TEXAS — Texas has been the home to many trailblazers who have changed the course of our everyday lives with their ambition, dedication and unwavering courage. Many of these female pioneers dominated in their fields despite discrimination, marginalization and ranging hardships.

Jovita Idar

Jovita Idar was a Mexican American teacher, journalist and political activist. She grew frustrated with the oppression of Mexican Americans in her community as well as her lack of power to change anything. She joined her family’s newspaper, La Cronica, as a writer to make an impact.

Idar began writing about the discrimination, harassment and civil rights abuses Mexican Americans were subjected to by the police. Her writing brought attention to atrocities such as lynchings, terrible housing and schools and poor working conditions.

In 1911, her family organized “El Primer Congreso Mexicanista.” According to the Texas State Historical Association, this was the first attempt at a militant feminist social movement, which was foundational for the modern civil rights movement for Mexican Americans. The organization encouraged women to be active in the feminist movement and work outside the home.

After the Mexican Revolution she joined the staff of El Progresso where she wrote an editorial piece criticizing President Woodrow Wilson sending troops to the Texas-Mexico border. This resulted in President Wilson sending Texas Rangers to shut down the facility. Idar stood in the doorway protesting her right to freedom of the press. However, troops later returned and destroyed the publication’s equipment and rummaged through the office.

In 1917, Idar married and moved to San Antonio where she became active in the Democratic Party. She concentrated on implementing better educational practices. She created a free kindergarten, worked in a hospital as an interpreter for Spanish speakers and was an editor for the publication El Heraldo Cristiano.  

Bessie Coleman

Bessie Coleman was the first Black and Native American female pilot. In the early years of World War I she moved to Chicago and worked as a manicurist. According to the National Women’s History Museum, she decided to become a pilot after her brother, a World War 1 veteran, teased that she couldn’t and French women could.

Coleman learned the French language and in 1920 pursued her dream of becoming a pilot. No American aviation school would accept her because she was African American and a woman. So, Coleman traveled abroad to Le Crotoy, France, to attend the Caudron Brothers’ School of Aviation. In 1921, the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale issued Coleman her pilot license.

She returned to the U.S. with the goal of fulfilling her career and opening a flight school for Black students. Coleman’s premier performance at an American air show was in 1922 was followed by exhibition flights all over the country. In 1925, she established a headquarters in Houston, Texas, where she held more daring performances and earned the nickname “Brave Bessie.” According to the Texas State historical Association, she was most familiar with Curtiss JN-4D “Jenny” planes and army aircraft from the war. 

In 1926, she died in an accident that occurred 12 minutes into a flight test before a show in Jacksonville, Florida. Coleman’s plane didn’t pull up from a nosedive and went into a downward plunge, which was believed to be caused by a loose wrench that locked the plane’s controls.

Emma Tenayuca

Emma Tenayuca was a Mexican American labor organizer and civil rights activist. She led multiple strikes for female workers in the 1930s Great Depression era to combat horrible working conditions.

Tenayuca’s activism started at an early age after witnessing the discrimination against her community following the New Deal. She was arrested for the first time at just 16 years old at a strike for women workers at the H.W. Finck Cigar company where she watched police brutalize strikers. The police targeted Mexican American workers for violence and illegal deportations. Much of Tenayuca’s community in San Antonio was neglected by governmental powers, leaving citizens negatively affected by poor sanitation, housing and infrastructure.

At 21 years old she rose the lead the Pecan Shellers’ strike, which garnered national attention. Pecan production was a large industry in San Antonio and companies paid employees very little for their labor. According to the National Park Service, under Tenayuca’s leadership the strike grew to 12,000 workers. This was the largest in the city’s history and lasted three months. The city’s mayor sent police to brutalize strikers, but their dedication remained unshakable. The strike ended in a short-lived compromise of an established minimum hourly wage, until companies shut down factories and turned to machines. However, the impact of Tenayuca's actions is cemented into the city's history. She was later inducted into the San Antonio Women's Hall of Fame.

Maude Sampson

Maude Sampson was a public-school teacher, suffragist and civil rights activist. After her education at Prairie View A&M University, she began teaching at Fredrick Douglass School in El Paso. She then moved to Austin to teach at Gregory Town School, one of the first schools to educate Black children. In Austin, she helped establish the oldest African American women’s service organization in Austin, the Douglass Club of Austin.

Shortly after, she returned to El Paso to teach and became the vice president of the El Paso chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). As a board member she held integrated meetings for women to discuss women’s suffrage for the 1918 election, when the El Paso Negro Woman’s Civic and Enfranchisement League was formed.

In 1918 she requested to join the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) and submitted the only request by an African American to join Texas Equal Suffrage Association (TESA). She was denied.

Black women in El Paso remained active in the suffrage movement under Sampson until the 19th amendment was ratified. Sampson served as chairman for political campaigns and continued to fight for equality in El Paso as the VP of El Paso NAACP, instrumental in the desegregation of schools in El Paso.

Mary Kay Ash

Mary Kay Ash was the founder of the billion-dollar cosmetics empire Mary Kay Inc. Ash created her own business at the age of 45 for $5,000 in 1963, which would be about $50,000 today. Her cosmetics line, which was initially “Beauty by Mary Kay,” offered a new approach to women’s skin care at the time.

Initially, she was a sales representative for Stanley Home Products, which required hosting parties to sell products. She later joined World Gifts in 1952 but left the company in protest after a man she trained was promoted above her.

Her venture into her own business earned Ash close to $1 million in profits during its first year. Her products were sold through typical at-home parties and events. However, employees were able to receive great incentives without limits on customers or regions.

Mary Kay Ash has earned significant achievements including The Horatio Alger Distinguished American Citizen Award. A Wall Street Journal best-seller, Lifetime Television names her most outstanding woman in business in the 20th century. Mary Kay Inc. became one of the first companies to introduce a recycling program and ban product testing on animals. This earned her numerous honors for environmental protection.

Ash’s marketing skills and charisma helped make Mary Kay Cosmetics soar beyond her passing in 2001. She was greatly recognized for her company’s care for its employees and her love of pink. She created a global enterprise that has reach in over 30 markets. She remains highly regarded as a pioneer businesswoman who created opportunities for women to achieve financial success.

Diana Natalicio

Diana Natalicio was the first female president of the University of Texas-El Paso. According to the university she served on tenure for 31 years. This was the longest term for a female president of a public four-year university.

Before taking her position as president, Dr. Natalicio was vice president of academic affairs, dean of liberal arts, chair of modern languages and professor of linguistics. Her primary career focus was increasing the access to higher education for the Latino community.

According to USA Today, during her time as president the Latino student population grew from 53% to more than 80% in 10 years. Dr. Natalicio was able to greatly grow the university’s budget from $65 million to $450 million, expand opportunities for research and worked to increase the average of students pursuing a doctorate.

In 2011, she received the highest honor the Mexican government bestows, the “Order of the Aztec Eagle.” Natalicio was later recognized as one of Time’s 100 most influential people. In 2019, nearing her retirement, Dr. Natalicio earned the Conquistador Award, the City of El Paso’s most prestigious award, for her lifetime of contributions.

Selena Quintanilla

Selena Quintanilla has left a legacy as “la Reina de la Onda Tejana” (the Queen of Tejano music). Her career began at 8 years old, and as her band grew into a professional act, she became a star in Tejano music. She won the Tejano Music Award for female entertainer of the year in 1987. Her popularity exponentially grew, and other awards soon followed.

According to the Texas State Historical Association, at the 1995 Houston Livestock Rodeo Show, about 61,041 people came to see her band perform. This exceeded names like Reba McEntire, George Strait and Clint Black. The album “Ven Comigo” catapulted the band, followed by “Entre a Mi Mundo,” which made Selena the first Tejana to sell more than 300,000 albums. Despite this success, the mainstream industry didn’t acknowledge the star until 1993. That year she won a Grammy for Best Mexican American Album.

Selena and her band Los Dinos were able to blend Tejano, romance, cumbia, pop and rap, among other musical influences in both Spanish and English. Selena recounted musical inspirations like Janet Jackson, Donna Summer, Madonna and cumbia music. The band sold more than 1.5 million records, she secured six-figure contracts, and in 1994 she opened her own boutique in Corpus Christi. Despite her success, Selena remained a heavily involved in her community.

In 1995, Selena was fatally shot, and more than 300,000 people attended her memorial service in Corpus Christi. Today, her legacy is upheld by fans all over the world. In 1997, the memorial “Mirador de la Flor,” which included a bronze statue of Selena, was installed in Corpus Christi. Later that year, a biographical movie starring Jennifer Lopez was released. In 2001, the late singer was inducted into the Tejano R.O.O.T.S Hall of Fame.

Ann Richards

Ann Richards was the second female governor of Texas sixty years after Miriam “Ma” Ferguson. She was a force in Texas politics all throughout her career. She was a volunteer for several political campaigns and ran a successful campaign to elect Sarah Weddington to the Texas Legislature.

She was the first woman elected as a Travis County commissioner in 1976 and served for six years. In 1982, she was the first woman to be elected state treasurer and the first woman to be elected to statewide office in more than 50 years. Her iconic keynote speech at the 1988 Democratic National Convention — which showcased her wit, style, and iconic persona  — drew national attention.

During her governing a substance abuse program for inmates was established along with the Texas Lottery. Additionally, she was a very outspoken advocate for civil and women’s rights. The Texas NAACP later awarded her the Presidential Award for Outstanding Contributions to Civil Rights. According to the Foundation for Women’s Resources, Richards fulfilled her “new Texas” plan by appointing more women, Hispanics, and African Americans to state posts than the two preceding governors combined. Additionally, her authorized audits of state agencies saved $6 billion.

Richards continued her work in ensuring equity for women. She was a founding member of the Foundation for Women’s Resources, the creators of the Texas Women’s History Project, a research effort to memorialize trailblazing women in Texas history. Additionally, she was involved in the establishment of the Ann Richards School for Young Women Leaders, an all-girls public institution in Austin that opened after her passing in 2006.

Simone Biles

Simone Biles is the greatest gymnast of all time who’s earned great critical acclaim over the course of her career. That includes Time's “100 Most Influential,” Ebony's “Power 100” and USA Today's “100 Women of the Century,” to name a few. She is the first American woman to win seven national all-around titles and first female gymnast to win three consecutive World All-Around titles.

According to the gymnast’s personal website, Biles has become the most decorated gymnast with 25 medals. She made quite the impression at her senior international debut at the 2013 American Cup, and later that year she became the first Black woman to win gold in the all-around at the World Championships.

In 2015, she become the second woman to earn three all-around national titles at the U.S. National Championship, won four gold medals at the World Championship and made history winning three consecutive titles. In 2016 she became an Olympic gold medalist and gained recognition as Associated Press’ “Female Athlete of the Year.”

In 2018, Biles was the first U.S. gymnast to win a medal in every single event at World Championships. She continued to excel in 2019, finishing first in all-around at U.S. World Championships and was the first gymnast since 1958 to win five gold medals at a single World Championship.

Recently, she won another all-around title as the first person to complete a Yurchenko double pike vault at the U.S. Classic. According to Time Magazine, the move is now referred to as “The Biles.”