This month, we focus on Women's History Month 2022 and Black women that everyone should know. The breadth of the contributions of Black women to the U.S. is immeasurable. There are too many to recognize in this compilation, so here are just a few.

Harriet Jacobs (1813 - 1897) thoughtco.com
Born into slavery, Harriet Jacobs spent her early years abused by a violent enslaver. She planned her escape by hiding in her grandmother's attic for seven years. With a $100 reward for her capture for being a "runaway", she was smuggled by a boat captain to Philadelphia for a price. She later moved to New York and worked as a nurse and became a part of the abolitionist movement. She wrote her autobiography, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, which talked of sexual abuse and harassment of enslaved women.

Harriet Tubman (1822 - 1913) - history.com
Most people who know the name "Harriet Tubman" know of her escape from slavery and her work with the Underground Railroad. Fewer may know of her work during the Civil War as a laundress and a nurse, much less her work as a spy and military leader. Harriet partnered with the commander of the Second South Carolina Volunteers, a Black regiment. Together, they planned a raid to rescue enslaved people and saved more than 700 people. Harriet was a true hero but was never compensated for her efforts "because she was a woman". The recent film Harriet gives a glimpse into the extraordinary life of Harriet Tubman.

The Women's Army Corp 6888 Unit (1945-1946) - history.com
This World War II Central Postal Directory Battalion was a unit of 855 Black women and was responsible for clearing a two-year backlog of mail for Americans stationed in Europe. Their motto was, "No mail, low morale." As the largest contingent of Black women ever to serve overseas, they dispelled stereotypes and represented a change in racial and gender roles in the military.

Dorothy Vaughan (1910 - 2008) - thoughtco.com
Dorothy Vaughan was a mathematician and computer. She was the first Black woman to hold a supervisory position at NASA and helped transition the institution to using computers in the space program by teaching herself FORTRAN. The popular feature film Hidden Figures brought the achievements of Ms. Vaughan and other Black women in NASA to the public's attention.

Ann G. Atwater (1935 - 2016) - blackpast.org
Activist and fierce defender of civil rights, Ann Atwater was a part of Operation Breakthrough in Durham, North Carolina in the 1960s. In 1971, Ann co-chaired with then-Klansman C.P. Ellis, a 10-day event called "Save Our Schools". It resulted in the integration of Durham City schools and a life-long friendship with C.P., who left the Klan because of what he learned working alongside a Black woman to improve education for children of all colors. This incredible story was featured in the film The Best of Enemies.

Shirley Ann Jackson, PhD (1946 - ) - black-inventor.com
Dr. Jackson, a theoretical physicist and inventor, has a distinguished career in the fields of science and technology. Advances in telecommunications research led to breakthroughs in research that enabled the development of the portable fax, touch tone telephone, solar cells, fiber optic cables and the technology behind caller ID and call waiting. She has held many honors over her career and is currently the President of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, the oldest technological research university in the United States.

Stacey Abrams (1973 - ) - womenshistory.org
When you think of voting rights in current events, you have to think of Stacey Abrams. Raised by parents that believed "you-can-be-anything," Stacey was shown the meaning of civic engagement. Growing up, Stacey held education as "saving" her and her siblings. During college she co-founded a group called the Students for African American Empowerment in Atlanta. She is probably best known for having run for governor of Georgia in 2018 and promoting voter registration and voter turnout. Stacey is a published author of two non-fiction books: Minority Leader: How to Lead from the Outside and Make Real Change (2018) and Our Time Is Now: Power, Purpose, and the Fight for a Fair America (2020). She continues to be the face of voting advocacy around the country.

The submissions editor of Taylor & Francis Publishers contacted me in 2010 to start a journal about fat studies, based on the popularity of the book The Fat Studies Reader, which I had co-edited with Sondra Solovay. I was worried about finding enough articles for even one journal issue a year--there weren't that many fat studies scholars out there at the time. I soon went from editing two to three issues a year, and now Fat Studies: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Body Weight and Society has just completed going to press for its 12th volume!

I've been impressed with how the field of Fat Studies is thriving, not just in this journal but in others--I'm often invited to review submitted articles and also book proposals on this topic. Just in the last three volumes we have published articles by authors from the disciplines of anthropology, art, communication, comparative studies, criminology, dance, education, English, environmental studies, exercise science, family studies, gender and women's studies, health, history, humanities, informational arts and technology, journalism, kinesiology, legal studies, liberal studies, medicine, merchandising, nursing, pedagogy, philosophy, psychology, public health, social sciences, social work, sociology, sport science, and theater; and from countries including Australia, Canada, Finland, Germany, India, Ireland, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, South Africa, Spain, Thailand, and the United Kingdom.

In the last three years the journal has also included twenty-seven reviews of new fat-affirmative books along with reviews of fat-affirmative films and academic journal issues. These focused on such topics as the intersection of fat and the Black body, cultural history, embodiment, girls of color, health, Islam, media, medicine, memoirs, motherhood, politics, psychotherapy, rhetoric, social justice, television, and yoga, as well as fat studies in Canada, Germany, and Spain.

If you're interested in guest editing a thematic issue, contact me at erothblu@sdsu.edu

Dr. Esther D. Rothblum, Ph.D., is Professor Emerita, Women's Studies Department, San Diego State University. She received her B.A. from Smith College, her M.S. and Ph.D. in clinical psychology from Rutgers University, and her post-doctoral fellowship in psycho-social epidemiology from Yale University. She is editor of the Journal of Lesbian Studies  as well as Fat Studies: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Body Weight and Society . Her research and writing have focused on LGBT relationships and mental health as well as the stigma of weight. She has served for many years on NAAFA's Advisory Board.

April 8, 2020: Nova's episode about body fat shows how it is a fascinating and dynamic organ that has more to do with biological processes than personal choices.
https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/video/the-truth-about-fat

February 10, 2022: Luxury clothing brands are taken to task for lack of representation for plus size clothing and models for fashion week, missing out on the billion-dollar market for plus size fashion.
https://dailytargum.com/article/2022/02/fashions-plus-size-problem-heres-why-size-diversity-in-luxury-brands-matters

February 20, 2022: An article talks with healthcare professionals about Ginny Jones' cards for patients who wish to skip being weighed at the doctors (unless really necessary). The outcome is sadly predictable, with many physicians more interested in the data than the patient.
https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/patients-doctors-please-dont-weigh-150530128.html

February 25, 2022: Body neutrality is explained in The Washington Post as focusing on what your body can do rather than its appearance.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/wellness/2022/02/25/body-neutrality-definition

February 27, 2022: Like much of the world, Brazil has had an increase in weight of its general population. Unlike much of the world, Brazil is working to adapt to larger bodies by providing appropriate accommodations and working against discrimination because of "gordofobia" (article requires subscription).
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/27/world/americas/brazil-obesity.html

March 8, 2022: Mark your calendars with these important dates for the upcoming Fat Studies: Rights, Personhood, Disposability conference.
https://www.fsnz.org/fsnz-2022

March 7, 2022: The Wall Street Journal discusses how weighing in at the doctors is often not necessary (article requires subscription).
https://www.wsj.com/articles/do-you-really-need-to-get-weighed-at-the-doctor-some-doctors-say-no-11646612301

March 8, 2022: WW (formerly Weight Watchers) targeted its weight loss app to children and is accused of violating the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act Rule by gathering data on children under 13 years old.
https://news.yahoo.com/ftc-weight-watchers-app-illegally-232438842.html