Frances Barkman

In 1939 she organised the foundation of a home for refugee children, seeking to make it ‘as much like a home as possible’ for the children, most of whom had left parents behind in Germany. During the war she was also an advocate and fund-raiser for the Free French movement in Australia and organised the collection and shipping of relief and educational materials when the war came to an end. Barkman was an astute user of the media to win support for her causes, fighting to create sympathy for Jewish refugees and, later, to attract publicity to the French cause

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Mary P Burrill

Mary P. Burrill was a celebrated playwright whose works inspired many prominent writers of the New Negro Movement/Harlem Renaissance. She used her plays to confront many topics, including, but not limited to, lynching, the Black experience, and bodily autonomy for women.

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Nkenge Touré

Nkenge Touré is an activist whose expansive collection of speeches and written works confront issues around reproductive justice, Black feminism, and women’s rights.

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Mary Treadwell

Mary Treadwell was a notable DC-based activist and community organizer. Treadwell is most noted for co-creating Youth Pride, Inc., a job-training program that assisted inner-city youth. She also advocated for the decriminalization of abortion, particularly as part of her work advocating for bodily autonomy as a form of Black liberation.

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