#WomxnsHistoryMonth is here, and we encourage all of you to take a deep dive into the stories of Trans women, women with disabilities, and women of color, and how their activism continues to motivate others now and into the future!
To kick off this month-long celebration, check out these inspiring womxn and femmes that have greatly contributed to social justice through #activism, #advocacy, and #research.
A political commentator, double transplant survivor, and dark horse, Ola Ojewumi (she/her) is a force to be reckoned with. Following a kidney and heart transplant at the age of eleven, Ola was diagnosed with cancer and prescribed a wheelchair.
Ola believes that “we are more than just our disabilities; we are people first who deserve all freedoms afforded to the able-bodied.” She’s always been a fighter. Her advocacy topics include equal access to affordable healthcare and opposing the repeal of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Now she helps lead the fight for the rights of women, people of color, and the disabled.
Dr. Analucía Lopezrevoredo (she/her) is a Peruvian-Chilean-Quechua-American Jewtina, born in Peru and raised in Spain and the United States. Her educational background lies in critical race and cross-cultural studies, and her doctoral research was centered around immigrant and refugee resiliency.
An anti-oppression educator and researcher, Analucía founded Jewtina y Co. in 2019 to offer Latin Jews from around the world a community in which to celebrate and engage in critical dialogue about Jewish and Latin multiculturalism. Prior to starting Jewtina y Co., she worked at JIMENA, OneTable, Bend the Arc, the Center to Advance Racial Equity in Portland, Oregon, and organized as a migrant rights advocate in California’s Central Valley, southwestern México and southeastern Perú.
Autumn Peltier (she/her), 17, Anishinaabe-kwe of the Wikwemikong First Nation in northern Ontario, Canada is an internationally recognized water advocate that has been named a ‘water warrior’. She works to raise awareness about hundreds of unsafe drinking water issues of First Nations people. Currently, she serves as the Chief Water Commissioner for the Anishinabek Nation.
Autumn encourages youth around the world to protect Mother Earth and sacred, living water to ensure humanity’s survival. She continues her work for access to clean water for the Indigenous Community and Indigenous People across the world.
Raquel Willis (she/her) is a Black transgender activist, award-winning writer, and media strategist dedicated to elevating the dignity of marginalized people, particularly Black transgender people.
A thought leader on gender, race and intersectionality, she’s experienced in online publications, organizing marginalized communities for social change, non-profit media strategy and public speaking while using digital activism as a major tool of resistance and liberation. Raquel also uses her platform to fundraise for Black-led LGBTQIA+ initiatives and has previously served on advisory boards for Borealis Philanthropy’s Fund for Trans Generations and the Roddenbery Foundation.
Dolores Huerta (she/her) is a Mexican-American labor leader and civil rights activist known for founding the United Farm Workers alongside Cesar Chavez and for her continued advocacy for the rights of immigrants, agricultural workers, and women. In addition to carving out space for herself in the world of politics, she spent two years advocating for increased Latina representation in office around the country through a project by the Feminist Majority.
At 89, Dolores Huerta continues to work tirelessly developing leaders and advocating for the working poor, women, and children. As founder and president of the Dolores Huerta Foundation, she travels across the country engaging in campaigns and influencing legislation that supports equality and defends civil rights. She often speaks to students and organizations about issues of social justice and public policy.
Alice Wong (she/her) is a disabled activist, writer, media maker, and consultant. She is the founder and director of the Disability Visibility Project, an online community dedicated to creating, sharing, and amplifying disability media and culture created in 2014.
Alice is the editor of Disability Visibility: First-Person Stories from the Twenty-First Century, an anthology of essays by disabled people and Disability Visibility: 17 First-Person Stories for Today an adapted version for adults. Her debut memoir, Year of the Tiger: An Activist’s Life will be available on September 6, 2022 from Vintage Books. You can find her on Twitter: @SFdirewolf.
A kinky, poly, cancer-warrior, activist and sexuality educator, Ericka Hart (she/they) has taught sexuality education for elementary aged youth to adults across New York City for over 10 years, including serving as a Peace Corps HIV/AIDs volunteer in Ethiopia from 2008-2010.
Diagnosed with bilateral breast cancer in May 2014 at the age of 28, she realized that neither her identity as a queer Black femme, nor her sex life as a survivor, was featured prominently in her treatment. They decided to do something about it: going topless (and viral) in public, bearing their double mastectomy scars to end the lack of Black, Brown, LGBTQIA+ representations and visibility in breast cancer awareness.