We all know that 2020 has not been the best year. We have gone through very complex and challenging times and with the pandemic and the uncertainty of the future, it’s easy to lose hope when everything seems so bleak. But the world is full of possibilities and even in the madness that 2020 has been, some great things have happened. Let’s celebrate women who, despite the odds, have made history while giving hope to us all for a brighter future.
Kamala Harris
Kamala Harris has become the first woman, the first Asian American, and the first Black American to be elected vice president. As she said in her victory speech – ‘But while I may be the first woman in this office, I will not be the last, because every little girl watching tonight sees that this is a country of possibilities’
Zendaya
Zendaya has made history, becoming the youngest woman to win best actress in a drama series at the 2020 Emmys. She won the award for her portrayal of teenage drug addict Rue in HBO’s Euphoria. In her acceptance speech she gave a message of hope to the younger generations saying – ‘I just want to say there is hope in the young people out there – I know that our TV show doesn’t always feel like a great example of that – but there is hope in our young people’.
Despite this being a great step for younger actresses, Zendaya is only the second black woman to win in this category. Viola Davis was the first in 2015 for her role as Annalise in How to Get Away with Murder.
Koffee
At the 2020 Grammys the 19-year-old Jamaican-singer Koffee has made history as both the first woman and youngest artist to win the Best Reggae Album award. This award has existed since 1985 and this year Koffee has opened a new path for all women in Reggae. As she said in her speech: ‘This one is for all of us…this one is for reggae. This one is for Jamaica’. Hopefully, thanks to Koffee we will see more women receiving this award.
A record number of women ran for office in 2020
It has been a good year for women in the American elections. Sarah McBride Delaware’s state Senate will become the highest-ranking openly transgender official in the nation; Stephanie Byers Kansas’s state lawmaker will be the first openly transgender lawmaker in the state; Taylor Small will become the first openly transgender lawmaker in the Vermont’s state; Cori Bush the first Black woman to represent the state in Congress; Michele Rayner-Goolsby the first openly LGBTQ+ Black woman in the state’s legislature in the Florida’s state House; Kim Jackson will become the first openly LGBTQ+ member of Georgia’s state Senate; Levine Cava the first female mayor of Miami-Dade County; Nida Allam the first Muslim woman elected to the county commission in Durham, North Carolina.
King Jedet, Daniela Santiago and Isabel Torres
These three incredible actresses have also made history in the Spanish 2020 ‘Premios Onda’ (the Spanish BAFTA’s). They have become the first trans women to win best female role in a drama series for their role as real-life trans vedette and Spanish icon Cristina Ortiz, in La Veneno (Atresmedia or HBO Max). A huge step for emerging trans actors who are constantly over-looked.
2021 is still clouded in mystery and it will be filled with new opportunities and challenges. We really hope change keeps happening and women get where they deserve to be. Putting 2020 into perspective, it was not the best year, but it certainly was a year of change in the right direction. Imagine everything that can happen next year thanks to all those women who have opened a whole new range of opportunities for the rest of us.
By Carla Molina Whyte
Carla is a film and media graduate, intersectional feminist and social media and marketing Intern at MsMono. You can follow her on Instagram