This month we look to Vietnam for Kickass Women. The Tru’ung Sisters led a rebellion against the Chinese in Vietnam and ruled for three years. They lived from around AD 12 to AD 43. This entry comes with a few caveats. For starters, the history of Vietnam is long and complicated and not something I presume to have digested properly in the time it took to research this post. Secondly, stories about the Tru’ung sisters … Continue reading Kickass Women in History: The Tru’ung Sisters→
The Crimean War (1853-1856) was a messy and miserable conflict between Russia and an alliance that included Sardinia, France, the Ottoman Empire, and the United Kingdom. Just to make things extra confusing, it is NOT one of the Napoleonic Wars even though during the war France was ruled by Emperor Napoleon III. If I have to keep all this straight, by golly, I’m taking you all with me. Here’s how I tell these conflicts apart: … Continue reading Kickass Women: Mary Seacole→
For this month’s Kickass Women in History, I’m highlighting the book The Three Mothers: How the Mothers of Martin Luther King, Jr, Malcolm X, and James Baldwin Shaped a Nation by Anna Malaika Tubbs. I was so impressed and moved by this story of three kickass women who have been largely ignored by history: Louise Little, Alberta Williams King, and Berdis Jones. The Three Mothers: How the Mothers of Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, and … Continue reading Kickass Women In History: Louise Little, Alberta Williams King, Berdis Jones→
This month in Kickass Women in History we salute Queen Nanny (also known as Granny or Grandy Nanny and Nanny of the Maroons) a hero of Jamaican history. Jamaica’s original inhabitants were the Arawak and Taino people. Upon Columbus’ landing in 1494, the island became the property of Spain and most of the Arawaks and Tainos were murdered or killed by disease. Spain “imported” African slaves, many of whom escaped during the violent transition from … Continue reading Kickass Women in History: Queen Nanny→
This month I’ve been reading about Virginia Hall, one of our better known Kickass Women. Virginia Hall was an American spy who recruited and organized resistance workers in France during WWII. She had a brilliant mind, a relentless work ethic, and an unparalleled ability to keep secrets and evade discovery despite being a tall, beautiful American who spoke French with a distinctly American accent and who walked with the aid of a wooden leg named … Continue reading Kickass Women in History: Virginia Hall→
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→
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→
