NASA's Hidden Figures

As its official website says, "Hidden Figures" is a film that talks about female mathematicians who were also black, black mathematicians who were also female, and it shows the hard reality African American people had to face at a time were racism was the usual thing and black people weren't much more than insignificant. But it specially shows how three women were able to overcome racial segregation and help change America's history, contributing to win the Space Race against the Soviet Union.

"So yes, they let women do things at NASA, Mr. Johnson. 

And it's not because we wear skirts. It's because we wear glasses."

These three incredible women were Mary Jackson, an African American teacher and engineer whose love for science and her commitment to improve the lives of others were one and the same; Dorothy Vaughan, a respected mathematician and NASA's first African American manager, and Katherine Johnson,  a NASA's mathematician who calculated the trajectory for the space flight of Alan Shepard —the first American in space—, the one of John Glenn —the first American to orbit earth—, and of Apollo 11 —the first human mission to the moon.

"We get to the peak together, or we don't get there at all."

In Hidden Figures we can see a process in which black women's empowerment gets more and more real in a world made by and for white men, and it makes us think about the importance of perseverance. It's a film that reflects not only the 1990's society, but also today's. I know, we've improved the situation, but it's still not enough. The fight must go on, and these three women are a good example of what we can and should do. As it's said by many people, "Hidden Figures" is the movie America needs right now —and not only America, but the whole world.

Regarding the film industry, Hidden Figures is part of a positive change that's taking place recently: a film starring three strong, non-objectified black women who pursuit their dreams and happiness. And these dreams have nothing to be with getting a rich husband nor becoming pretty, superficial Barbies. They get jobs which are usually associated with men, and they do better than them.

"That girl!"

Moreover, this film has given credit to these so-called hidden figures, who were forgotten in this sexist, racist world. It has given them the fame they deserved, and has shown that we can only change things if we stand all together —male and female of all races and backgrounds. So, for all these reasons, I encourage you to watch this wonderful film and to fight for what you think you deserve; no matter your race, no matter your sex, no matter your background. No more hidden figures!

 

Written by: María Bustos Pons

Hidden Figures trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RK8xHq6dfAo

References:

Hidden Figures' official webpage - http://www.hiddenfigures.com/

Mary Jackson's biography - https://www.nasa.gov/content/mary-jackson-biography

Dorothy Vaughan's biography

https://crgis.ndc.nasa.gov/crgis/images/2/29/VaughanBio.pdf 

https://www.nasa.gov/content/dorothy-vaughan-biography

Human Computers - NasaCRgis - NASA Langley GIS Team Home Page - 

https://crgis.ndc.nasa.gov/historic/Human_Computers 

Katherine Johnson's biography -  

https://www.nasa.gov/content/katherine-johnson-biography 

http://www.makers.com/katherine-g-johnson

Hidden Figures' quotes - http://m.imdb.com/title/tt4846340/quotes

 

Jennifer Lawrence: The woman who ends the cliché

For many years, girls have been living with the idea of “be beautiful and shut up”. Thankfully, today many models, singers or actresses are changing this code of femininity. And, in my opinion, JenniferLawrence is one of the most influent examples of this situation. 

Nowadays, we are surrounded by celebrities who are trying to live perfect and effortless lives. They are rich, talented, always with an impeccable appearance and everything they say must certainly be scripted to perfection. What I like about Jennifer Lawrence is the fact that the fame or Hollywood have not changed her. She is natural, without any filter and true to herself. Indeed, she is the funniest personality I have ever seen. She isn’t afraid of acting silly on camera and she does not care about being honest in interviews. 

For instance, we can refer to one of her interviews on the Jimmy Fallon’s show where she told us the worst situations she has ever been into and it was hilarious. She first talk  about her meeting with “Elizabeth Taylor” in 2012, while this one was actually dead in 2011. She added that she complimented the woman about her movies and her clothes. When a friend of hers came next to her, she yelled “look it’s Elisabeth Taylor!”, and when her friend told her it wasn’t her because the poor woman was dead, she ran away.

But this isn’t the worst situation she has ever been into. Indeed, when she was in Paris for the first time to promote one of her movies, she saw Nick Ford Coppola and as a huge fan she decided to go and introduce herself to the producer and his colleagues. But when she went to see them, nobody knew who she was, her entire dress was unzipped and her thong was out. So, next time someone waves their hand and you think that they are waving at you but it is actually for the person behind you, just think of Jennifer Lawrence, who has actually been through worse.

We also have the cliché that to be pretty you must be skinny. Well, Jennifer Lawrence is known to have dropped some serious thoughts about body image. Even though she is gorgeous (yeah, we have to admit that she is very beautiful), she admitted that she had been called “fat” and that she had to lose some pounds. But she was clear about one thing: “I’m never going to starve myself for a part”. 

She also shared her views about unrealistic body expectations and by doing so she is pushing people to accept themselves:

“You have to see past it. You look how you look, you have to be comfortable. What are you going to do? Be hungry every single day to make other people happy? That’s just dumb.”

And she also criticized the media for diffusing unrealistic standards:

 “There are shows like ‘The Fashion Police’ that are just showing these generations of young people to judge people based on all the wrong values and that it’s OK to point at people and call them ugly or fat. They call it “fun” and they say ‘welcome to the real world’— and that shouldn’t be the real world, it’s going to continue being the real world if we keep it that way. We have to stop treating each other like that and stop calling each other fat.”
 
(Thank you, J-Law.)

But Jennifer Lawrence  is also known for her loud-mouth, especially when it comes to salary. Indeed, after discovering she was paid less than her male co-stars, she spoke out against the wage gap in Hollywood between male and female actors. But she was not mad at the producers, she was mad at herself and claimed that she wants women to remember that they should not always be nice and cute, but that they should demand and go for it. And all her fights, her efforts were not in vain because in her interview in the French news television program TF1 she confessed that she had been paid more than her male co-star, Chris Pratt, in the movie Passengers. Moreover, we should bear in mind the fact that she is Hollywood’s highest paid actress.

Finally, and most importantly, let’s talk about her movies. J-Law is the most powerful actress in the world according to Forbes Magazine. She got famous in only 8 years and 20 movies. Moreover, she received an Oscar when she was 22, 3 Golden Globes and 73 awards for her 20 roles. 

So, if you are a huge fan of her, you have probably noticed that she never plays nice little girls who sit still and say nothing. Indeed, her fight for woman to be respected in society is reflected in her roles selection. She rather personifies free, authentic and brave women who break stereotypes. 

Even if her career started with Bones, in which she does everything to take care of her family, she acquired success in The Hunger Games Saga. In these amazing movies, she plays the role of Katniss Everdeen, a young girl who takes her sister’s place to fight to death in an arena against 23 other participants in the dystopian and totalitarian nation of Panem, which is divided into 12 districts. Then from Marvel Comics she personifies the character of Mystique , a blue mutant who can mimic the appearance and voice of any person, and we can say that she is pretty badass.

But she does not only play fictional characters, she also personifies real characters like Joy Mangano in David O.Russell’s movie Joy, who invented a self-wringing mop, and declared that Joy is a “tribute to women who are the unsung heroes of their households.”

Even if she is hated mostly by the press like Le Parisien because of her coldness, Jennifer is the best friend I would like to have.  She is the girl everyone (ok, almost all the girls) wants to be. She is frank, open, she likes to eat junk food like us and she does not care about what people say about her. I think it is so refreshing to see such attitude on camera instead of people who control everything they want to say just to seem perfect while they are not. 

Moreover, she is a stereotype breaker, she knows how to use her voice and she also knows how to stay true to herself. Jennifer is a role model for me, an advocate for women and also for everyone especially when it comes for positive body image with such an honest and mature point of view.
But Jennifer adds a special touch to today’s feminism. She changed this perfect image that most of the actresses have. She is more authentic, more like us. She is the today’s woman, The New Eve.

Emmanuel APAYA

http://variety.com/2015/film/awards/jennifer-lawrence-joy-david-o-russell-1201649644/

http://www.meltyfashion.fr/emily-ratajkowski-jennifer-lawrence-ashley-graham-ces-stars-qui-redefinissent-la-feminite-a592036.html

http://www.melty.fr/jennifer-lawrence-detestable-a582231.html

http://www.melty.fr/jennifer-lawrence-joy-est-un-hommage-aux-femmes-a476615.html

http://www.lexpress.fr/culture/cinema/jennifer-lawrence-la-surdouee-de-hollywood_1862929.html

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