Women's History Month - Page 2

Althea Gibson kisses the cup she was rewarded with after having won the French International Tennis Championships in Paris. May 26, 1956.

Women’s History Month: Althea Gibson

By Nicole Chavez, CNN Long before Venus and Serena Williams, another tall, young Black woman shook up the staid world of tennis with her powerful serve and brilliant play. She was Althea Gibson, and tennis had long been a segregated sport when her skill and strength broke the color barrier in the 1950s. Gibson’s path

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Opal Lee stands in front of the Council Camber at City Hall to present a Juneteenth celebration on June 19, 2015 in Fort Worth, Texas. There is a new Texas license plate for Juneteenth, the 1865 “independence day” when America’s last slaves were liberated along with the Union Army landing at Galveston. State Rep. Nicole Collier, D-Fort Worth, wrote the plate into law with the help of state Sen. Royce West, D-Dallas. Gov. Greg Abbott signed it. (Paul Moseley/Star-Telegram via AP) MAGS OUT; (FORT WORTH WEEKLY, 360 WEST); INTERNET OUT; MANDATORY CREDIT

Lawmakers reintroduce Juneteenth bill. This 94-year-old will do ‘whatever it takes’ to make it a national holiday

By Nicole Chavez, CNN Days after a winter storm put Texas at a standstill and her home’s water pipes burst, Opal Lee headed to the nation’s capital. Her years-long push to get Juneteenth recognized nationwide had to go on. “I refuse to let the efforts we’ve made down the vine,” said Lee, a 94-year-old activist

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How one documentary reframes the history of Black women

By Leah Asmelash, CNN Black women are the mules of the world, Zora Neale Hurston wrote in 1937. More than 80 years later, Hurston’s words in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” still ring true, but one filmmaker is on a journey to both expose that truth and alleviate it. Oge Egbuonu’s new documentary, “(In)visible Portraits,”

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Why Women’s History Month is in March

By AJ Willingham, CNN March is National Women’s History Month, but since women are pretty historic year-round, it begs the question: Why March? Is this month significant to women’s history, or is it just an arbitrary month on the calendar? The answer involves a little bit of history and a little bit of coincidence.  

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