K is for Kahlo, Frida Kahlo

I first learned of Frida Kahlo in my High School Art History class. I found her paintings so emotional, absolutely vivid, beautiful and horrible. I was squeamish of a few of her paintings, but as I’ve matured and lived, I’ve come to really appreciate those paintings. The horror she must have felt and being able to fully express herself through art. I was an artist when I was younger but I always had such a hard time finding my own unique style. I admire Frida Kahlo for being able to speak to us through her work.

Kahlo was born in Mexico City, Mexico July 6, 1907. But she often told people July 7, 1910 to coincide with the Mexican Revolution. When she was six she contracted polio which left her left leg to grow thinner than her right. This is why she wore long skirts throughout her life. She was very close with her father, who encouraged her to strengthen her aliment by being physically active.

In 1922 she attended the National Preparatory School in Mexico City. That is where she met artist and future husband, Diego Rivera. That same year she was in a horrific accident. She was riding in a bus and the bus collided with a streetcar. “A steel handrail impaled her through the hip. Her spine and pelvis were fractured and the accident left her in a great deal of pain, both physically and physiologically.” She was in the hospital for many weeks and had a long recovery at home. It was during this time that she started painting. Her parents encouraged her, her father even built a special easel that she could use in bed. She finished her first self portrait the next year. This is one of her first self portraits.

Frida Kahlo is known for her self portraits, according to fridakahlo.org, Kahlo once said, “I paint myself because I am often alone and I am the subject I know best”. Again this is something I really appreciate from Khalo, her honesty and vulnerability.

I don’t want to get too deep into her relationship with Diego Rivera, but you can’t really talk about Frida Kahlo without talking about their relationship. She went on to marry, Rivera, the two had a tumultuous love affair. He was 20 years her senior and helped establish the mural movement in Mexico. They married in 1929 and divorced in 1939, they remarried in 1940 and divorced again in 1954. Both of them had many affairs, one of Rivera’s was Kahlo’s own sister, Cristina. (This inspired Frida Kahlo to cut her hair.) Rivera was commissioned to do a lot of international work and the couple traveled as a result of that. Living in California and New York City. Kahlo wanted to be a mother but due to the accident she kept having miscarriages which she painted lot in her work.

Kahlo had a moderate amount of success while she was alive but unfortunately she was known mostly as Rivera’s wife. Her success grew after her death and now most people think of her as her own person, her own artist.

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J is for Johnson, Katherine Johnson.

Katherine Johnson is one of the women on this list that I didn’t know much about prior to this post. I knew of her contributions to the space race but not about the incredible life that led her there.

Born in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia on August 26, 1918, Johnson was the youngest of Joylette and Joshua McKinley Coleman’s four children. Her mother, Joylette was a school teacher and her father was a handyman. Black students could only attend school up to 8th grade where she lived. Her parent’s knew education was important and arranged their children to attend High School in a different county which was located on the campus of West Virginia State College. Johnson was 10 years old at the time.

Johnson was strong in math from an early age, she graduated at 14 and attended the historically black college, West Virginia State. Four years later she graduated summa cum laude in 1937, with degrees in mathematics and French.

In 1939, she was one of three Black students selected to integrate into the All White, West Virginia University in Morgantown, West Virginia. She was the first black woman to attend their graduate school. A year later she decided end her schooling to raise a family with her first husband, she had three daughters.

Johnson decided that she wanted to go into Research Mathematics and in 1953 started at the all-black West Area Computing section at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics’ (NACA’s) Langley laboratory. Her life changed once sputnik was launched in 1957. She went on to contribute much of the calculations and research behind the first United States space launch, as well as others after.

According to NASA.gov, “When asked to name her greatest contribution to space exploration, Johnson would talk about the calculations that helped synch Project Apollo’s Lunar Module with the lunar-orbiting Command and Service Module.” Visit the site for a more detailed Herstory of her life.

Just imagine the strength behind all that she endured on her road to success. Continuing her schooling after 8th grade, being the first black woman to attend graduate school, working for NASA. It would have been hard enough for a woman to achieve these goals but a black woman? It took real strength to push through and succeed.

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I is for Irwin, Bindi Irwin

Conservationist, zookeeper, and actress, Bindi Irwin is a woman I must admit I’m envious of. I have always loved animals ever since I was a little girl. My dad was a big protector of wildlife and the earth, encouraging me to allow creatures their freedom instead of automatically killing them…I mean Huge Spiders are where I draw the line. But I try my best to catch and release the occasional mouse who ends up in our house. We watched the Crocodile Hunter together and enjoyed watching Steve Irwin and his family grow. We were heartbroken at his untimely death and rooted for his family’s healing. I’ve always admired Bindi Irwin’s spunk but what I think really attached me to her was when my father died. I wasn’t eight years old like she was but I was still young and seeing her honor her father the way she does and keeping his legacy alive is just very beautiful.

Bindi Irwin is the youngest and probably only strong woman I will feature who is younger than I am. She was born on the 24th of July 1998 in Buderim, Queensland, Austraila. Her mother is Terri Irwin, who married the late Steve Irwin, who’s father was naturalist and herpetologist, Bob Irwin. Her father named her Bindi after his favorite female crocodile at Australia Zoo. (Bindi is also an Aboriginal word that means “young girl”) Her middle name, Sue is a tribute to their beloved family dog, Sui who passed in 2004.

Bindi Irwin started filming with her parents when she was 2 years old. She started filming her own show, Bindi, The Jungle Girl in 2006, the same year her father was killed. He was in a few of the very first episodes. It premiered in 2007 and aired for 3 seasons. When he passed, she wrote and read his eulogy to a full crowd at the Australia Zoo, it was also broadcasted nationwide.

Irwin has released four albums the first titled, Bindi Kid Fitness with Steve Irwin and The Crocmen. She appeared in the film, Return to Nim’s Island where she replaced Abigail Breslin in the title role. She also competed and won season 21 of Dancing With the Stars with her partner Derek Hough.

Irwin received an honorary doctorate from the University of Queensland for her conservation work. She currently works alongside her mother, brother and husband at the Australia Zoo.

Although she is not a vegetarian she does support plant-based meals and in 2018 she sat down with Prince Charles to talk about protecting the Great Barrier Reef. (Fun Fact: She has a dual citizenship in Australia and the United States.)

I think what I admire most about Bindi Irwin is that she has always done her best to help animals and I think it takes great strength doing all this while losing a parent at such a young age. She has tried different mediums but her message is always crystal clear, protect wildlife.

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H: Harris, Kamala Harris. Madam Vice President

When Joe Biden picked Kamala Harris to be his running mate it was such a joyous moment for me. It felt like someone had opened the window and let a big gust of fresh air into a stale joyless room. I didn’t know anything about her, aside from the fact that Maya Ruldoph played her on SNL. So I went on a mission to learn everything I could and let me just say, I was not disappointed.

The daughter of immigrants, Kamala Harris was born in Oakland, California in 1964. Her mother was Dr. Shyamala Gopalan an Indian American immigrant and breast cancer researcher. Her father is Donald Harris, born in Jamaica, he is a naturalized U.S. citizen, Harris was an emeritus professor of economics at Stanford, he consulted with the Jamaican Government on economic issues as well as worked as an advisor to several Prime Ministers.

Harris’s mother, Dr. Gopalan honored her Indian heritage by giving her eldest daughter the name Kamala meaning Lotus and the middle name, Devi meaning Goddess. Both names are Sanskrit.

She has always loved good food, in fact in her 2020 interview with Glamour magazine, Harris said, “My mother used to tell me, ‘Kamala, you clearly like to eat good food. You better learn how to cook.’” And during Quaratine for Thanksgiving 2020, Harris shared her family recipe for Cornbread Dressing, “During difficult times I have always turned to cooking. This year, I wanted to share one of my family’s favorite Thanksgiving recipes with you. I hope whenever you’re able to make it in life, it brings you as much warmth as it has brought me — even when separated from those I love.”

Harris attended Howard University, where she interned as a mail room clerk for California senator Alan Cranston. She graduated in 1986 with a degree in political science and economics. She went on to study law at the University of California Hastings College of the Law, graduating with a Juris Doctor in 1989 and passing the California Bar in 1990. She became deputy district attorney in Alameda County, California the same year, working her way up to District Attorney of San Francisco in 2004. (She was the first person of color elected.) In 2011 she became Attorney General of California, and in 2017 Harris won her U.S. Senator from California seat.

I really don’t want to talk politics. I chose to write about Vice-President Harris because I’m really impressed with her strength. She worked her way up the ladder in a male dominated field. She often quotes her mother and I find comfort in the knowledge that she was close to her mother. I’m very close to my mom and I think it’s so important to have that connection to the past.

For a more detailed herstory of Kamala Harris, visit this site.

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G is for Goodall, Dr. Jane Goodall

I feel like everyone knows of Jane Goodall. The woman who lived with the apes. I’ve always admired Jane Goodall for most of my life. Admired her for her love of animals but there is so much more to her than just living with the apes. She cares, she really cares and here’s some of the facts about her life.

Goodall was always fascinated by animals, her first key memory being when she was on a proper farm with her mother when she was 4 1/2 years old. She was given the task of collecting eggs, but she was more intrigued with where the eggs came from: they came from the chicken? what hole did they come out of? She went on her first study and hid in a hen coop, waiting for a chicken to lay one. She waited for four hours to witness a chicken lay an egg. Meanwhile, her mother was worried sick and had called the police because little Jane Goodall was no where to be found. Goodall remembers her mother not scolding her for this, she sat and listened to little Jane Goodall enthusiastically retelling her discovery.

Fun Fact, her father gave her a stuffed chimpanzee named Jubilee when she was a child instead of a traditional Teddy bear. Goodall credits this doll to jump starting her fondness for animals. Jubilee is said to be in a special place in Goodall’s home.

Goodall credits her mother for being her biggest cheerleader. While everyone in her life laughed at her absurd ideas about living in the wild and studying animals, her mother was the only one who supported her fully. In Goodall’s words here is the advice from her mother, “The advice I give to young people today is exactly what my mother gave to me when I was 10 and I said I’m going to grow up, go to Africa, live with wild animals and write books about them. Everybody laughed. How could I do that? We didn’t have any money. World War II was raging. I was just a girl. But my mother always said, ‘If you really want something, you’re going to have to work hard, you’ll have to take advantage of every opportunity but don’t give up.’ I’ve taken that message to young people…all around the world.”

I think what’s most inspiring about Jane Goodall is that she is fully for the environment. Even at 87 she is encouraging people to think globally about the environment. She’s a vegetarian mainly because of all the destruction the meat industry is doing to the planet, contributing to global warming. In 1977 she started the Jane Goodall Institute so that her life’s work would continue. Starting Roots and Shoots as a way to expose young people to the environment. Jane Goodall has said, “I’m 300 days a year on the road. I’m talking about what we’re doing to our planet, how we’re destroying the forests, we’re polluting the ocean and the air and the rivers, we are spraying poisonous chemicals on our food, with our pesticides and herbicides. I have to work with young people today so that we try and raise new generations to look after this poor old planet better than we have, before it’s too late.”

I could go on and on with everything Jane Goodall has done with her life. All of the wonderful advice she has shared over the years but then we’d be here all night. I think the greatest bit of advice Jane Goodall has shared is when you come across someone who shares a different opinion from you. She urges us not to argue with them but to tell a story. Don’t argue, the person will only stop listening.

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I watched this while I was cooking dinner and I really enjoyed listening to Dr. Goodall speak.

F is for Fisher, Carrie Fisher

The Best Princesses of them all.

My favorite character in Star Wars has always been Luke. Ever since I was a child I’ve wanted to be a Jedi, so unfortunately, Princess Leia was a close second. But since growing up and my dream of becoming a Jedi was forced to the back burner, my appreciation of Carrie Fisher grew. I realized that she was so much more than the strong-willed Princess turned General. She is sharp as a tack, Bad Ass Writer, advocate and a feminist.

Born to Hollywood Royalty or “a product of inbreeding” Fisher joked, her parents were entertainers, actress, Debbie Reyonds and singer, Eddie Fisher. Carrie Fisher had an interest for reading and writing poetry from an early age but put that passion on the back burner to focus on acting. She started on Broadway at age 15 alongside her mother in Irene. Her most iconic role has been Princess Leia. And isn’t it perfect that Princess Leia who unlike most damsels was played by the strongly fierce, Carrie Fisher. Both Leia and Fisher were their own heroes, using their platforms to help others.

Carrie Fisher struggled with depression along with drug and alcohol abuse. She was first diagnosed with bi-polar disorder in her mid twenties but she thought the doctors were just being nice about her drug and alcohol abuse. It wasn’t until a near fatal overdose at 28 that Fisher took the diagnosis seriously. She checked herself into a 30 day rehabilitation center, she didn’t enjoy the meetings at first but she came to find comfort with other patients and their shared experiences. She turned this experience into her first novel Postcards from the Edge. Semi-autobiographical, it shares some similarities to her life as Debbie Rynolds’s daughter and going to rehab. The book was published in 1987 and Fisher turned it into a screenplay for the 1990 film starring Meryl Streep and Shirley MacLaine.

She went on to become one of the top script doctors, but her biggest contribution has been her mental health advocacy. She has never shied away from her illness. She was completely transparent, demystifying much of the stigma surrounding mental health. Mental health is a taboo issue in many circles but especially for a woman. Fisher gave a face and most importantly a voice to people who were suffering with this invisible illness.

In her 2016 Guardian advice column, “Ask Carrie Fisher“ Fisher wrote, “We have been given a challenging illness, and there is no other option than to meet those challenges. Think of it as an opportunity to be heroic—not ‘I survived living in Mosul during an attack’ heroic, but an emotional survival. An opportunity to be a good example to others who might share our disorder.“

She was such an incredibly inspirational woman, voicing her concerns for not just mental health issues but as a feminist. Remember when her slave outfit action figure came into question on whether or not it should be sold? This was Fisher’s response, “The father who flipped out about it, ‘What am I going to tell my kid about why she’s in that outfit?’ Tell them that a giant slug captured me and forced me to wear that stupid outfit, and then I killed him because I didn’t like it. And then I took it off. Backstage.”

Carrie Fisher was such a heroine of our times and I miss her quick wit and strength.
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Check out Carrie Fisher’s goodreads for a list of her work.

E is for Her Royal Highness, Queen Elizabeth II

I don’t know why but I have a strong attachment to the Queen. I’ve always had respect for her because she was a woman in power but I never really had much interest in her personal life aside from that. Recently, I have found myself really rooting for her well-being, maybe it’s because she seems like a really cute old woman with her bright coats, matching hats, and her little corgis. Or maybe its because I really don’t want Charles to be King. I don’t know why but I find myself really invested in the well-fair of Queen Elizabeth II and even Prince Phillip, her husband.

At just 25, Queen Elizabeth became the sixth woman to ascend to the British throne on February 6, 1952. It was just 16 years prior that her Uncle abdicated the throne, thrusting her father into ruling as King. Her father, Prince Albert, Duke of York, was crowned King on May 12, 1937, taking the name, George VI. Little Queen Elizabeth was just 10 years old when she became second in line to the throne. Giving her about 15 years to be properly groomed unlike her father.

Three years later, when Little Queen Elizabeth was 13, World War II broke out. The war is what helped her father ease into his role as King. He stayed at Buckingham Palace while his daughters were sent to Windsor Castle for their safety. In 1940, Little Queen Elizabeth made her first public address, they spoke for the BBC children’s hour. Living through the war, the urge to serve and defend her country grew. After a year of persistence, Little Queen Elizabeth became the first female member of the family to join the Armed Services as a full-time active member. She joined the Women’s Auxiliary Territorial Service when she was 19. She learned how to drive and became a driver for the Second Subaltern Windsor Unit. She also learned how to repair engines and change tires.

Next year Queen Elizabeth II will celebrate her Platinum Jubilee, her 70th year on the throne. In her 69 years, Queen Elizabeth ruled firmly in tradition, with the ease to allow change when necessary. She was wise enough to listen to her advisor’s advice, but ultimately decisive in her actions. She has always commanded a powerful respect from her people. Plus, she has a pretty good sense of humor.

Long Live The Queen.
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D is for Diana, Princess Diana, the People’s Princess

To be quite honest, I don’t have that much interest for the “royals” before Diana entered the family. The only season of The Crown I’ve watched has been the fourth season. I have such empathy for Princess Diana and respect for what she has had to endure. Especially since she was not able to have a Happy Ever After.

Born Diana Frances Spencer on the first of July 1961 in Norfolk. In 1975 her father, Edward John Spencer inherited his Earldom, which made her Lady Diana Spencer. As a child her family rented a home on one of Queen Elizabeth’s estates, it’s there at Sandringham where she played with Prince Andrew and Prince Edward. Side note, she was actually born at the home her family rented, Park House. It has since been turned into a hotel where guests can see the room where Diana was born. (Fun Fact: Queen Elizabeth II is her younger brother, Charles‘ Godmother and Queen Mary is the Godmother of her father.) According to an anecdote from Tina Brown’s, The Diana Chronicles, “Charles, then 17, once interrupted five-year-old Diana’s ‘tea party’ with Andrew.”

When Princess Diana was seven her parents divorced, her father was granted custody of her, her brothers and older sisters. Her older sisters were away at boarding school during this time, her brother and her became very close throughout the divorce. Spencer sent his daughter, Diana to boarding school. Although shy, Princess Diana enjoyed music and dancing throughout her time at school. At 16 she attended the finishing school at Institut Alpin Videmanette in Switzerland.

Diana’s passion was for dancing, she wanted to become a Ballerina but was unfortunately not tall enough to pursue a career as one. However, she always found release through dance, when she was stressed she would dance. She moved to London to work as a nanny for an American Business Woman and Kindergarten Assistant at the Young England school in Pimlico.

Lady Diana became Princess Diana when she married heir to the throne, Prince Charles on the 29th of July, 1981. They were dating for six months before he proposed February of 1981. She gave birth to Prince William less than a year later in June 1982 and Prince Harry in 1984. You can learn more about her story from the 1992 book, Diana: Her True Story and her 1995 BBC interview.

Diana’s greatest legacy is her charitable work. Her work with youth, the homeless and HIV/AIDS patients. She held hands with leprosy patients whenever she could to show that the disease could not be spread through touch. In her solo trip to New York City, Princess Diana went to a Harlem Hospital, where she hugged and cuddled many HIV/AIDS infected children. (Her visit led to a surge in adoption requests for the children stricken with the illness.) In 1997 she walked through an active landmine field in an effort to bring attention to their harm. Months before her death, Princess Diana met with Nelson Mandela to speak about the AIDS crisis what more she could do.

She raised her sons to have empathy for others, exposing them to the world outside their Royal Bubble. Whether it be from bringing them with her to homeless shelters and hospitals or allowing them to eat fast food. Princess Diana was compassionate and ‘real’ with the people she cared about. It was this along with her humility and kindness that earned her the title of “The People’s Princess”.

It may seem easier for a royal or celebrity to give their life to charity but everyone can give. Whether by donation or their time, charity is within everyone’s grasp. One could go on a mission trip to Africa, feed the homeless at their local shelter or even by spending time with a lonely neighbor. Charity is within all of our reach.

Princess Diana said it best, “Carry out a random act of kindness, with no expectation of reward, safe in the knowledge that one day someone might do the same for you.”

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C is for Clooney, Amal Clooney

Born Amal Alamuddin, Clooney was thrust into the limelight as George Clooney’s wife, but we should be referring to George Clooney as Amal’s husband.

She is a London barrister specializing in international law and human rights. To sum up some of her accomplishments I will use the words of Tina Fey, “Amal is a human rights lawyer who worked on the Enron case, was an adviser to Kofi Annan regarding Syria, and was selected for a three-person U.N. commission.”

During the Lebanese Civil War Clooney and her family fled their home in Beirut when she was just two years old. They settled in Buckinghamshire where she attended a girl’s grammar school.

She went on to attend St. Hugh’s College in Oxford where she earned her Arts in Jurisprudence and received her Master’s Degree from the NYU School of Law. She received awards from both institutions.

Clooney worked at the U.S. Court of Appeals as a clerk for future Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor. After graduating Clooney passed the New York State bar exam in 2002 and worked at one of the world’s top law firms, Sullivan & Cromwell.

In 2005, Clooney was part of the United Nations tribunal established to prosecute the persons responsible for the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister, Rafic Hariri.

In 2010, she moved to London where she became a barrister at Doughty Street Chambers where she continued practicing international criminal law.

In her 2018 Vogue interview Clooney said, “I remember all the stages in my career where I almost didn’t have enough confidence to try for something, almost didn’t have the guts to follow something I was excited about doing, because I didn’t know anyone else who’d done it or other people made me question it.” But she didn’t let her insecurity get the better of her, she pushed through and has become a major voice in her field.

Clooney supports women through her work. One of her cases involved women who have been kept as sex slaves by ISIS. Here is a video of her speaking with the United Nations on the subject.

Clooney also supports refugees. Her and her husband are helping UNICEF to fund Syrian refugee schools in Lebanon. Clooney has stated, “My family also ran away from a war and were lucky enough to be accepted by a European country in 1982 when the violence there was really bad.” In 2015, Clooney also set up a scholarship fund for Lebanese women.

Amal Clooney has led quite an impressive life. Aside from being a successfull lawyer, Clooney is a mother of twins.

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