8/31/22
Name that Woman Trailblazer: This woman was an American-born French dancer, singer and actress. Her career was centered primarily in Europe, mostly in her adopted France. She was the first black woman to star in a major motion picture, the 1927 silent film Siren of the Tropics, directed by Mario Nalpas and Henri Étiévant.
Answer: Josephine Baker.
8/24/22
Name that Woman Trailblazer: This woman was the first black woman elected to the United States Congress in 1968. She represented New York’s 12th Congressional District for seven terms from 1969 to 1983. In 1972, she became the first major-party black candidate to make a bid for the presidency and the first woman to run for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination.
Answer: Shirley Chisholm.
8/17/22
Name that Woman Trailblazer: She was an English-born Australian singer, actress and activist. She was a four-time Grammy Award winner whose music career included five number-one hits and another ten top-ten hits on the Billboard Hot 100, and two number-one albums on the Billboard 200. She was also an activist for environmental and animal rights causes, and advocated for breast cancer research.
Answer: Olivia Newton-John.
8/10/22
Name that Woman Trailblazer: She ruled ancient Egypt as co-regent for almost three decades. She was part of a dynasty of Macedonian rulers founded by Ptolemy, who served as general under Alexander the Great during his conquest of Egypt in 332 B.C. Well-educated and clever, she could speak various languages and served as the dominant ruler in all three of her co-regencies.
Answer: Cleopatra.
8/3/22
Name that Woman Trailblazer: This woman played her way into national fame in 1932, when she entered the U.S. women’s track and field championship as the sole member of her team. Despite competing in team events alone, she won five events and the overall championship. Her next stop: The 1932 Los Angeles Olympics where she took home three medals—one silver and two gold.
Answer: Mildred Didrikson Zaharias.
7/27/22
Name that Woman Trailblazer: The first wife of the heir apparent to the British throne, Charles, Prince of Wales. She became well known internationally for her charity work for sick children, the banning of landmines and for raising awareness about those affected by cancer, HIV/AIDS and mental illness.
Answer: Princess Diana Spencer.
7/20/22
Name that Woman Trailblazer: Not only is she the founder of Women2Hack Academy, she also inspired a campaign for women’s rights when she defied the ban on women driving in Saudi Arabia and was imprisoned for 9 days after posting a video of her driving a car on social media.
Answer: Manal Al-Sharif.
7/13/22
Name that Woman Trailblazer: She is the first woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court and became one of its most influential justices. She was appointed by President Ronald Reagan and served from 1981-2006.
Answer: Sandra Day O’Connor.
7/06/22
Name that Woman Trailblazer: She is recognized for her decades long fight for women’s rights and journalism work, and also co-founded Ms. Magazine and the Ms. Foundation for Women.
Answer: Gloria Steinem.
6/29/22
Name that Woman Trailblazer: The answer to the trailblazer question this week is Mildred Fay Jefferson, but we wanted you to click for the answer so that we can take our moment to express our opinion on Roe v. Wade being overturned. If Mildred Fay Jefferson were alive today, we would be in opposition of her views. We stand with the right to choose and for bodily autonomy. We believe abortion is healthcare and that all people should have access to it. We are saddened and angered that the Supreme Court overturned such a cornerstone case and will do what we can to support those affected by it most.
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6/22/22
Name that Woman Trailblazer: She is considered the “mother of calypso” and composed more than 1,000 songs. She frequently wrote songs addressing social issues like racism and sexism.
Answer: Calypso Rose.
6/15/22
Name that Woman Trailblazer: She was one of the first openly transgender female tennis players in the 70’s and known for fighting to compete as a woman in the US open after gender reassignment surgery.
Answer: Renée Richards.
6/8/22
Name that Woman Trailblazer: She was the first African-American congresswoman and the first black woman to run for president, with parents from Barbados and British Guiana.
Answer: Shirley Chisholm.
6/1/22
Name that Woman Trailblazer: Often known as the “Mother of Pride”, this woman was an American bisexual rights activitist, sex-positive feminist and polyamorist, and cofounded the New York Area Bisexual Network in 1988.
Answer: Brenda Howard.
5/25/22
Name that Woman Trailblazer: This Albanian-born Indian citizen was the founder of the Missionaries of Charity and remains one of the most well-known humanitarians of the 20th century. She dedicated her life to helping the poor, the diseased, and the unwanted all around the world.
Answer: Mother Teresa.
5/18/22
Name that Woman Trailblazer: A Pakistani activist, she survived an assassination attack by the Taliban and became an internationally famous human rights and education advocate, particularly for women. She won the Nobel Peace Prize (2014) and become the youngest-ever Nobel laureate.
Answer: Malala Yousafzai.
5/11/22
Name that Woman Trailblazer: A Hawaiian native, she was the first woman of color and first Asian American elected to the U.S. Congress in 1964. She introduced various legislation measures that reformed the U.S. education system, so much so that Title IX was renamed after her death in 2002.
Answer: Patsy Mink.
5/4/22
Name that Woman Trailblazer: Deeply motivated by her own treatment as a female mountaineer, she was famous for breaking stereotypes about women and became the first women to climb Mount Everest and ascend the Seven Summits.
Answer: Junko Tabei.
4/27/22
Name that Woman Trailblazer: An American lawyer and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1993 until her death in 2020.
Answer: Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
4/20/22
Name that Woman Trailblazer: She was born into slavery and became the first African American woman to win a case against a white man when she sued her former master for selling her 5 year old son. She delivered her famous speech “Ain’t I a woman?” at the 1850 first National Women’s Rights Convention.
Answer: Sojourner Truth.