inspirational Women of the last 100 Years

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THE MOST INSPIRATIONAL WOMEN OF THE LAST 100 YEARS

History is rife with examples of obstacles, challenges, and bias against women, despite this, or perhaps in response to such adversity, women have risen to the challenge over the centuries. Here we celebrate a few women who we believe have broken down barriers and will continue to inspire women for generations to come...

MARGRET THATCHER: 1925-2013

She was a woman who divided a nation for many she was a source of inspiration for others she was a force to be reckoned with but one thing stood firm and that was her lion-hearted love for Great Britain. Baroness Thatcher was Britain’s first and only female prime minister, her death in 2013 as did her life created mass hysteria & news, many mourned but some also.

For those who have watched the Netflix series the Crown it is instantly recognisable that as the first women to be the head of government of a Western democracy, she was a towering figure in post-war British and world politics where her presence on the world stage sent a powerful message. But Thatcher was far from a prop on that stage. She was major player, talking as tough as she walked. With words she comforted a nation in the wake of terror attacks and emboldened women to chart their own destinies. But with words too, she launched a war and eviscerated her opponents. Nicknamed the “Iron Lady” by the Soviet press after a 1976 speech declaring that “the Russians are bent on world dominance,” Thatcher was a woman with high standards and a short temper. After becoming both a chemist and a barrister and having two children, in 1959 Thatcher saw her long-held political ambitions realized when she became a Member of Parliament in the Conservative Party. Twenty years later, she found herself the Prime Minister. Serving from 1979 to 1990, she served three consecutive terms, marking the longest stay in office since 1894 a title still upheld today.

In her 11 years at the top, she advocated for the privatization of state enterprises and industries, she took on the trade unions and reduced social expenditures across the board working against a fair amount of resistance, to turn Britain into a more entrepreneurial, free-market economy, and is credited along with her conservative partner across the Atlantic, President Ronald Reagan, with helping hasten the demise of the Soviet Union.

She will most notably be remembered for her doggedness determination when Argentina invaded the Falklands, where she despatched a task force to the South Atlantic driving the enemy off the islands in an incomparable military operation 8,000 miles from home and her staunch defiance against Arthur Scargill’s nationwide and year-long miners’ strike, which threatened to cripple Britain’s entire economic base.

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MARIE CURIE: 1867- 1934

Marie Curie is one of the most celebrated women in the history of modern science. A pioneer in the field of radiology, she accomplished an impressive number of firsts: she was the first person to be honoured with not just one, but two Nobel Prizes, one each in physics and chemistry. She was also the first female professor in the centuries-long history of the University of Paris. Along with her husband, also an accomplished scientist, she helped set the groundwork for a modern understanding of radioactivity – a term that Curie actually coined herself.

Named Maria Sklodowska she was born in Warsaw, Poland in 1867. The daughter of a schoolteacher, she received a basic education at local schools and learned the rudiments of science from her father. Women were not allowed to attend the University of Warsaw at the time, and Maria and her patriotic Polish family chaffed under Russian rule. At the age of 23yrs, she left for Paris, where she obtained degrees in Physics and Math. There she met Pierre Curie, a professor of physics; it was here that the two began a life-long collaboration in life and science.

Her achievements included a theory of radioactivity, techniques for isolating radioactive isotopes, and the discovery of two elements, polonium and radium. Under her direction, the world’s first studies were conducted into the treatment of neoplasms, using radioactive isotopes.

She also founded the Curie Institutes in Paris and in Warsaw, which still remains a major centre of medical research today. Her work with radiation is now part of the most sophisticated cancer-treatment protocols in the world, though she herself succumbed to leukaemia after decades of daily radiation exposure.

INDIRA GANDHI: 1917 – 1984

Hailing from one of the world’s most politically influential families, she was the nation’s daughter.

Brought up under the close watch of both her father Jawaharlal Nehru, who was India’s first Prime Minister after decades of British rule, and to her country, Indira was India’s Iron Lady.

When Indira Gandhi was elected Prime Minister in 1966, a TIME cover line read, “Troubled India in a Woman’s Hands.” She was elected four times as the Prime Minister of the state skills and tenacity, she developed strong international relations with several countries including the Soviet Union and China. Furthermore her steady hands went on to steer India, not without controversy, through recession, famine, the detonation of the nation’s first atomic bomb, a corruption scandal and a civil war in neighbouring Pakistan that, under her guidance, led to the creation of a new state, Bangladesh.

Ending her political career of 46 years, Prime Minister Gandhi was assassinated on the lawn of her house on the October 31, 1984 by two of her own Sikh bodyguards. It is widely believed that her disputes with the Sikhs provoked them to claim revenge on her for the massive attack against the holy Sikh shrine, the “Golden Temple”, four months prior to her assassination.

Indira Gandhi was an extraordinary leader with a strong will to address the issues of the developing countries. Every year her birthday is commemorated across India.

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MALALA YOUSAFZAI: 1997 – Present

Growing up in Taliban control Pakistan, Malala Yousafzai was a young women desperate to have an education a practise outlawed by the Tailban. At just 11 years old, Yousafzai began to speak out on a blog documenting her experiences. She rose in prominence, giving interviews in print and on television, and she was nominated for the International Children’s Peace Prize by activist Desmond Tutu. In retaliation for her activism aged just 15, Yousafzai was shot and left for dead by a Taliban gunman in a failed assassination attempt. She remained unconscious and in critical condition before finally being transferred from Pakistan to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, UK.

The attempt on her life sparked an international outpouring of support for Yousafzai and following her recovery, Yousafzai became a prominent activist. In 2013, she gave a speech to the United Nations and published her first book, I Am Malala which resulted in her becoming the youngest Nobel Peace Prize laureate aged just 17 years.

Most recently, the 23-year-old human rights activist announced she will be producing content exclusively for Apple TV+ to bring empowering content to the streaming platform.

MOTHER THERESA: 1910 - 1997

Her iconic white garb with its blue stripe trim is now equated with her ideals of service and charity among “the poorest of the poor.” Born Agnes Bojaxhiu to Albanian parents living under the Ottoman Empire, the petite nun made her way to India in 1929, building her start-up missionary community of 13 members in Kolkata (formerly Calcutta) into a global network of more than 4,000 sisters running orphanages and AIDS hospices.

Sometimes criticized for lacking adequate medical training, not addressing poverty on a grander scale, actively opposing birth control and abortion and even cozying up to dictators, the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize nonetheless spent inspired countless volunteers to serve.

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OPRAH WINFREY: 1954 - Present

Daytime television host, businesswoman and philanthropist, Oprah Winfrey overcome an impoverished childhood in rural Mississippi to build an eponymous media empire and is today regarded as one of the world’s biggest influencers.

The Oprah Winfrey Show, which has won multiple Emmy Awards and is broadcast in 145 countries, is the most successful daytime TV program in history. Winfrey’s unparalleled influence on culture — often called “the Oprah effect” — has boosted lesser-known authors onto the New York Times best-sellers list while reviving America’s interest in classic literature (John Steinbeck), turned obscure products into household brands (Spanx, Ciao Bella), and helped a whole battery of other personalities become full-fledged media powers of their own (Dr. Phil, Dr. Oz, Rachael Ray).

Her 2008 endorsement of Barack Obama was worth 1 million votes to the then candidate in his primary battle with Hillary Clinton, according to one study. Oprah has also dabbled in acting, garnering Golden Globe and Oscar nominations for her role as Sofia in Steven Spielberg’s The Colour Purple. Beyond television, Winfrey is the co-author of several books and the publisher of O, the Oprah Magazine.

With a net worth of $1billion, Oprah is believed to be the richest African American of the 20th

Century dedicating her career not only to show business, but also to humanitarian issues campaigning for change, through her private charity The Angel Network, she raised more than $80 million, with 100% of the donations funding charitable projects and grants across the globe. Oprah’s Angel Network has helped establish 60 schools in 13 countries, create scholarships, support women’s shelters, and build youth centres and homes—changing the future for people all over the world.

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FLORENCE JOYNER (FLO JO): 1959 - 1998

Florence Griffith Joyner’s influence on culture is undeniable, she crossed ethical and racial boundaries earning her the nickname the Queen of Seoul after winning three gold medals and became the “the fastest woman on the planet.”

‘’FloJo’’ brought attention to herself not only with accomplishments on the track, but also with her dazzling racing attire, Mandarin-like fingernails, flashy rings, flowing hair and radiant smile. Her striking performance on the track captured the attention of the media and sports fans around the world redefining what it meant to be a woman in sports.

Florence Joyner was an enormous influence on woman’s track and field but here success was dogged with speculation of drug abuse and cheating. Her tragically short life which ended at the age of 38 in 1998 due to asphyxiation brought on by an epileptic seizure and the preceding autopsy did little to disprove the doubters. Even so, Flojo inspired women to get into sport and her dedication and determination still pushes women around the world to succeed. Away from the track Florence Joyner also devoted much time too little league track teams and established the Florence Griffith Joyner Youth Foundation, a nonprofit making organisation to help disadvantaged youth.

RUTH BADER GINSBURG: 1933 – 2020

women to break gender barriers. Even after facing gender discrimination as she pursued her academic goals, Ginsburg forged ahead becoming the second woman--and first Jewish woman--to serve on the Supreme Court. Born and raised in a Jewish household in Brooklyn, New York, “the notorious RBG” graduated from Cornell University and Columbia Law School, only to be turned away from one job opportunity after the other, simply because she was a woman and, later, a mother.

Ginsburg’s personal experience with gender discrimination informed her understanding of the words engraved above the highest court, “equal justice under law,” and fuelled her work to tackle unfair gender norms and discrimination. A fervent believer in standing up and speaking out against inequality, she was an essential jurist in some of the most pivotal legal cases in the nation’s history impacting the health and well-being of Americans.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg spent her life fighting for women to be treated equally. In doing so, she became an inspiring role model for women and girls around the world.

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VIRGINIA WOOLF: 1882 – 1941

Considered one of the most important authors of the 20th century, Virginia Woolf was an outspoken advocate for women rights who was strongly anti-colonialist. At a time where speaking out as a feminist in a public position could be dangerous, she was an inspiration to creative women everywhere. Perhaps best known as the author of Mrs Dalloway (1925) and To the Lighthouse (1927), she was also a prolific writer of essays, diaries, letters and biographies.

Besides her writing, Woolf had a considerable impact on the cultural life around her. The publishing house she ran with her husband Leonard Woolf, the Hogarth Press, was originally established in Richmond and then in London’s Bloomsbury, an area after which the ‘Bloomsbury Set’ of artists, writers and intellectuals is named. Woolf’s house was a hub for some of the most interesting cultural activity of the time, and Hogarth Press publications included books by writers such as T S Eliot, Sigmund Freud, Katherine Mansfield, E M Forster, and the Woolfs themselves.

GRETA THUNBERG: 2003 – Present

Greta Thunberg a Swedish environmental activist who held strikes in front of the Swedish Parliament to bring the attention of the world leaders towards Climate Change Has become the internationally-recognized personification of the pressing need for immediate and effective action against climate change. Her protests began in 2015 while she was still in school, gaining popularity across social media with the hashtag #FridaysForFuture, as she skipped school every Friday to hold her strikes by 2018, more than 20,000 students had joined her in protest from the US, UK, Japan, and Belgium.

In 2019 she was invited to attend the UN Climate Conference in New York, refusing to fly due to the environmental impact of the aircraft she travelled from Sweden to New York via yacht sailing for over two weeks her actions resulted in her being named Time Magazine’s Person of the Year in 2019, making her the youngest person to hold the title.

Today, millions of students around the world continue to be inspired by her strikes, with Greta receiving support from climate activists, scientists, world leaders and the Pope.