To Be A Brooke Owens Fellow
A reflection after the 2019 Brooke Owens Summit in Washington DC.
Yes I’ve been told to my face I couldn’t do any aerospace work because of my major. Yes I’ve been told to my face that I chose environmental engineering because it was the easiest major and it doesn’t even count as engineering. Yes I’ve been told to my face that I’m the token girl for a team of all guys and that I’m a double token because I’m Latina. Yes I’ve been told to my face that women are weaker than men in engineering. Yes I’ve been told to my face to go sweep the ground while the boys on my team just sat there. Yes I’ve been told by my supervisor that nepotism is okay if it’s just a NASA internship. Yes I’ve been told to my face that the dress code has gotten too relaxed because I wore my traditional Mexican blouse. Yes I’ve been told to my face that I should just work on documentation while the guys do the important machining work. And yes, I’ve been told by a man on my team that his favorite animal is “a woman”. I have gone through hell and back to be here but this is where I deserve to be.
Had an amazing week at the Brooke Owens Fellowship Summit in DC where I got to meet amazing policy makers, engineers, and scientists who see the strength in making the aerospace industry more inclusive for womxn and non-binary individuals.
And yes, this week I was told to my face that there is power in love and inclusion and that in space, everyone is an immigrant and a fellow planeteer of this pale blue dot.
This was written July 2019.
