Inspirational women in history - who's yours?

[HecateTrivia]

My son has to research and do a biography of an inspirational woman in history. I wondered who you feel inspired by?

Aung San Suu Kyi......indeed WW, damn, why diddnt i think of that

Æthelflæd

Hypatia

Can I say Princess Diana?

She fought against the trappings and expectations of the Monarchy. Her work with charity especially HIV victims and Land mines was inspiring. Just to see her with HIV children and to show them as human was powerful.

Sorry but I disagree with putting princess Diana in the same league as mother Terasa or Aung Sung. Sorry if this is rude. I have probably created an 'issue' here and I am sure I am going to get thrashed on here for this comment.

I don't think it's about ranking them. And I guess Di's work with HIV patients is note worthy and helped overcoming stigma in a time when HIV positive people where regarded with lots of suspicion and fear.

personaly i wouldnt chose princess diana
but i'm sure she was a perfectly likeable person, and did good things.
i think it takes more that being nice and 'happening' to be extreamly wealthy and privaledged to make 'inspirational'.
most people who were under public scrutiny like she was and had the time on her hands and the influence she had would have figured philanthropy was a good way to live.

but maybe and old, grumpy and cynical.

it's still between rosa parks and kate adie for me .
rosa parks did what she did in the face of an enourmous machine of white supremecy, that was jittery about there castle of sand collapsing around them, they could have simply had her killed, what she did takes real courage, balls of brass.

and katie, well, she is just so very good at her job, she's gifted in that she has a voice where you simply want to listen when she speaks and that coupled with an unfearing desire to report news from the most hostile parts of this planet in spite of the fact that she must be afraid ( i dont think she''s stupid so she must be afraid) puts her on my list of inspirational women.

I know Di had issues.

But I do think she inspired people to look at HIV patients differently - the picture of her holding a young child with HIV went worldwide - she used her position to highlight problems.

She also used her position in other ways. But I think she was an inspiration to many.

But not in the same league as others.

I think the point about Diana is that at that time Aids and HIV were new and feared illnesses caused by "being bad". So to go against everything that was proper at the time took some courage.

But that is the only thing she has going for her IMO.

Marie Curie
Roaslind Franklin
The pankhursts

and=i'm*

Virginia Wolf
Women running daily life during world war
II

Re. Diana, yes, agree she did good for aids and land mines. But disagree with writing her name next to say, Rosa parks or even Kate Aidi or Angela Merkel.

I second Mary Wollstonecraft.

Also Rosa Parks, Marie Curie and Florence nightingale

Gladys Aylward.

The 'houses' at my school were named for historical figures including her. I'm not sure I would ever have heard of her otherwise as I think the idea of mission is increasingly hard to understand (I'm an atheist - though I do know there are still a lot of missionaries about). But her story is so extraordinary, so inspiring, and crosses so many historical/cultural boundaries, that I think she is an interesting person to study.

Helen Keller

Grace Darling

just googled Mary Wollstonecraft.
wow , in 1759 she argued the radical notion that women were not naturaly inferior to men, they only seemed that way through lack of education.
1759...thats 253 years ago, makes you wonder how what we all find normal in 2012 will be viewed in 2265.

I third, Corrie Ten Boon. Amazing woman!

Mary Seacole.

She wasn't the right colour or class but still went and nursed during the crimea.

just googled Corrie Ten Boon, i live in holland so i'm quite ashamed i have never heard of her, my OH is dutch but she's asleep on the coutch right now so i'll ask her later.

she does sound like an amazing person.

Mary Seacole

Sophie Scholl
Aphra Behn

Yes to Mary wallsronecraft. Mother of Mary Shelley who wrote Frankenstein.
I forget the name of the African model who gives talks against female mutilation. Also the afghan politician Malalai joya and similar personalities. Although they don't directly effect us in the west, the butterfly effect of what they do in their country causes storms elsewhere. They may be remembered in their countries as we now remember wallsronecraft almost 300 years later.