Two Influential Women Who Need Recognition

Mary Ware Dennett

Mary was an activist for birth control and reproductive rights during the 1920s. During the time she was alive, there were many people immigrating to America and few families had access to birth control and sanitary products. After Mary graduated from Boston Museum of Fine Arts, she focused on another passion: being a voice for those without one. She started to redirect her career and became a secretary for the NAWSA (National American Women’s Suffrage Association), and she felt like there was more that she could do. Years later, she helped put a whole new face onto the American Birth Control League with a fellow activist named Margaret Sanger. The American Birth Control League promoted the idea that women do not need to feel pressure to have children if families can barely cover costs of taking care of their existing family. It was challenging to educate people about reproductive rights because, at this time, a lot of people did not understand how helpful birth control could be for the people that need it.

Frances Thompson 

Born into slavery in Alabama, Frances is an inspiring transgender activist who helped many women in their lives. She was a young woman when the Memphis Riot of 1866 occurred. This severe riot was post Civil War after the Union won, when people terrorized and planned attacks on black residents in Frances’ community in Tennessee. While the riot took place, she and her roomate were brutally beaten and raped by several white man, some of whom were police officers. During the riot, three other women from Thompson’s settlement were raped, fourty-six men were killed and four school buildings were burned to the ground. Shortly after this tragedy, Frances Thompson testified in front of the Congressional Committee and was the first transgender woman to do so. Because her hearing became so well-known, she was persecuted for her gender identity for several years. Frances knew she would never win her trial, but she has led as an exellent role model for the transgender community. Her trial also raised awareness about systematic racism in the American legal system and how it affected people’s lives on a daily basis.