. Patricia Bath→
This month in Kickass Women it is my great pleasure to introduce you to Sayyida al Hurra, Islamic pirate queen. She was a woman so badass that her title (Sayyida al Hurra was technically her title, not her name) means “noble lady who is free and independent; the woman sovereign who bows to no superior authority.” FUCK YEAH, IT DOES. I’m writing that on all my nametags from now on. According to my best friend … Continue reading Kickass Women in History: Sayyida al Hurra→
This month in Kickass Women, it’s time to examine the life of Edith Cavell, a nurse who was famously executed by the Germans in WWI and who turned into a symbol of English heroism. Edith Cavell was born into a very conventional village family near Norwich, England, in 1865. Her father was a vicar, and her family seems to have been strict but loving. Her first job was as a governess for a family in … Continue reading Kickass Women in History: Edith Cavell→
Here on Kickass Women, I like to focus on women who aren’t already well-known. But sometimes I write about women who are well-known – just not for everything they’ve actually done. One such woman is Dr. Ruth Westheimer, sex therapist, radio and television celebrity, and sniper. Yeah, that was a thing. One of the interesting things I discovered in my research (which was all conducted online) is that Dr. Ruth is almost always referred to … Continue reading Kickass Women in History: Dr. Ruth Westheimer→
When I was researching my Kickass Women column for February 2016 on Mata Hari, I went down many Internet rabbit holes, as one does. Somehow I found myself on TV Tropes where it was pointed out that Josephine Baker out-Mata Hari’ed Mata Hari by being a very successful dancer-turned-spy for the French Resistance during WWII. I also discovered that Josephine Baker adopted a ton of children and raised them in a castle. Why does everything … Continue reading Kickass Women in History: Josephine Baker→
This month in Kickass Women, we’re talking about Mata Hari, infamous spy…or not. Mata Hari became a famous symbol of the dangers of a sexually liberated woman, but all she seems to have really done is have a lot of fun and some really great sex, with an unfortunately huge dollop of appropriation along the way. Mata Hari was born Margarethe Geertruida Zelle, in Holland in 1876. Her father, a businessman, spoiled her rotten right … Continue reading Kickass Women in History: Mata Hari→
Welcome back to Kickass Women! This month we are paying tribute to Loreta Janeta Velazquez, a woman who was born in Cuba and ended up serving as a soldier and spy during the Civil War. Much of what we know about Loreta’s life comes from her memoirs, in which fact may or may not have taken a backseat to entertainment value. But even allowing for embellishment, she led a kickass life, albeit one that was … Continue reading Kickass Women in History: Loreta Janet Velazquez→
If there’s anything I love about the Internet, it’s the assurance that I won’t be disappointed if I Google “Chinese Pirate Queen.” This month’s Kickass Women is Ching Shih, also known as Madame Ching, also known as Cheng I Sao. She ruled the seas with an iron hand and retired so she could spend her golden years perched on big bags of money. She was a badass, and while of course her story is embellished … Continue reading Kickass Women: Ching Shih, Pirate Queen→
This month’s Kickass Woman is Mary Wollstonecraft. I am sad to say that Mary Wollstonecraft never, to my knowledge, literally kicked anyone in or on the ass, although I’m happily writing fanfic in my head in which Wollstonecraft spends her days beating up her oppressors with Regency English Kung Fu. In real life, Mary was a kickass woman in the sense that she insisted on living her life on her own terms, she was a … Continue reading Kickass Women in History: Mary Wollstonecraft→
The medieval Icelandic Sagas appear to be a mix of fact and fiction – and no one can agree about which parts are which. Both The Saga of Erik the Red and The Saga of the Greenlanders talk about a woman named Gudrid, who was born in Iceland and who travelled at various times to Greenland, Vinland, Norway, Rome, and eventually to Iceland again where she lived out her days as a nun. While little … Continue reading Kickass Women: Gudrid the Far Traveller→
