Demonstrators protest the death of George Floyd in downtown Washington, DC on June 1, 2020.

The Power of the Intersectional Protest Image

In an age of hashtag activism and partisan news, social media offers possibilities for intersectional movements to reimagine images of Black protest.
Jerrie Cobb poses next to a Mercury spaceship capsule.

How the Mercury 13 Fought to Get Women in Space

In 1962, the House of Representatives convened a special subcommittee to determine if women should be admitted into NASA’s space program.
Women’s Day March poster from the Womens Liberation Workshop in London, 1975

What Was Women’s Liberation?

The short-lived radical movement within feminism has gotten a bad reputation for centering white women's experiences. Is that deserved?
Lady Montagu in Turkish dress, circa 1756

Before Vaccines, Variolation Was Seriously Trendy

Lady Mary Wortley Montagu is credited with popularizing variolation among the aristocracy in England.
Nurses react as community members applaud them on April 30, 2020 at NYU Langone Hospital in New York City.

Will Society Remember the Pandemic’s Heroes?

If history is any guide, probably not.
Kate Moennig in The L Word

What’s Behind the Very Real Butch Quarantine Hair Crisis?

What's a masculine lesbian to do when her hair starts getting too long? Look at history for inspiration.
A series of four blue pictograms in front of a light yellow background. Three pictograms are disability access symbols, for wheelchair accessibility, sign language interpretation, and low vision access. The fourth pictogram is of a brain, and is meant to symbolize cognitive impairment accommodations.

Disability Studies: Foundations & Key Concepts

This non-exhaustive reading list highlights some of the key debates and conceptual shifts in disability studies.
Diane Keaton in Looking for Mr. Goodbar, 1977

“No Unescorted Ladies Will Be Served”

For decades, bars excluded single women, claiming the crowds were too “rough” and “boisterous” and citing vague fears of “fallen girls.”
Poster for Women's Day, March 8, 1914, demanding voting rights for women.

The Socialist Origins of International Women’s Day

Why is International Women's Day on March 8th? The answer is much more complicated than you might think.
Felicitación de cumpleaños by Raimundo de Madrazo y Garreta

The Disappointing Reality of 19th-Century Courtship

For white, middle-class women in the 19th century U.S., courtship and marriage offered less emotional intimacy than their friendships with other women.