Perhaps the most well-known women’s rights activist in history, Susan B. Anthony was born on February 15, 1820, to a Quaker family in the northwestern corner of Massachusetts . Quakers aren't considered Christians, although some Quakers consider themselves Christians, they are a universal religion, that have many Christian elements. Her parents, like many Quakers, believed that men and women should study, live and work as equals. From an early age, Anthony was an incredible student, and when her school wouldn’t teach her long division because of her gender, her father taught her at home. She became well educated, at a time when it was not common for women to be educated. In 1837, her family was hard hit financially by the great financial panic of 1937. In the next few years, Anthony worked as a teacher, scrapping by a living and helping her father to pay off his debts. By 1846, she had become headmistress at Canajoharie Academy; her work as a teacher encouraged her to campaign for equal pay for women teachers who, at the time, were usually paid much less than men. In 1846, she left teaching and moved to the family farm in Rochester, New York. After retiring from teaching, she spent more time campaigning on political issues. Overcoming a shyness about public speaking, Anthony became a leading public figure in the anti-slavery movement. Once a petition was rejected because the petition contained mostly women and children signatures. This encouraged Anthony to give more importance to gaining the vote for women. Without equal voting rights, she felt her campaigns against alcohol abuse were too easily dismissed. Also, in 1850, she read a speech by Lucy Stone from the Women’s Rights Convention, which inspired her to devote herself to the cause. As if Susan B. Anthony wasn't awesome enough, Women's Rights weren't the only thing she fought for. From an early age, Anthony had also followed her family in supporting the end of slavery and giving equal rights to black people. She died on March 13 1906 at the age of 86, in Rochester, New York.
Lady Bird Johnson
U.S. first lady Lady Bird Johnson was born Claudia Alta Taylor in Karnack, Texas, on December 22, 1912. As a child, a family nurse declared that Claudia Taylor was as "pretty as a ladybird." The nickname stuck, and that's what she was called from then on. She graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a bachelor's degree in art followed and continued on there studying journalism, with the plan to become a newspaper reporter. In the summer of 1934, Claudia met Lyndon Baines Johnson, who was working as a congressional aide at the time. Claudia and Lyndon got married in November 1934, just seven weeks after their first date. On November, 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas while traveling in a motorcade. Johnson was only two cars behind Kennedy when the shots rang out. Just a few hours later, Johnson was sworn in as the 36th president aboard Air Force One on its return to Washington, D.C. Claudia Johnson became first lady of the United States. She would serve as first lady from 1963 to 1969 Following the presidency, Lady Bird Johnson wrote the 800-page White House Diary, which was about her husband's life including the aftermath of the Kennedy assassination. She also remained active in beautification projects. Her love for native wildflowers inspired her to create the National Wildflower Research Center in 1982, near Austin, Texas. It was renamed in her honor in 1998. Lady Bird also remained outspoken on women's rights issues, calling the Equal Rights Amendment, "the right thing to do." She was honored with the country's highest civilian award, the Medal of Freedom in 1977, and was given the Congressional Gold Medal in 1988. The widow of former President Lyndon B. Johnson suffered a stroke in 2002 that left her with difficulty speaking. She died on July 11, 2007, at the age of 94, in West Lake Hills, Texas.
Malala Yousafzai
Malala was born July 12 1997 in Mingora, the Swat District of north west Pakistan to a Sunni Muslim family. She was named Malala, which means ‘grief stricken’ after a famous female Pashun poet and warrior from Afghanistan. Her father, Ziauddin Yousafzai is a poet, and runs a chain of public schools. He is a leading educational advocate himself. In 2009, she began writing an anonymous blog for the BBC expressing her views on education and life under the threat of the Taliban taking over her valley. It was her father who suggested his own daughter to the BBC. She wrote under the name “Gul Makai” After the BBC blog ended, Malala featured in a documentary made by New York Times reporter Adam B. Ellick. She also received greater international coverage and her identity about writing the BBC blog was revealed. In 2011, she received Pakistan’s first National Youth Peace Prize and she was nominated by Archbishop Desmond Tutu for the International Children’s Peace Prize. Her increased profile and strident criticism of the Taliban caused Taliban leaders to meet, and in 2012, they voted to kill her. On 9 October, 2012, a masked gunman entered her school bus and asked “Which one of you is Malala? Speak up, otherwise I will shoot at you all.” Malala was identified and she was shot with a single bullet which went through her head, neck and shoulder. Two other girls were also injured, though not as badly as Malala. Malala survived the initial shooting, but was in a critical condition. Her father was convinced she would die and told the village to prepare for her funeral. Her critical organs were failing and she developed an infection. In a coma, she was moved to a hospital in Rwalpindi. Later on the 15 October she was moved to Birmingham in the United Kingdom for further treatment at a specialist hospital for treating military injuries. A couple of days later, she came out of a coma and responded well to treatment. She was discharged on January 3, 2013 and moved with her family to a temporary home in the West Midlands. Her assassination received worldwide condemnation and protests across Pakistan. Over 2 million people signed the Right to Education campaign. The petition helped the ratification of Pakistan’s first right to education bill in Pakistan. Ehsanullah Ehsan, chief spokesman for the Pakistani Taliban, claimed responsibility for the attack, saying that Malala On 12 July 2013, she spoke at the United Nations to a group of 500 youths calling for worldwide access to education. was a symbol of the infidels and obscenity. However, other Islamic clerics in Pakistan issued a fatwa against the Taliban leaders and said there was no religious justification for shooting a student. On 12 July 2013, she spoke at the United Nations to a group of 500 youths calling for worldwide access to education. On 12 July 2013, she spoke at the United Nations to a group of 500 kids calling for worldwide access to education. Malala was announced as the co-recipient of the 2014 Nobel Peace ¨Prize, along with Kailash Satyarthi. Aged 17 at the time, Malala became the youngest-ever Nobel Prize winner.