Not many people seem to be a fan of 2016. But now that it’s over, let’s take a look back and see what we’ve accomplished. The news was filled with politics, conflicts, and stories that connected us. However, with all those stories, it seemed that many powerful, creative, and brilliant women were left out. So here is a list of women that made changes in 2016 that you probably didn’t hear about.
1. Balkissa Chaibou
At age 12, Balkissa learned that she was set up to be married to her cousin from Nigeria. She dreamt of being a doctor and knew that being married would prevent her from continuing her studies. When she was 16, she attempted escape the planned marriage and asked her mother and father to compromise. Neither of her parents had any power to delay or stop the marriage, so Balkissa went to her school principal for help. This led to a court case which was quickly dropped, but Balkissa’s uncle threatened to kill her. She ended up in a women’s shelter. After a week, the cousins left town, with the threat of jail looming over their heads. Balkissa is now 19, and had become and advocate against forced child marriage. She has spoken at various tribal chiefs and at a UN summit on maternal mortality. She recently completed her International Baccalaureate Diploma and is now in medical school.
2. Negin Khpalwak
Negin, age 19, is a girl living in Afghanistan who leads the Zohra orchestra in Kabul. This may not seem like that big of a deal, but the act of playing instruments was outlawed under the Taliban’s rule. Not even men are permitted to play instruments, so Negin faced death threats from her own family for performing on live television through the Afghanistan National Institute for Music. She had now led the orchestra for over a year, and she says that she will “never accept defeat” (Reuters).
3. Yusra Mardini
This 18 year old is not only an Olympic swimmer, but she is also a Syrian refugee. She and her sister are responsible for saving the lives of over 20 people by swimming for three hours to push their sinking boat to Lesbos. She still recounts this as a “positive memory” for her because of her love of swimming and how it kept her alive (independent.co.uk).
4. Tess Asplund
A photo of Tess, 42, went viral because of her bold move against the Nordic Resistance Movement, a neo-Nazi group, at a counter-demonstration. In the photo, she holds up her fist in the face of three men. She has been compared to a famous photo from 1985, where a woman hits a member of the Nordic Reich party with her bag. The photo is known as “tanten med väskan”, “the lady with the bag”.
5. Lhakpa Sherpa
Lhakpa has climbed Mt. Everest more than any other woman in the world-- seven times. She battled through an abusive relationship and currently lives in Conneticut, working as a housekeeper and supporting her children.
6. Ashwaq Muharram
Ashwaq is a doctor in Yemen, who worked for international aid organizations and now operates from her car, giving out food and medicine. Hunger and starvation is one of the biggest issues facing the Yemeni people.
7. June Eric-Udorie
This 18 year old activist and blogger from Great Britain is part of Plan UK’s YAP (Youth Advisory Panel). She advocates for the end of female genital mutilation (FGM), the end of violence against women and girls, and to raise awarness of these issues. She has multiple articles published through Huffington Post, The Guardian, Fusion, and others.
8. Mariana Costa
Mariana is from Lima, Peru, and she and her partners formed Laboratoria, a “tech social enterprise” that ecourages women to get involed in the STEM field of work. Mariana and her partners use codeAcademy, a free online program that teaches coding skills from HTML to Python to Ruby. This company now operates in Peru, Mexico, and Chile.
9. Viktoria Modesta
Viktoria is from Daugavplis, Latvia, and is “bionic” singer-songwriter, performer, and model. After struggling with childhood illnesses and numerous hospital trips, she had a voluntary amputation below her knee to allow her to be more mobile and to prevent future complications. Following the amputation at age 20, she has become a voice for the disabled in pop culture. Her music video for “Prototype” now has more than 7 million views.
10. Nanfu Wang
This Chinese woman began documenting activist fights against sexual violence and sexual assault, leading to government surveillance of her actions. She had to flee from China in order to show more of her footage to the world, such as her film “Hooligan Sparrow”. The film is now streaming on Netflix.
11. Melina Laboucan-Massimo
Melina is an activist for Indigenous and environmental rights in Canada. She is a member of the Lubicon Cree First Nation and part of Greenpeace Canada. Over 4,000 Indigenous women have been murdered or are still missing in Canada today, including Melina’s sister. She continues her work today, fighting for the rights of Indigenous women and communities, as well as fighting against the depletion of natural resources and activities that are harmful to the environment.
12. Jackie Biskupski
Mayor Biskupski is the first openly gay mayor of Salt Lake City, Utah, and in the United States. She advocates for renewable energy to protect future generations from climate change, and she works to help the homeless population in Salt Lake City.
Who were your inspirational women of 2016?
