Contributors to women's history
Mrs. Haslewood
Evoke the ban on the Mui Tsai system
Mrs. Haslewood, the wife of a retired Royal Navy lieutenant-commander, moved to Hong Kong in 1919. In traditional Chinese society, young women who were called Mui Tsai were sold and worked as domestic servants in brothels or affluent households because they came from poor families. Mrs. Haslewood wrote several letters criticizing the Mui Tsai system and raised the attention. Because of that, she and her husband were sent back to the British. However, she continued to oppose the Mui Tsai system through press and letters. In 1930, she published the book "Child Slavery in Hong Kong: The Mui Tsai System" which raised awareness internationally, and the Mui Tsai system was banned finally.
Mary Kenner
Pave the way for subsequent sanitary pad innovations
Mary Kenner was an African American inventor. In 1956, she invented the sanitary belt. It was the first product that apply adhesive and a moisture-proof pocket to prevent menstrual blood from leaking. However, some companies took back their interest in her invention because of her ethnicity. After her patent expired, companies made use of this invention to create different types of pads. Although Mary Kenner helped pave the way for subsequent sanitary pad innovations, she never received any awards, wealth, or fame.
Caresse Crosby
Replace the uncomfortable and restrictive bra
Caresse Crosby was the first recipient of a patent for the modern bra. When she was 19 years old, she create a bra with handkerchiefs and ribbon and wore it to the ball. This "backless brassiere" drew much attention as she was able to dance freely without the uncomfortable and restrictive corset. Later, she sold the invention and it was popularized to become the modern bra.
Ruth Bader Ginsberg
Contribute to advancing American Women's rights
Ruth Bader Ginsburg was an American jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of USA from 1993 to 2020. In 1974, she promoted the Equal Credit Opportunity Act that allowed women to apply for financial services without a male co-signer. She helped women deserving the right to financial independence and equal benefits. In 1996, Ginsburg ruled that institutions were not allowed to discriminate against women's enrollment and program participation. In 2016, she helped overturn a Texas abortion bill and imposed restrictions to protect women's health and safety.
