‘The future is female’ is a statement we cannot agree with more. It’s so heartening to see more and more women coming into leadership positions, taking up stronger and more powerful roles in society. They’re not scared to take the rightful positions they deserve! In 2019, there were so many women who motivated and inspired us to break all rules and just achieve what we want!
Here are some women who took 2019 by storm and completely won us over!
More power to them!
1. Greta Thunberg
Greta Thunberg is a 16-year-old who opened the world’s eyes to the severe environmental damage that is currently being caused. In May 2019, she featured on the cover of Time magazine who named her as the ‘next-generation leader’.
2. Sanna Marin
34-year-old Sanna Marin was elected as the Prime Minister of Finland in December 2019. This makes her the youngest sitting Prime Minister in the world, woman or otherwise. Before this, she was the Transport Minister under the five-party coalition government.
3. Mahua Moitra
All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) MP Mahua Moitra is not scared to call out the government whenever she feels they’re taking a step in the wrong direction. She does not do so in a manner we’ve come to accept from our ministers – baseless and hearsay. She lists down points and gives a reason for saying everything in an educated and logical manner.
4. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
Women like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez are the women we need in power considering the politicians ruling us today. This powerhouse member of U.S. House Of Representatives has taken the senate by a storm, questioning anyone and everyone who is messing up.
5. Parvathy
Imagine having the guts to sit in front of the director and actor of a movie and calling them out on the spot, on national television for making a movie that was highly problematic. That’s exactly what Parvathy did when she called out Arjun Reddy and Kabir Singh for its disturbing portrayal of relationships at a roundtable hosted by the movie critic Anupama Chopra.
6. Ghazala Wahab
Ghazala Wahab was one of the 16 women who accused M.J. Akbar, Indian journalist and ex-minister of state for external affairs for sexual harassment. Her strength is commendable because the lady was on the stand and recounting the disturbing incident when she was laughed at by the defence lawyer and her team. This, however, did not deter her from finishing her testimony.
7. Indian Women’s Football Team
The Indian women’s football team is on a roll. In December, it secured its third consecutive gold medal at the South Asian Games after beating the host country, Nepal by 2-0.
8. Tahira Kashyap
Tahira Kashyap has been open about her struggle with breast cancer as well as the treatment for it. By documenting her journey on social media, she has given millions of women the courage to come out and speak about their struggles.
9. Lieutenant Shivangi
The Indian Armed Forces are changing and how. Lieutenant Shivangi became the first Indian woman to be appointed as a pilot in the Indian Navy. She joined the naval operations after completing her training on December 2.
10. Faye DSouza
Faye D’Souza is awesome! She’s one of the only unbiased news anchors and reporters presently. She makes logical points, speaks up against any and all injustices and makes sure you understand all the nuances of a particular happening. If you follow her on Instagram, you’ll know that she a post series called ‘News that should be headlines’ which highlights things that should’ve made the news but didn’t.
11. Angela Merkel
Angela Merkel is an extra-ordinary leader needed in these times. The way she handles any crisis is commendable. Case in point: the migration crisis. She single-handedly saved Europe’s dignity and we love her for that!
12. K Jayalakshmi
K Jayalakshmi is a class 11 student in Tamil Nadu and the only breadwinner of her family. She recently won an opportunity to visit NASA (The National Aeronautics and Space Administration) in the USA by sheer will and hard work.
13. Jacinda Ardern
Jacinda Ardern is a senior politician and now the 40th Prime Minister of New Zealand. After a shootout at two mosques in Christchurch where 51 people were killed and 49 injured in March 2019, she moved to propose stricter firearms regulations.
14. Lt. Col. Jyoti Sharma
This year Lieutenant Colonel Jyoti Sharma was appointed as the first female Judge Advocate General (JAG) officer of the Indian Army to be deployed on a foreign mission and we couldn’t be happier!
15. Serena Williams
Last year, when Serena Williams lost to Noami Osaka, the whole thing became a little too ugly after the former clashed with the chair umpire when he docked her for a game. This year, Serena realized the impact of her actions and wrote an open letter apologizing to Noami Osaka and wrote: “Not only was a game taken from me but a defining, triumphant moment was taken from another player, something she should remember as one of the happiest memories in her long and successful career.” It was a beautiful moment of a woman coming out to support another woman and accepting her fault.
16. Ishana
It’s the youth that can change the world and Ishana, an 18-year-old from Coimbatore, proved that. Ishana runs a workshop to manufacture bio-degradable and reusable cotton sanitary napkins with 20 people who work for her.
17. Manju Rani
In October 2019, 19-year-old Manju Rani bagged a silver medal at the Women’s World Boxing Championships in the 48-kg category after losing to Ekaterina Paltceva. This took the total count of medals for the Indian contingent up to one silver and three bronze medals.
18. GS Lakshmi
Gandikota Sarva Lakshmi, an Indian cricket referee, became the first woman to be appointed by the International Cricket Council (ICC) to its International Panel of Match Referees in May this year. Previously, she was a batswoman and fast-medium outswing bowler.
19. Emma Watson
Emma Watson is a rockstar. Not only is she an outspoken activist for women’s rights and equality. In November, she shook the internet when she coined the term ‘self-partnered’ instead of single. All the people single suddenly felt so empowered, thanks to her.
20. Sona Mohapatra
Sona Mohapatra is a huge and outspoken supporter of #MeToo movement who is still fighting against those who ignore the complaints of sexual harassment against music composer Anu Malik. It takes serious guts to withstand all the criticism and continue your fight! More power to her, always!
Featured Image: Instagram
