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24 Bold, Brave, and Bias-Breaking Women Who Serve as Inspiration for Leaders Across 2U

Written by Women's Alliance Network (W.A.N.) on Mar 11, 2022

Related content: Diversity And Inclusion, Leadership, Life at 2U

Women leaders from across 2U's diversity-focused Business Resource Networks and affinity groups are joined by 2U's Co-Founder and CEO Chip Paucek (middle right) in striking the pose for this year's theme for International Women's Day

Raise your arms in front of you and form an “X.” By doing so, you’ve just joined women around the world in striking the simple yet powerful pose for this year’s International Women’s Day theme: #BreakTheBias.

Across the globe, gender bias, discrimination, and stereotyping continue to make it challenging for women to move toward true equity in our communities, schools, and workplaces. Bias takes on many forms, sometimes even unconscious ones, so it’s important for women to not only rally together to fight sexism and gender inequities outright but also celebrate the women in our lives who inspire us to keep fighting. For International Women’s Day, observed each year on March 8, that’s exactly what we did at 2U.

In our Daily Dose of Team Time (DDOTT) all-company call that day, female leaders from the Womxn’s Alliance Network (W.A.N.), along with all the other diversity-focused Business Resource Networks and affinity groups at 2U, joined together to take turns describing what International Women’s Day means to them. Representing Black, Latinx, Asian Pacific Islander, Jewish, LGBTQIA+, parents/caregivers, and individuals of all abilities, these nine women also shared snapshots of influential women throughout history who have motivated them to continue forging onward.

International Women’s Day has come a long way since it was first organized 113 years ago in New York City, before officially being recognized by the United Nations in 1975 as a global holiday. But we still have a lot of work to do—and forming that “X” with our arms is symbolic of the progress we’re ready to make.

As we all look forward to a truly equitable future one day, we hope you take inspiration from the following 24 remarkable women who’ve paved the way for many female leaders across 2U:

From Sakahdi Cebrun, Administrative & Operations Chair for the Asian Pacific Islander Network (APIN) and Denver Chair for the Black Engagement Network (BNet):

“For me, International Women’s Day is a day of reflection and celebration of the women who raised me and taught me to embrace and elevate my community. One influential woman who embodies those same principles for me is rapper Megan Thee Stallion, who just last month launched the Pete & Thomas Foundation, which centers on education, housing, and health and wellness. Megan also uses her voice and resources to speak out against racial injustices and donate to community-building in her hometown of Houston. Growing up as a Black and Japanese woman, it’s important for me to recognize the solidarity between the Black and Asian communities. For this reason, I also want to highlight activist, writer, and philosopher Grace Lee Boggs, one of the only non-Black female leaders in the Black Power Movement. Known for her advocacy of tenants' and workers' rights, she was the subject of the 2014 documentary American Revolutionary.

From Maria Gonzalez, Communications Co-Chair for TuGente, the Latinx Network:

“For me, the day is a time to celebrate the contributions of women from across the world whose advocacy, hard work, and dedication have given us a better tomorrow. It’s also a time to reflect on what we are doing now and how we can be better advocates for future generations. This year, I’d love for everyone to learn more about Marsha P. Johnson, a Black trans woman known for her involvement in the 1969 Stonewall Riots and her advocacy regarding homelessness and racism. Also, please discover the story of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, a Mexican scholar and poet from the mid-1600s who had limited access to education as a woman but whose passion for learning led her to become a nun so that she could continue absorbing knowledge throughout her lifetime. She’s thought to have written the first feminist manifesto.”

From Kyla Hines, Education Chair for 2Q, the LGBTQIA+ Network:

“International Women’s Day is a day to imagine a gender-equitable world, so I want to intentionally claim space to celebrate the vast universe of gender that includes the transgender, femme-identifying, and nonbinary communities. This year, I encourage you to learn more about these four amazing folks: Antiguan-American model Aaron Philip, who became the first Black, transgender, and physically disabled model to be represented by a major modeling agency; Audrey Tang, the first transgender and nonbinary official in Taiwan’s top executive cabinet; Miss Major Griffin-Gracy, a trans woman activist and community leader particularly focused on the rights of women of color; and Bamby Salcedo, a Mexican-American transgender activist and founder of the Los Angeles-based TransLatin@ Coalition.”

From Audra Miller, Global Chair for the Parent & Caregiver Network (PCNet):

“March 8 just happens to be my birthday, which always makes me feel like the ultimate superwoman! On this day each year, I reflect upon the courageous battles that women before me have forged for equality. The following women are just two of many who’ve fought for a world free from bias, stereotypes, and discrimination: poet, essayist, and author Audre Lorde who contributed a great deal to critical race studies, feminist/queer theory, and the “theory of difference,” which today we call intersectionality; and trailblazing feminist journalist Gloria Steinem, one of the most visible leaders of the women’s rights movement who helped found, among other initiatives, the Women’s Action Alliance, the Ms. Foundation for Women, and Take Our Daughters to Work Day.”

From Shayna Richardson, Data Analytics Lead for BNet:

“International Women’s Day is a reflection on how women’s time, dedication, and sacrifices have enabled a better future—and how the women of today can honor these works, continue walking in these footsteps, and create change for future generations. Two women in history have specifically helped shape my journey and inform how I navigate the world. One is renowned author Alice Walker, the first Black woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. The second is bell hooks, whose major literary and critical works—and thoughts on love, equality, class, and community—have become integral to feminist theory. I also want to give some love to my favorite woman in the world: my great-grandmother Adlin Lambert, who just last week celebrated her 94th birthday. I couldn’t be more proud to belong to her.”

From Julia Ring, Programming & Events Chair for the Jewish Employee and Ally Network (JEAN):

“This day is an opportunity for me to pay tribute to women before me who’ve made the life I live today possible and to honor those who continue to break boundaries. This includes Jewish poet and WWII hero Hanna Szenes, who parachuted into Yugoslavia and saved many Jewish lives from being sent to Auschwitz; actor and comedian Tiffany Haddish, who later in life discovered her Jewish roots and is now an amazing symbol of Jewish intersectionality; and Jewish Olympic gold medalist Aly Raisman, who was one of the brave leaders to speak up against the USA Gymnastics doctor who was sexually abusing female athletes. I also have to give a shout-out to my grandmother Marlene Falk, a personal hero of mine as someone who represents Jewish womanhood to me.”

From Ronel Singarum, Communications Chair for W.A.N.:

“Whilst I live in a country that has embraced the freedoms of democracy, women in South Africa are still on a journey paved with challenges and hardships. Through the lens of my heritage, International Women’s Day is a moment to recognize some of the stalwarts of our past, like Lillian Ngoyi, one of four South African women who led over 20,000 women in a protest march in 1956 that launched our country’s Women’s Day celebrated on August 9. It’s also a day to honour incredible women’s rights activists like Dr. Prega-luxmi Govender, a South African feminist activist and author, and Professor Thuli Madonsela, our country’s former public protector and a lifelong activist on social justice, constitutionalism, and human rights.”

From Kenisha Taylor, Treasurer for the Ability Resource Network (ARN):

“For me, the day is one of reflection and action—reflection on our collective triumphs in the way our global community has grown and action toward progress that will pave the way for our daughters and next generations. This year, I’m inspired by three women: Angela Davis, well-known for her role in the Black Panthers and fight for equality during the Civil Rights Movement; Malala Yousafzai, an advocate for women’s educational rights initially in relation to the Taliban, but more recently for the plight of refugee women and girls; and Alice Wong, a disabled activist, author, and the founder and director of the Disability Visibility Project. Wong continues to inspire me by discussing the intersectionality of her Asian and disability identities and for promoting finding the value in who we are.”

From Timamu Wilson, Remote Chair for BNet:

“International Women’s Day positively reinforces and reminds me of the resilient, brave, vulnerable, and professional achievements of women who have paved the way to bring us where we are today. There are so many women I’m personally in awe of—my mother, my aunties and grandmothers, my sisters, friends, colleagues, and so on. However, I want to especially highlight Shirley Chisholm, a politician, educator, and author who in 1968 became the first Black woman elected to the U.S. Congress. She represented New York’s 12th Congressional District and became a source of pride within the Bedford-Stuyvesant community, where I’m originally from. ‘If they don’t give you a seat at the table, bring a folding chair,’ Chisholm once said—a powerful statement to remind us as women to show up, speak our truth, and make a difference in the world, even if it’s not popular or comfortable to do so.”

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Learn even more about Women’s History Month with these 33 ways to educate and empower yourself through 2U-powered programs.

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