FEBRUARY 17: TODAY'S INSPIRING WOMEN
Esther Hobart Morris
Esther Hobart Morris became the first American woman Justice of the Peace in 1870.
Florence Prag Kahn
As the wife of Julius Kahn (a U.S. Representative from San Francisco), Florence Prag Kahn had developed her own public identity by writing a column on Washington doings for her hometown newspaper. When her husband died, she ran in a special Congressional election held on February 17, 1925. With her victory, Prag became the first Jewish woman and only the fifth woman to serve in Congress.
Julia de Burgos, a renowned Puerto Rican writer and poet was born today in 1914. A feminist at heart, her poems, “Yo Misma Fui Mi Ruta (“I Was My Own Path”) and “A Julia de Burgos” symbolized messages of individual and nationalistic freedom. As the oldest of thirteen children, Burgos pursued her education at The University of Puerto Rico and would go on to become one of the most influential Caribbean civil rights activists.
Julia de Burgos
Deeper Dive
“There is no sex in citizenship and there should be none in politics.”