A longtime community activist, Barbara-Rose Collins was elected to Congress in 1990 on a platform to bring federal dollars and aid to her underserved neighborhood in downtown Detroit. In the House, Collins, a single mother, focused on her lifelong effort to ensure that Black families and Black communities had the resources and opportunities they needed to thrive.
Bella Abzug, feminist and civil rights advocate, embodied many Americans’ discontent with the political establishment in the tumultuous Vietnam War era. She gained notoriety as one of the most colorful and controversial House Members during the 1970s.
Born in the colonial British Empire, Elizabeth Furse became an anti-apartheid activist, an advocate for migrant farm workers and Native Americans, and founder of a peace institute.
Connecticut Representative Ella Grasso’s brief House career bridged two decades of service in state government and two trailblazing terms as the state’s governor.
21st century American writer
Multi-talented American inventor who was involved in art, farming, engineering and politics.
American chemist and advocate for women in science
In 1965, after Alabama state troopers attacked voting rights marchers on what became known as “Bloody Sunday,” Sister Antona Ebo and other nuns from the Franciscan Sisters of Mary traveled to Selma and joined the march to Montgomery when it resumed two weeks later.
1920s Yellowstone National Park Ranger
The Baker Chocolate Company, founded in the 1780s, played a significant role in Dorchester’s economy and employed many women. Eleanor inherited the company after the death of her husband in 1852 which allowed her to continue with her philanthropic work.