Kentucky Women in the Civil Rights Era

Throughout history in order to make change possible, one person has historically sparked that change. Alice A. Dunnigan was a woman from Kentucky who did just that, make change in the journalism industry. Alice A. Dunnigan became the first African American to receive White House credentials and was reporting on the highest levels of government business. Before […]

From her earliest days Josephine Henry worked for human rights, especially for women. One of her goals was to get the state of Kentucky to recognize women as their own person once they were married. In 1890 Kentucky was the only state left in the United States where a married women had no right to own […]

 William English Walling was extremely active in the creation and beginning of several groups whose target was to bring women’s rights to the forefront of the nation’s stage. He was a firm believer in equality for all races and genders and showed his willingness to participate in activism designed to spread these ideas to […]

Originally established at the University of Kentucky in 1979, the Kentucky Women Writers Conference has aimed to bring up and coming talented young women writers to the University and is held to showcase their talents.  The inaugural year of this fine organization consisted of a plethora of fine authors in Maya Angelou, Toni Cade Bambara, […]

Harriette Simpson Arnow (born in 1908 under the name Harriette Louisa Simpson), started her young life in the southern Kentucky area of Pulaski County. Although Harriette’s true passion was always to become a teacher, she would ultimately become a very successful writer when it was all said and done. After spending a couple of years at […]

When pondering for ideas of which Kentucky born female activists to write this journal entry about, it became clear very soon that I wanted to honor someone for accomplishing not only a “different” feat, but something that was done for the first time. Someone who will forever be known for breaking down the barriers that […]

Born in Bowling Green, KY in 1945, Marilyn Yarbrough Ainsworth had her mind set on being successful from day one. Daughter to Merca L. Toole and William O. Yarbrough, Marilyn would continue her education past high school and she would soon thereafter graduate from Virginia State University, and in 1973 from the UCLA Law School. […]

When looking for a historical woman of  influence from Kentucky, I came across the brave and honorable Anna Mae Clarke.  Born in Lawrenceburg KY in 1919, Clarke was constantly facing descrimination in her struggle for gender and race equality.  After getting a degree in Economics from Kentucky State University, Clarke struggled for work until landing […]