Naomi Rebekah Wolf was born and raised in San Francisco, California. She studied English literature at Yale University and then at Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar. During her college years, Wolf encountered class hierarchy for the first time, as well as sexism and antisemitism. These experiences influenced her views and writing in her future career. When she presented a feminist theory as her doctoral thesis, her tutor rejected her proposal and told her that her subject does not exist. Wolf did not complete her Ph.D. at the time but formed her writing into her first book, The Beauty Myth. Published in 1991, Wolf’s book challenged beauty norms, the unrealistic standards of beauty, and the cosmetics industry for its women’s exploitation. This ground-breaking book became an international bestseller and was nominated by The New York Times as one of the 70 Most Significant Books of the Century. At 29, Wolf became a leading spokeswoman for what was later referred to as The Third Wave of the Feminist Movement. Two years later, Wolf published her second book, Fire with Fire: The New Female Power and How to Use It, in which she wrote on women’s empowerment and sexual liberation. Following its release, she began writing for various publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal, exploring in her essays a wide range of topics, from abortions and suppressed sexuality to ISIS and Edward Snowden. In 1996, at the age of 34, Wolf was asked to advise on women issues in President Clinton’s re-election campaign and to give her input on reaching female voters. She was not paid for her contribution but was called on again as a formal consultant in Al Gore’s bid in the 2000 presidential election. In 1997, Wolf published her third book Promiscuities: A Secret History of Female Desire, in which she argued that schools need to teach about sex rather than encouraging abstinence. In the same year, she co-founded the Board of The Woodhull Institute for Ethical Leadership – a non-profit organization dedicated to developing young women’s professional skills and training them in ethical leadership. In the next two decades, Wolf published ten more books. Read more...

Angela Davis was born and raised in the middle-class African American neighborhood in Birmingham, Alabama, which got the nickname Dynamite Hill after the bombings by the Ku Klux Klan during the 1950s. Her mother was an active member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored (NAACP) and a Communist Southern Negro Youth Congress organizer. As a high school junior, she moved to NYC to participate in a program that placed black students from the South in integrated schools in the North. There, she joined the communist youth group. After high school, she received a scholarship to Brandeis University and studied French and philosophy. In 1965, after graduating magna cum laude, she continued to graduate school at the University of Frankfurt in Germany. The Socialist German Student Union activists inspired her to join political organizations in the United States, including the Black Panthers and the Che-Lumumba Club, an all-black branch of the Communist Party. In 1969, at 25, Davis was hired as an assistant professor at the University of California in Los Angeles but got fired because of her communist association. She took her case to court, which ruled that she could not get fired for her party affiliation. She returned to her position but had to leave in the following year when her contract expired. At the time, she became known as a supporter of the Soledad Brothers, three inmates of Soledad Prison convicted of murdering a guard. In August 1970, during the trial of George Lester Jackson, one of the defendants, his brother, took over the courtroom and tried to claim hostages to exchange for his brother. A shoot-out occurred while transporting the hostages, in which four people were killed, including Superior Court Judge Harold Haley. Davis was accused of being part of the event since the weapons were registered under her name. She went into hiding, and the FBI listed her on its Ten Most Wanted Fugitive List. After two months, she was caught and sent to jail. She became a symbol of resistance. The Free Angela Davis became a movement, with thousands of people in over 60 countries signing petitions for her release, arguing that she was a political prisoner targeted for her activism and political beliefs. After 16 months of incarceration and no trial, she got released on $100,000 bail. She was acquitted by the jury four months later. Her time in prison only fueled her passion for fighting against injustice. After her release, she embarked on an international speaking tour, welcomed and praised mainly in communist countries, such as Cuba, East Germany, and the Soviet Union. In 1975, at the age of 31, she resumed her scholar career, teaching history, Black and Women’s studies in various academic institutes, including Claremont Colleges, San Francisco State University, and the University of California, Santa Cruz. She continued with her activism work, speaking publicly on various causes, from racial equality and women’s rights to prison reform and the inequality of capitalism. In 1991, she founded the Committees of Correspondence for Democracy and Socialism, and in 1997, she co-founded the Critical Resistance – an organization dedicated to abolishing the prison system. Over the years, she has been writing and editing 12 books, focusing mainly on various aspects of politics, feminism, and civil rights. She is serving on the advisory board of the Prison Activist Resource Center and continues to advocate for equality for all. Read more...

Natalie Diaz was born and raised in the Fort Mojave Indian Village in Needles, California, to a Mexican father and Native-American mother. She attended Old Dominion University on a full athletic scholarship and played point guard on the university’s basketball team. After receiving her Bachelor’s degree, she played professional basketball in Europe and Asia before returning to Old Dominion University for an MFA in poetry and fiction. At the time, Diaz used poetry to explore why she wants certain things and why she is afraid of others, reflecting her upbringing in the reservation. She published her poems in various magazines, and in 2012, at the age of 34, she published her first book- When My Brother Was an Aztec. In this award-winning poem collection, she portrayed her experiences as a Native American woman and focused on her brother’s crystal meth addiction. In 2020, at 40, Diaz published her second collection- Postcolonial Love Poem, for which she was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in poetry – the first Latina woman to receive the award. In her poetry, Diaz blends personal, cultural, and political references to challenge contemporary American perception. Another interest of Diaz is preserving Native languages, believing that they are the foundation of the American poetic lexicon. As the Fort Mojave Language Recovery Program Director, she works with the last speakers of the Mojave language to document and revitalize the language. Diaz serves as the Maxine and Jonathan Marshall Chair in Modern and Contemporary Poetry at Arizona State University. She is a faculty member of the CantoMundo Retreat and the Board of Trustees for the United States Artists. In 2021, at the age of 43, she was elected a Chancellor of the Academy of American Poets. Read more...

Judith Butler grew up in a Jewish family in Cleveland Ohio. At the age of 13, when she was asked what would be her dream job, she gave two options: a philosopher or a clown. She was reprimanded by the Rabbi for asking too many questions at the synagogue as a teenager. She went on making a career from asking questions, studying until she received her Ph.D. in Philosophy from Yale University in 1984. At the age of 33, she gained the status of “Superstar Professor” after publishing the book “Gender Trouble” (1990), which since was reprinted in more than 120 editions. Her work has made complex notions of gender identity more accessible and left an impact on mainstream culture. Despite being considered “hard to read”, she has since published more than 20 books, and contributed to many more publications, addressing a range of topics, from state vigilance to mourning, sexuality, international relations, and literature. Since 1993, Butler works at Berkley, University of California, currently serving as a Professor of Comparative Literature. In addition, she is active in several human rights organizations, such as the Center for Constitutional Rights in New York, Jewish Voice for Peace, and International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission board. Read more...

Born Marguerite Annie Johnson in St. Louis, Missouri, she moved several times in her childhood. Her most influential time was in Stamps, Arkansas with her grandmother, whom she thought was the god but kept it as a secret. The death of the grandmother gave her the courage to live life to the fullest. She gave birth to her only son as she finished high school at 17, and raised him alone, while working in a range of jobs, as a dancer in night clubs and a cook. Attracted by the uniforms, she overcame racial barriers, and in 1944 became the first black female cable car conductor of San Francisco. Angelou has developed a dynamic career as a singer, dancer (even trained with Martha Graham) and actress, touring Europe at the age of 27, editing a magazine in Egypt at 33, and teaching in Ghana at 35. It is only at 40 that she wrote her first book, “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” that included the description of being raped in childhood. The book became both popular and controversial, selling more than a million copies and translated into 17 languages. It was followed by more than 30 books, including six more volumes of her autobiography, poetry, cookbooks, and children’s books. She continued her diverse career as an actor, director, educator, and essayist, and also became a dominant political voice for the civil rights movement, working with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X. In her lifetime she was awarded more than 50 honorary degrees.   Dive deeper into the inspiring story of Maya Angelou with our fun and engaging printable worksheet! Available now on Etsy and Teachers Pay Teachers. Read more...