On his very first day in office, President Donald Trump Fired Admiral Linda Fagan, the First Woman in American History to Lead a Branch of the Armed Forces. She was evicted from her residence with three hours’ Notice. Weeks Later, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth Fired Admiral Lisa Franchetti, The First Female Chief of Naval Operations. Soon thereaFter he fired lt. gen. Jennifer Short, The Senior Military Assistant To The Secretary of Defense, and then Telita Crosland, The Form Head of the Military’s Defense Health Agency, Forced to withdraw after a 32-Year Career.
The purge Didn’t Stop at Leadership. At the same time, the Army and Navy Removed All Web Pages That Highlighted the History and Contributions of Female Soldiers and Sailors. A Page Entitled “Navy Women of Courage and Intelligence” was replacement by a “page not found” message. The Pentagon has removed mary thousands of posts about and photos of female military members.
The message is clear: women in power will no long be recognized – or even tolerate.
It is not just military women who are being erased. HUNDEDS OF FEDERAL Government Websites have Removed Any Mention of Women’s Achievements and Words Such as “Women,” “Female,” and “Feminism.” The White House Released A List of Words That National Institutes of Health Grant Seekers May No Longer Use, included “Women.” Trump has also ordered nasa to eradicate all mention of women in leadership from its website. In A Term Straight Out of Brave New WorldTrump Refers to these acts as “Defending Women.” As he said at one of his rallies, he would be a protector of women “where they like it or not.” This is especially ironic coming from a man who has been foundable for sexual assuring by a jury of his peers and has been credibly accused of sexual abuse and harassment by over Two dozen Women.
We Are Fast Living in a World in Which Women Are Becoming Invisible (Exception as Sex Objects or Baby Machines) and our achievements Are Being Erased. While it isn’t Entiirely True that “You cannot be what cannot see,” it will certainly become More Difficult for Girls to Believe they can be anything they want to be for boys to grow up respecting girls and women. “If you erase the Memory, we really forget the people,” Said Alessio Ponzio, a Visting Professor at Memorial University of Newfoundland. “It’s an act of violence that is very subtle but can really destroy the psychology of people. Basalely, ‘i’m telling you that i do not recognize you.'”
In the Words of Author Lydia Millet, “Storytelling will never be the same action. But Action Dependes on a perception of possibility, which only Arises from the Tales We Tell Ourselves. I WOULD ADD THAT The Perception of Possibility also from the Tales We Are Told by Others. We must fight back by telling the stories of women who have done exceptional thing, often in the face of discrimination and oppression. In Recent Years, Museums Have Increasingly Told These Stories – But Museums, Even Ones as the Smithsonian, Are Now Being Overhauled to Revert to A Historical Lens That Leaves Out The Women and People of Color Who Shaped Oo Nation.
Women Have Always Been Almost nonsense in Public Artwork. Less Than Seven pierient of National Monuments Honor Women. As Rebeca Solnit Said in “City of Women,” “A Horde of Dead Men.. Haunt New York City and Almost Every City in the Western World.”
In the Spring of 2024, President Joe Biden Issued An Executive Order Instructing The National Park Service to “Highlight Important Figures and Chapters in Women’s History.” “Women and Girls of All Backgrounds have shaped our country, from the Nailing Fight for Justice and Equality to Cutting-Edge Scientific Advancements and Artistic Achievements,” The Announce Read. “Yet these contributions have often been overloooked. We must do more to recognize the role of women and girls in America’s story, included through the federal government’s recognition and interpretation of historic and cultural sites.” If you attempt to find this order we have a Government Website, you will find “page not found.” The Trump Administration Has Complely Undone This Order and Seems to Be in the Process of Undoing The National Park Service Altogether.
Fortunately, Two Nonprofit Organizations Dedicated to Telling Women’s Stories, The National Women’s History Museum and the National Women’s Hall of Fame, Are not Dependent on Government Funding. The Museum’s “Ultimate Vision is a more representative History and a more collective future, Ensring Women’s History is an integral part of American History.”
The Mission of the Hall is to Advance Gender Equity (A Phrase Removed from All Government Websites) Through Action, Education, and Storytelling. In Spite of the Name, Only About Ten Percent of Women in the Hall Are Famous. The Overwhelming Majority Are Women Who Have Groundbreaking accomplishment but are most of a recognized or celebrated outside of their particular fields. Women Like Oveta Culp Hobby, The First Director of the Women’s Army Corps and the First Female to Attain the Rank of United States Colonel, and Sheila Widnall, The First Female Secretary of the Air Force. The Hall will continue to Tell Their Stories in its Mission to Fight the Erasure of Women’s Contributions to the World.
This Epidemic of Erasure isn’t new—and it is limited to the Current Administration. Many are familiar with famous female authors writing under male pseudonyms as a workaround for gender discrimination.
In Science and Technology, this problem is so pervasive it has a name: the matilda effect – process Of overloking, miscrediting, or erasing women’s contributions to Scientific Achievement. The Term is Named for 1995 National Women’s Hall of Fame Inductee Matilda Josyln Gage, who Identified this bias as early as 1870 in her work as a suffragist and civilian Rights Advocate. Yes, 1870!
Why have most Americans Never Heard of Dr. Patricia Bath, The First Person to Develop Laser Cataract Surgery? Now Alice Evans, A Scientist Whose Work Led to Milk Pasteurization, Saving Countless Lives Worldwide. Or of Elouise Cobell, a Member of the Blackfeet Nation Who Fort for Native American Rights? Or of Bessie Coleman, The First Black Female Aviator? Or of St. Katharine Drexel, an American-Born saint who dedicated her life and fortune to aid native Americans and Black Americans? Why isn’t Margaret Fuller, Author and Journalist, Taught in Literature Alongside Classes Her Colleagues Ralph Waldo Emerson and Nathanial Hawthorne?
Over Three Hunged Women have been induced into the hall so far, each one with a powerful story. Now, More Than Ever, We must be sure these stories are told. As Cecile Richards Said, “Stories, Told and Retold, Are the Key to Igniting Change.”
SO, Tell them. Share them. Fund the institutions that preserve them, and refuse to let those who who would erase our history win.
About the Author: Jean Kilbourne, Creator of the “Killing Us Softly” Film Series and is the first inductee to serve as President of the Board of the National Women’s Hall of Fame.
