These famous women have marked history and have become role models for present and future generations. Some have distinguished themselves in the fight for women's rights. Others have shone in their field: scientific, artistic, and political. Simone de Beauvoir, Marie Curie, Audrey Hepburn… It's time to pay homage to them.
They come from different countries and times, but these women all have one thing in common: they inspire us. They are the first to have started this long path which is the fight for equality between men and women. We intend to follow in their footsteps.
These women who fought for women's rights
The beginnings of feminism with Olympe de Gouges
They lived during times when women were relegated to the background. But far from letting it go, they decided to fight.
To fight for their voice to be heard and to no longer be subject to moral and social codes.
It all started the day after the French Revolution with Olympe de Gouges. This writer and politician is an activist for women's rights.
She is considered the pioneer of French feminism. In 1791, she wrote the Declaration of the Rights of Woman and Citizen.
She deals with very topical subjects: the fight against tyranny and for social justice, the fight against the death penalty, gender equality...
Unfortunately, she will end up guillotined for her overly avant-garde ideas.
An uncompromising struggle for the emancipation of women
Centuries later, many women continued the fight against Olympe de Gouges. Simone de Beauvoir, for example, with her novel The Second Sex.
She put forward theses on the condition of women that were far ahead of her time. She does not hesitate to address taboo subjects of the time such as the domination of women and abortion.
We will remember in particular this famous sentence taken from his book:
“We are not born a woman, we become one. »
In 1971 she wrote the Manifesto of 343. A French petition for the decriminalization and legalization of abortion.
Many personalities sign it like Catherine Deneuve, Agnès Varda or François Sagan.
The latter is also very ahead of its time. At 19, she flouts the conventions of the 1950s and publishes "Bonjour Tristesse".
Scandal at the release of the novel! But the writer instantly becomes a global icon. Just like her heroine, Françoise is a free woman, who does what she wants when she wants.
Far from the patriarchal system of the time, she campaigned for the emancipation of women. Car racing, drugs, gambling, Françoise burns life at both ends.
These women who changed history
They are invested in their country
Other women inspire us with their tenacity and courage. They sometimes risked their lives to help their country.
For example, Rosa Parks 1955 refused to give up her seat to a white passenger on the bus. Despite the risks, she fought all her life against racial segregation and even ended up joining the ranks of Martin Luther King.
We also think of Josephine Baker who during the Second World War was resistant. From 1939 she became involved in French counterintelligence.
During her rounds, she extracts information from foreign military attachés. It then forwards them to the French government.
During her spy missions, the dancer risks her life on numerous occasions. But for her, it is obvious:
“It was France that made me who I am today. I owe him eternal gratitude. »
They are committed to others
Finally, several women stood out for their altruism. They have devoted a part of their life, even their whole life to others.
This is the case of Mother Teresa. For more than 40 years, she dedicated her life to the poor and the sick. First in India and then in other countries, she created orphanages, schools, and shelters for people suffering from diseases such as leprosy or AIDS.
As early as the 1970s, Audrey Hepburn abandoned her film roles to take on the role of UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador.
She left for weeks on a humanitarian mission in Ethiopia, Turkey, Sudan… On her return, she held long press conferences to alert the public to child malnutrition.
Although suffering from cancer, Audrey Hepburn will continue her mission until the end of her life.
-- We would all like to look like them! --
Amelia Earhart
Amelia Earhart is the first woman to cross the Atlantic Ocean by plane (1928). The American repeated the feat in 1932, but this time alone.
Angela Davis
Angela Davis is an American human rights activist. She fought for black rights and against the war in Vietnam.
Audrey Hepburn
 |
During the 1980s Audrey Hepburn became a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador. She travels to Ethiopia, Turkey, Venezuela, and Thailand for various humanitarian projects. She will fight until the end of her life to alert the press and the world to the fate of children suffering from malnutrition.
Coco Chanel
Coco Chanel, an emblematic figure of fashion, marked her era with her clothing lines and her perfumes. But also by his very personal style and his desire to liberate women.
Francoise Sagan
Françoise Sagan publishes her first novel at just 19 years old. "Bonjour Tristesse" is imbued with freedom, just like its author. Françoise Sagan lived the life she wanted, without submitting to moral and social codes.
Indira Gandhi
Indira Gandhi is the world's second democratically elected woman head of government. She succeeded her father as Prime Minister of India in 1966.
Josephine Baker
Joséphine Baker is first known for her talents as a dancer, singer, and actress. But it also played an important role during the Second World War. A great resistance fighter, she then used her popularity to fight against racism and for the emancipation of blacks.
Marie Curie
Marie Curie is the only woman to have won two Nobel Prizes. One in physics for his work on radioactivity and the other in chemistry. With her husband, she will discover the existence of polonium and radium.
Olympe de Gouges
Olympe de Gouges is a French writer and politician. She is considered one of the pioneers of French feminism. In 1791, she wrote the "Declaration of the Rights of Woman and Citizen".
Rosa Parks
Rosa Parks is an African-American woman, known for refusing to give up her seat on a bus to a white passenger. She then became an emblematic figure in the fight against racial segregation in the United States.
Simone de Beauvoir
Simone de Beauvoir is a French philosopher, novelist, and essayist. She is committed to the fight for the status of women.
Mother Theresa
Mother Teresa struggled all her life against poverty in Calcutta. In 2016, she was canonized by Pope Francis.
Simone Veil
In 1974, Simone Veil was appointed Minister of Health. She fights for the adoption of the law decriminalizing the recourse by a woman to abortion.
0 Comments