Stand UP Speak OUT DocuSeries

05/24/2026

In 1912, one year after California granted women the right to vote, San Francisco-born Tye Leung Schulze became the first Chinese American woman to vote in a U.S. election.

The significance was not lost on Schulze: "My first vote? Oh yes, I thought long over that. I studied; I read about all your men who wish to be president. I think we should not vote blindly, since we have been given this right. I think, too, that we women are more careful than the men. We want to do our whole duty more. I do not think it is just the newness that makes use like that. It is conscience."

But before she even cast a ballot, Schulze had already made history in 1910 as the first Chinese American woman to be employed by the U.S. government. Schulze worked as an interpreter at the Angel Island Immigration Station, a detention center designed to control the flow of Asian immigrants into the U.S. under the Chinese Exclusion Act. Schulze offered translation assistance and emotional support to the women who were detained indefinitely.

While Schulze is perhaps best known today for her history-making accomplishments, her true legacy is "one of determined belief in human worth, in a kinship that transcends artificial borders, in the steady, dedicated assault on prejudice and bigotry," according to author Robin Kadison Berson.

When she was just 12-years-old, Schulze fled an arranged marriage and found refuge in the Presbyterian Mission Home in San Francisco's Chinatown. Over the course of 9 years, she aided and translated for other Chinese women fleeing sex-trafficking, and provided crucial communication assistance in the courts and police proceedings, becoming known and respected by both.

Schulze worked for the Immigration and Naturalization Service as a translator again in 1946 after the War Brides Act of 1945 created a temporary surge in the immigration of Chinese women. Over the following decades, she continued working as a translator for the Chinese community in San Francisco until her death in 1972. She once wrote: “During my life I do interpreting for Chinese people who needed my help...we are all human.”

05/24/2026

People who fight to defend democracy and people who teach how to protect it want you! Together we strengthen democracy. “Power the Polls” is now recruiting a diverse new generation of poll workers for upcoming elections. Sign up now: https://www.powerthepolls.org/nea-lwv League of Women Voters of the US NEA Today

05/21/2026

From past to present, women have always been at the forefront of change.
Now, we’re bringing those voices to TikTok, amplifying stories, inspiring action, and building a stronger future together.

Join us ➡️

05/19/2026

Women’s healthcare has always included mental health, but for generations, their mental health was ignored, misunderstood, or dismissed.

In the 1800s, women experiencing depression, trauma, or postpartum mental health conditions were often labeled “hysterical” and institutionalized without real care. Change didn’t come easily; it was fought for.

One key figure in that fight was Dorothea Dix (1802–1887). Beginning in 1841, Dix investigated conditions in prisons and asylums across the U.S. What she found was devastating: women with mental illness were often chained, abused, or left untreated. She spent decades lobbying lawmakers, and by the 1850s, her advocacy helped establish over 30 humane mental health institutions.
But the fight didn’t end there.

In 1978, Rosalynn Carter launched the President’s Commission on Mental Health, pushing to reduce stigma and improve access to care, especially for women balancing caregiving, work, and societal pressure.

Today, women are nearly twice as likely as men to experience anxiety and depression. And yet, gaps in diagnosis, cultural stigma, and unequal access to care still persist.

This is not just about awareness, it’s about equity.

Mental health is healthcare. And women’s healthcare has always been a battleground for recognition, dignity, and rights.

💬 What changes do you think are still needed to truly support women’s mental health today?

05/17/2026

"Many mothers know the feeling of carrying too much at once. Juggling careers, caregiving, household responsibilities, and self-care, women truly have their hands full.

Displayed outside Germany’s Bundestag parliament, this sculpture reimagines Lady Justice as a pregnant woman with six arms holding a child, laptop, phone, calendar, bag, and scales, symbolizing the realities many self-employed mothers face without maternity leave protections.

Created by artist Stefanie Gornicki and unveiled by the advocacy group Mutterschutz für Alle! (“Maternity Protection for All!”), the piece shines a light on the unequal burden women continue to carry every day." -- via The Female Quotient

For a groundbreaking book that addresses the invisible, unpaid domestic work that still falls disproportionately on women -- and offers a real system to couples for changing that dynamic -- we highly recommend "Fair Play: A Game-Changing Solution for When You Have Too Much to Do (and More Life to Live)" for adult readers at https://bookshop.org/a/8011/9780525541943 (Bookshop) and https://amzn.to/4fktWnG (Amazon)

For children's books about the special bond between mothers and daughters, visit our blog post "A Mother's Love: 30 Books Celebrating Mighty Moms & Daughters" at https://www.amightygirl.com/blog?p=11469

05/17/2026

in 1954, a unanimous Supreme Court decision changed history. Brown v. Board of Education ruled that school segregation violated the 14th Amendment's Equal Protection and Due Process clauses. In theory, it ended racial segregation in public schools. In practice, many schools stayed segregated anyway.

05/17/2026

Today marks the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia & Biphobia — a global call to uphold dignity, equality, and human rights for all. 💛

First observed in 2004, this day honors the 1990 decision to remove homosexuality from the list of mental disorders — and reminds us how far we’ve come, and how far we still have to go.

At its core, this day is about humanity. About recognizing that every person deserves to live freely, safely, and authentically.

Dr. Maya Angelou once said: “We are more alike, my friends, than we are unalike.”

Let that truth guide us — toward compassion, understanding, and respect for one another. 💛

05/17/2026

05/17/2026

Oklahoma has officially become the 17th
U.S. state to fully ban child marriage, setting the minimum marriage age at 18 with no exceptions.

05/17/2026

Amid Escalating Attacks on the Voting Rights Act and U.S. Democracy in Crisis, Lani Guinier’s Vision Feels More Urgent Than Ever

05/17/2026

In 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a landmark ruling in Brown v. Board of Education, declaring that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional. It overturned the “separate but equal” doctrine established by Plessy v. Ferguson, a legal framework that had upheld segregation for nearly six decades.
But this victory didn’t happen in isolation.

Behind the case were Black families, especially Black mothers who risked everything to challenge injustice. Oliver Brown filed the case on behalf of his daughter, but it was parents like Leola Brown Montgomery and Lucinda Todd who organized, testified, and demanded better futures for their children. In 1951, Lucinda Todd personally attempted to enroll her daughter in a white school, an act of resistance that helped spark the case.

Their fight exposed a deeper truth: equality in law does not guarantee equality in reality.

Even after the 1954 ruling, many schools resisted integration for years, sometimes decades. Black girls, in particular, faced both racial discrimination and gendered barriers, navigating systems that devalued their education and safety.
This is the intersection of race and gender in education: where legal wins meet lived inequality.

Brown v. Board of Education was a turning point, but it was not the finish line. It reminds us that progress is driven not just by court decisions, but by the courage of everyday people—especially women who push systems to change.
The question remains: how far have we really come?