WE CAN DO IT!

History shows that women have long been creating solid and strong careers in different locations and various fields. Who are the women that you most admire?

Throughout much of history, women had fewer career opportunities than men, but some found a way to stand out and forge a path to create their own space, opening the way for others to follow in their steps.

Women such as Marie Curie, who, after finishing her high school diploma, had to enrol at the Flying University, a college that welcomed female students, but was constantly changing locations to avoid detection by authorities. At that time, it was still illegal for women to receive higher education in Poland. She later moved to France and, together with her husband, developed the theory of radioactivity at the beginning of 1900s. She was the first woman to receive a Physics Nobel Prize.

In the sports’ arena, we highlight Mildred Zaharias, better known as Babe, who teed her way onto the golf scene in 1934, when she was the first woman to play in an all-male PGA Tour event (the world’s premier membership organisation for touring professional golfers). To this day, Babe holds the record for the longest winning streak in golf history (male or female), a feat she accomplished between 1946 and 1947. Have you heard of the Ladies Professional Golf Association? Well, it was Babe, along with 12 other female golfers, who formed the pro tour in 1950.

Recent notable names include Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who passed away last year. An attorney, judge and associate justice of the Supreme Court, she was committed to the principle of equal justice under the law that transformed the legal landscape in the United States – mainly for women. She was one of nine women in a class of 500 students at Harvard Law School and finished at the top of her class when she graduated as a transfer to Columbia Law School. Even with high grades, she struggled to find employment and it was only in 1963 that she became a professor at Rutgers Law school, where she started to combat gender discrimination. She was a life-long and relentless fighter for civil rights. When looking into history, you find many more names on different fronts, Catherine The Great, Jane Austen, Sojourner Truth, Ada Lovelace, Edith Cowan, Rosa Parks, Maya Angelou, Amelia Earhart, and so many others. They are all an inspiration to the heroes we have today, be they successful in their modern careers or in their support for other women. Just look around; you are sure to find more amazing and empowered women than you can count on two hands. Whether the someone you look up to is a famous name or even a friend or family member or just someone you have admiration for, like your own mother.

This month in OHLALA, we’ve selected a few women in our country that have made significant achievements in their fields. Explore the following pages to get to know them a little better.