Women's History Month: Jeannette Rankin

It's Tuesday, and that means it's time for another badass woman to spotlight. Today, we're looking at Jeannette Rankin, the first woman to serve in the United States Congress.

                                              (Credit: Biography)

Born in Montana on June 11, 1880, Rankin was the oldest of six children, who had a reputation for doing things that, at the time, girls just didn't do. She would often help the ranch hands with their machinery, and once, actually built a sidewalk single-handedly, to help her father rent a building.

Graduating in 1902 from the University of Montana with a bachelor's degree in Biology, Rankin was undecided on where to go next. She attempted both furniture design and dressmaking, though neither one was right for her. From 1908-1909, she attended the New York School of Philanthropy, and afterwards moved to Spokane, Washington. There, she worked as a social worker for a short amount of time, before attending the University of Washington and involving herself in the woman's suffrage movement.

Elected to the House of Representatives in 1916, she stated that "I may be the first woman member of Congress, but I won't be the last." She served two terms in Congress, both coinciding with each World War. She helped pass the 19th Amendment, giving women the right to vote, and was the only member of Congress who voted against declaring war on Japan after the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor.

After her terms in Congress, Rankin did a lot of traveling, especially to India, where she studied the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi. As the second wave of feminism began to take shape in the 1960's and 70's, Rankin was seen as an inspiration and in 1968, the Jeannette Rankin Brigade was formed by a coalition of women's peace groups. 

Passing away at the age of 92 in 1973, Rankin's legacy rests largely on her pacifism. Though, as she herself said, "I want to be remembered as the only woman who ever voted to give women the right to vote." 

Women's History Month: Anna Freud

Happy Thursday, beauties! And Happy Women's History Month! Today, the spotlight will be on Anna Freud, daughter of Sigmund and the founder of child psychoanalysis. 

                                    (Arriving in Paris in 1938, with her father).
                                                  (Credit: BBC News)

Born in Vienna on December 3, 1895, Anna was the last of Sigmund and Martha Freud's six children. Though not extremely close with her mother or siblings, Anna did have a close bond with her father. It was through this bond that she was first introduced to psychoanalysis at the age of 14. Not really one for school, Anna learned more from her father and his guests at their home, picking up languages such as German, French and Italian. 

In 1918, Anna began psychoanalysis with her father, and started to become seriously involved in his profession. In 1922, her analysis was completed, when she then presented a paper to the Vienna Psychoanalytic Society, and became a member. She began her own practice in 1923, dedicated to the psychoanalysis of children, and two years later, was teaching at the Vienna Psychoanalytic Training Institute. Anna was secretary of the International Psychoanalytical Association from 1925 to 1934, continuing her work with children and conducting seminars and conferences. 

Due to the Nazi harassment of Jews in Vienna, the Freud's fled to London in 1938. She continued her work in London while simultaneously caring for her father, who succumbed to cancer in the fall of 1939. Shortly thereafter, during World War II, Anna set up a center for young victims of war called the Hampstead War Nursery, where children would get foster care. Due to her work with Hampstead, Anna published a series of studies on the impact that stress has on children and the ability to find affections when their parents could not give them. 

From the 1950's onward, Anna would travel to America, giving lectures and teaching. In 1959, she became a Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. She also taught seminars on crime and family at Yale Law School in the 1970's, leading to Beyond the Best Interests of the Child, published in 1973 with Joseph Goldstein and Albert Solnit. 

Anna Freud passed away on October 9, 1982 in London. A year later, in 1983, her collected works were published, and a year after that, in 1984, the Hampstead center was renamed the "Anna Freud Center." Her home in London became the Freud Museum, per her wishes, and is dedicated to her father. 

                                               (Credit: Glogster)

Women's History Month: Victoria Woodhull

Since March is Women's History Month (yay, we get a whole month! *sense the sarcasm*), I thought that each Tuesday and Thursday throughout the month, I would spotlight a woman (or group of women) that might not get the coverage that she/they deserve(s). She might be a woman who is currently a dynamo in her chosen field, or she might be a woman who, 200 years ago, kicked ass and took names (which I'm fairly sure was a prevalent phrase then). 

Before I spotlight today's beauty, a little background on Women's History Month: In 1981, Congress passed Pub. L. 97-28, which asked the President to designate the week of March 7, 1982 as "Women's History Week." It became "Women's History Month" in 1987, after being petitioned by the Women's History Project. You can read much more information about how it came to pass and the glorious women who it celebrates by visiting the Women's History Month website. 

                                                              Victoria Woodhull

I feel it's only fitting to start this series off with the first female to run for the United States Presidency, hash tag like a boss. Born in 1838, in Homer, Ohio, Victoria Woodhull created a radical publication entitled Woodhull and Claflin's Weekly, in which a number of different activist topics, such as free love, women's suffrage and birth control, were discussed. Interestingly, the publication was the first to publish the full English translation of Karl Marx's Communist Manifesto. 

Woodhull married Canning Woodhull at the age of 15, with whom she had two children. They later divorced and Woodhull remarried, to a Colonel James H. Blood in 1864, who introduced her to several reform movements. Victoria and Blood divorced in 1876, and she then married a wealthy English banker, John Biddulph Martin, in 1883. Before she ran for the Presidency, Woodhull and her sister, Tennessee Celeste Claflin, started the first female-run stock brokerage company with the help of Cornelius Vanderbilt, who, recently widowed, appreciated the solace Woodhull and her sister provided, therefore setting the sisters up in business. 

As she sought a way to become more politically active, Woodhull started the Equal Rights Party and soon after, ran for the Presidency in 1872 on the party's ticket, long before women even had the right to vote. The election quickly took a disastrous turn and she publicly fought her critics in Weekly. 

Moving to England in 1877, Woodhull focused on her writing and even published a magazine with her daughter for nine years, The Humanitarian. Dying in 1927, Woodhull was a jack of all trades, and a strong proponent of the rights of women. If you want to read more about this incredible woman, 9 Things You Should Know About Victoria Woodhull, is an excellent place to start. 

                                                      (Credit: New York Historical Society)

Monday Monday...

There are quite a few things that I tolerate in life, but judging women for deciding to stay at home with their children is certainly not one of them. This morning, while doing my morning Facebook perusal, I came across a status of someone who I thought was an absolute advocate for women. What I read instead, broke my heart and resulted in an immediate deletion and blocking. Not only did this person judge women for deciding to stay at home to raise their children, they then judged them for going back to school or work after their children were grown, with comments I won't deign to retype here. You cannot call yourself an advocate for women's rights when you degrade an entire segment of the female population for doing what they believe is the right thing for them and their family. That's utter BS. I don't have time for women who belittle other women. Plain and simple. 

                                                     (Preach, girl.)

On a lighter note, happy March! This month will be the one year anniversary of this little section of the Internet and I am so pleased. The response I have had to my blog has been so kind and wonderful and I am delighted that you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy writing it. I'm so looking forward to another year of feminist rants, hot British dudes, lady friends and preaching positivity in all aspects of life. 

Enjoy your Monday, beauties!

Ladyfriend Thursday: Miranda Hart

I must first start out this post by saying that if you haven't yet seen The Imitation Game, you need to immediately. It's such a wonderful, heartbreaking, beautiful movie. Put it on your "to see" list ASAP. 

Ladyfriend Thursday is finally back! I can hear your screams of delight from here! And I want to get back into the swing of things with a current favorite of mine, Miranda Hart, who is most well known for her eponymous BBC sitcom, Miranda and as Chummy on Call the Midwife. I just purchased her book "Is It Just Me?" and I cannot wait to get started! I have a massive crush on this chick. 

I've always been drawn to funny women, but especially to women who own the hell out of themselves and their awkwardness. I find her to be such a relatable woman and whenever I find myself a bit sad, hers is the first show I turn on. There are very few people who can make me laugh so hard that I fail at being able to complete a coherent sentence, but Miranda Hart is certainly one of them. Does anyone have any ideas about how to go about becoming her best friend? Because---YES. ALL OF THE YES. If I were able to have a dream dinner party, she would definitely be on the guest list. 

What about you, beauties? Who are the women that are topping the list for your dream dinner parties? Let me know in the comments, I would love to hear! 

Bits and Pieces....

Thank you to everyone who understood where I was coming from on the social media front. Facebook has just gotten a little tiring for me, and not everything has to be documented for posterity. I'm not getting rid of it, just cutting down my usage and only posting when some big life event occurs, like a new job or I marry Prince Harry after a whirlwind courtship.

Who watched the Parks and Rec series finale last night? That show will always be first in friendship in my heart. The whole cast was on Late Night with Seth Meyers afterwards, which was wonderful. AND they ended the interview with a cast sing-a-long of "5,000 Candles in the Wind!" We will miss you in the saddest fashion, Pawnee. 

Tomorrow, I'm heading to see The Imitation Game with my uncle, and I cannot wait! I've heard such wonderful things about the movie and am anxious to see it. Plus, girl likes herself a big ol' bucket of popcorn for lunch (YOU'RE WELCOME, MOTHER). Review forthcoming. :) 

I know this post is a bit all over place, I WILL get back to posts that aren't ridiculous tomorrow, with a new Ladyfriend Thursday! I can feel your excitement from here. :)

A "throw it at the wall and see what sticks" kind of Tuesday...

Thank you to all of the kind and wonderful responses to yesterday's post. It really makes me happy to know I'm not alone in ever having feeling that way. I'll try to make today's post a bit more cheerful. 

Is anyone else getting super tired of Facebook? I love it as a way to stay in touch with friends and family, and to be a total lurker when I want to be, but it's starting to get a bit monotonous. And I've found in the last few weeks, that I've gotten pretty heavily offended. Look, I'm not a prude by any stretch of the imagination, but when you're putting certain INCREDIBLY graphic images on your feed or claiming you've been hacked and then just laughing it off, it's a bit ridiculous. Especially when you're quite a bit older than my generation (okay, perhaps I am a bit of a Penelope Prude, DEAL). Now, when I feel myself wanting to be a creeper on social media, I try to pick up a book instead or turn to Netflix. In fact, I'll only be alerting my new posts on my blog's Facebook page now, not on my personal page anymore. So, please like it if you haven't already!

Finally started Parenthood yesterday and what a treasure it already is. (Fun fact: I had originally typed that without italicizing it. No worries, NOT YET A MOTHER. To my knowledge). In addition to the "classic books to read" list I just made in my phone, I also put a "Netflix Bingewatch" edition. So, my cool factor has raised pretty exponentially. 

Tonight is the series finale of Parks and Recreation, and I don't think I'm emotionally prepared. I'm not ready to say goodbye to Pawnee, Indiana and all of it's eccentricities yet! SIGH. The wine will be out in full force.

Also, I don't know how many of you watch Downton Abbey, but Lady Edith is on Instagram! Or, more accurately, Laura Carmichael, the actress who portrays her is. I am currently delighted.

Until tomorrow, beauties! Stay warm and cozy.