Legacy of Women for Future Generations
In honor of International Women’s Day and the success of Marvel’s Black Panther, I thought it would be fitting to shed light on women who are making significant contributions to fields that have historically been gendered. You may be wondering, how does the success of Black Panther relate to what I am about to discuss in this post? Black Panther has been monumental because of the importance of young people of color seeing themselves being represented in popular media. In a similar way, it is important for women to know that there are other women out there who have paved the way for them and made significant contributions to the world. In chapter 9 and the conclusion of Ghost Stories for Darwin, Subramaniam speaks of organizations that have been put in place for the support of women in STEM fields and how one concept that is lacking is the sense of community between the varying organizations. As a student who has been apart of the Women in Computer Science organization on UIUC’s campus, I can see what Subramaniam is referring to. While the organization is great for women in computer science on campus, we rarely get exposure or in contact with other women in STEM fields on campus. However, one aspect that was very impactful for me during my time in the organization was when women who worked at companies like Google, Adobe, etc. Hearing and learning about their experience in the field was both inspiring and informative for other women like me. It showed me that it is possible to make my way in a field that has been dominated by men in the past, and that I can make a contribution to diversifying the field.
In the medium article entitled “A list of 30 women rocking in UX to celebrate the International Women’s Day”, Paula Macedo shares a list of women who have made significant contributions in her field of study, UX Design. Before listing the women, Macedo states,
“And there’s no better way for helping young female designers realize their full potential in UX, than looking at other women who are already leading our discipline.”
Macedo perfectly words why it is so important for women to see other women dominating in their field. Of the many women listed, I particularly enjoyed learning about Julie Zhuo, a woman who began her career at Facebook as an engineering intern and is now the Vice President of Product Design. Her story was especially inspiring because she was a student like me who was able to learn and grow into a highly respected position. After learning about all the women listed in the article, I feel encouraged to reach out to women in my field and support a community of women paving the way for future generations of women to come.
Sources:
Macedo, Paula. “A List of 30 Women Rocking in UX to Celebrate the International Women’s Day.” Https://Uxdesign.cc, Medium.com, 7 Mar. 2017, uxdesign.cc/top-women-in-ux-to-follow-twitter-medium-c279f3b9a728.
Subramaniam, Banu. Ghost Stories for Darwin: the Science of Variation and the Politics of Diversity. University of Illinois Press, 2014.
