Wikipedia:Wikipedia Signpost/2016-03-09/Systemic bias

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systemic bias

Welcome to the second edition of this column, wherein I am STILL fucking angry about systemic bias and am highlighting kick-ass articles we created and improved this month in our never-ending quest to fix it. While this column is profane and irreverent, the actual articles' language is as formal and professional as you'd want.

Enjoy reading about these women! They’re awesome.

{{signpost filler image|image=File:Rosalie_Slaughter_Morton.jpg|caption=She’s not wearing a cape but she SHOULD BE}}

• Deolinda Rodríguez de Almeida was an amazing lady you’ll never read about in your history books. She’s the mother of Angola as a modern nation, basically, and some serious Les Mis shit went down in her life. She fought for the liberation of Angola and was brutally executed at age 28 for being a revolutionary. Six years later, Angola was independent and she is celebrated as a badass revolutionary hero. (Rosiestep)

• Esther Applin was a super-awesome geologist who discovered that microfossils could be used for dating purposes. This COMPLETELY CHANGED the oil industry, and the modern Gulf of Mexico oil industry basically wouldn’t exist without her. (I reserve judgment on whether or not this is a good thing, but hey.) (Kelapstick)

• Rosalie Slaughter Morton was basically a medical superhero, y’all. Raised to be a housewife, she decided that was bullshit and went into medicine – instead of finishing school, she went to the Woman’s Medical College of Pennsylvania and kicked ass, then ran around Europe for a couple years like a knowledge sponge. Not only did she research endocrinology, gynecology, rheumatology, and infectious diseases, she was a professor and practicing physician who, in her ample amounts of spare time, founded a bunch of hospitals, served as a medic and Red Cross Commissioner in World War I, AND ran a public health commission. I’ll be in the corner feeling inadequate again. (Samwalton9)

• Rosalyn Scott is the first African-American woman to become a thoracic surgeon! Not only is she a freaking FANTASTIC surgeon, she’s also done a whole bunch of research to make medicine less racist. And, in her totally ample spare time, she just, y’know, started two organizations to support other African-American women and surgeons. No biggie.

• Theodosia Bartow Prevost – badass spy for the United States during the American Revolution (while her then-husband was fighting in Jamaica for the United Kingdom, no less), notorious batshit Vice President Aaron Burr’s secret lover, and total fucking genius. She modeled her daughter’s education after OG feminist Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley’s work and was recognized for her genius by basically everybody. Too bad she lived in the 18th century and was stuck behind the scenes before she died of cancer. Sorry to end this on such a downer. Fuck cancer. (Ironholds)

{{signpost filler image|image=File:Theodosiaburr.jpg|caption=Theodosia Jr.: 50% chance she died fighting pirates, 100% chance she was a badass. Like mother, like daughter.}}

To alleviate the total downer, here are more awesome women!!! (just go read the articles. It’s worth it.)

• Hadiyah-Nicole Green – scientist fighting cancer with LASERS because she was orphaned by cancer and then ... orphaned again by cancer. So she decided to fuck cancer’s shit up. She’s doing a damn good job.

• Olga Tufnell - kickass archaeologist who found a shit ton of scarabs (though kind of participated in racist western archaeology by stealing artifacts and kind of barging around the Middle East.) She spent two DECADES digging up this old-ass city, Lachish, and in a surprise turn of events, people thought she was awesome and didn’t give her too much sexist bullshit! Yay! (Staceydolxx and Worm That Turned)

• Suzanne Duigan was basically a giant super nerd and an amazing scientist who studied pollen, using it to figure out all kinds of really old shit. Naturally, she also flew planes. NO FEAR!!! (Casliber)

• Jennifer Childs-Roshak runs a Planned Parenthood branch and is also a really cool doctor. Also the first person with a medical degree to be the chief executive of a PP branch! (GorillaWarfare)

A special shoutout to GorillaWarfare: she and I have been working to make sure all of the African-American women profiled in the National Library of Medicine’s Changing the Face of Medicine project have articles. Go check out these amazing physicians, and help contribute to African-American women in medicine!

• Clara Brawner
• U. Diane Buckingham
• Sadye Curry
• Janice Douglas
• Virginia Davis Floyd
• Vanessa Northington Gamble
• Gertrude Hunter
• Renee Jenkins
• Shirley F. Marks
• Janet L. Mitchell
• Elizabeth Ofili
• Lucille Norville Perez
• Joan Reede
• Barbara Ross-Lee
• Omega Silva
• Jeanne Spurlock

If you’ve written something awesome to fight systemic bias recently, tell me about it! I’ll include it in the next edition.