Contemporary women changing the world. The names to know and accounts to follow.
ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ
Also known as AOC, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is a US democrat and Representative for New York’s 14th Congressional District. She has held this position since 2018 when she defeated Joe Crowley, a victory that ousted him after 10 terms. She is fearless and passionate, standing up to the likes of Donald Trump and Ted Yoho, for their racist and misogynistic slurs.
Follow AOC on Twitter and Instagram, watch her calling out Ted Yoho or the Netflix documentary, Knock Down the House, which showcases her 2018 race for Congress.
NIMCO ALI
Born in Somali but raised in the UK, Nimco Ali is a self-described FGM (female genital mutilation) survivor. Responsible for redefining FGM as child abuse thanks to her work with the NSPCC, Nimco has also created Daughters of Eve, a non profit organisation, working to protect girl from communities that practise FGM. Daughters of Eve states “We recognise female genital mutilation (FGM) as a form of gender-based violence, which therefore reflects and reinforces inequities between men and women and compromises the health, dignity, security and autonomy of its victims.”
Follow Nimco Ali on Twitter and Instagram, and find out more about Daughters of Eve here.
JAMEELA JAMIL
A hard-hitting no-nonsense-talking activist, with a strong eye liner game to boot. Jameela Jamil, a presenter, DJ and sitcom star, could have lived a quiet life alongside a very successful career. Instead, she is waging a war on celebrities who promote unhealthy weight loss techniques and just about anybody who isn’t respectful of others or a supporter of equality on social media.
Follow Jameela Jamil on Twitter and Instagram, and check out her iWeigh Community.
FLORENCE GIVEN
Author, activist and artist, Florence Given, sure likes to smash the A’s as well as the patriarchy! Her bold and unequivocal slogan designs, such as ‘It’s a wonderful day to dump him’ and ‘Stop raising him. He’s not your son’ have earned her a place as a leader of Gen Z feminism.
Follow Florence Given on Instagram, check out her artwork and buy her book, Women Don’t Owe You Pretty.
EMMA WATSON
Emma Watson is an English actress, model, activist and feminist. In 2014, she was appointed as the UN Women Goodwill ambassador. She travelled to New York City as an advocate for the UN Women campaign “HeForShe” which promotes for gender equality.
Follow Emma Watson on Twitter and check out her feminist book club, Goodreads.
BEYONCÉ
With global hits such as Run the World (Girls), Flawless, featuring Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s TED Talk ‘We Should All Be Feminists’ and basically the whole of the album, Lemonade, Beyoncé didn’t just make feminism musical, she made it cool. And she doesn’t just talk the talk, Beyoncé juggles superstardom with motherhood, marriage to rapper, Jay-Z, and a clothing line, Ivy Park. Who runs the world? Bey.
GRETA THUNBERG
Leading both the battle and by example, Greta Thunberg is the face of the climate change campaign. Travelling from Stockholm to New York in a zero carbon emission yacht and staring out Donald Trump, are just some of her accomplishments. At 17 years of age, she is a force to be reckoned with and an icon of the young, taking on the global establishment.
RUTH BADER GINSBURG
A former American Supreme Court Judge, Ruth Bader Ginsburg deceased is also the star of the film, On the Basis of Sex, and Netflix docufilm, RBG, both autobiographical depictions of her successful career as a lawyer, embedded with her fight for equal rights for women.
Read more about The Supreme Court of the United States, including judgements given by Ruth Bader Ginsburg, here.
REESE WITHERSPOON
When actor Reese Witherspoon felt that there weren’t enough roles for women over a certain age in film, she created her own production company, Hello Sunshine, and started buying the rights to books written by some of the most prominent female voice of our time, opening up the doors for many other women in Hollywood too. Reese is a proud feminist and host of the Netflix series, Shine On with Reese, in which she showcases inspirational women and their achievements.
Follow Reese Witherspoon on Twitter and Instagram, and watch the Netflix series, Shine On with Reese.
MICHAELA COEL
Creator and star of shows such as Chewing Gum and I May Destroy You, exploring themes of female sexuality, consent and sexual assault, as well as ensuring a nearly all black cast, Michaela Coel has advanced the narrative for gender as well as racial equality.
SCARLETT CURTIS
Scarlett Curtis curated the Sunday Times Best Seller, Feminists Don’t Wear Pink (and other lies): Amazing women on what the F-word means to them, an anthology of essays from women such as Keira Knightley, Jameela Jamil and even Bridget Jones. Scarlett is the host of a podcast of the same name and campaigns against period poverty and FGM.
MALALA YOUSEFZAI
Shot by the Taliban in Pakistan in 2012 on her way home from school, Malala continued to campaign for a right to education for girls and co-won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014. She has published a memoir, I am Malala: The Story of the Girl who Stood up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban, and features in the 2015 documentary, He Named Me Malala. She has spoken at the UN, Harvard and with both the Queen and Barack Obama.
JACINDA ARDERN
The youngest national leader in the world, Jacinda Ardern, Prime Minister of New Zealand supports gay marriage, abortion rights and describes herself as a feminist. She also became only the second global leader to give birth whilst in office.
Follow Jacinda Ardern on Instagram.
CLEMENTINE FORD
Clementine Ford is the author of Fight Like A Girl and Boys Will Be Boys, books that are bold and bracing in their arguments for equality. She also gave a TEDx Talk called Your Vagina is Not A Car, calling out rape culture and fear, perpetuated so women don’t try to take up too much space in the world. To top it all off, she can take down the most despicable internet troll with the flick of her little finger.
Follow Clementine Ford on Twitter and Instagram, buy Fight Like A Girl and watch her TED talk.
BRENDA HALE
Also known as Baroness Hale of Richmond, Brenda Hale was the first female President of the Supreme Court. In 2019, she delivered the Judgement confirming that British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, had acted unlawfully in suspending parliament and featured in a children’s book, Equal to Everything, Judge Brenda and the Supreme Court.
Read more about The Supreme Court and the cases presided over by Baroness Hale, here.
The Cerve 