March is Women's History Month, and in the San Francisco Bay Area specifically, there are countless significant moments and achievements flourished here from our own powerful local women. For this month, International Women's Day March 8th, and beyond, we're highlighting 10 fantastic women with roots and successes in our Bay Area who are forever greatly remembered due to their trailblazing efforts, natural talents, persevering advocacy, and more.
See also: SF Women-Owned Businesses To Know For Women's History Month
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(1928-2014)
Though Maya Angelou is globally-renowned for being a brilliant poet and formidable civil rights activist, before the luminary became the first female inaugural poet, she ultimately started right in San Francisco as a cable car operator at 19 years old! The year was 1944, and after persistently demanding to become a streetcar conductor, the teenager achieved not only her goal, but made history as the first black woman to become so. After famously conducting the 7-Haight and 5-McAllister lines, she then advanced to earn inumerable awards and honorary degrees for all of her incredible poetry, writing, and activism.
Notable Quote: "If you are always trying to be normal, you will never know how amazing you can be."
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(1926-2013)
Ruth Asawa is a household name in the Bay Area arts scene, with many of her intriguing sculptures powerfully decorating many of our museums and local streets. Having been maliciously interned at a camp during WWII for her Japanese American identity, the sculptor utilized art to convey her experiences and emotions, later becoming a pioneering icon and advocate for the arts in the Bay Area. A few of her masterpieces are found as the fountain behind Union Square's Apple store, hanging at the de Young, and as evocative faces at Palo Alto's Cantor Center.
Notable Quote: "Art is doing. "Art deals directly with life."
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(1965-)
As the first and only female chef to earn three Michelin stars for her must-visit Atelier Crenn, Dominique Crenn is an inimitable culinary superstar. With a limitless devotion to nourish her community with not only reinvented cuisine, but also imbue them with her passionate love for nature and California, her deliciously astounding artistry has propelled her to countless features, recognitions, and legendary status as even an Iron Chef!
Continually expanding her talents, she has since opened her also Michelin-starred Bar Crenn, Petit Crenn, and most recently elegantly redesigned her inaugural restaurant with help from the set designer from "The Menu" movie, in which she served as a consultant!
Notable Quote: "Food is about humanity. Food is about bringing people together."
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(1877-1927)
Titled the "Mother of Modern Dance," Isadora Duncan influenced the turn of the century with her flowy and free-spirited dance style that caught on all around the world. Born and raised in San Francisco, she further helped to recognize the city globally as a destination for arts, culture, and fashion, and all without official prior training. She is remembered far beyond her untimely and tragically accidental passing at age 50.
Notable Quote: "You were once wild here. Don't let them tame you."
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(1964-)
The Bay Area is such a fertile ground for developing makers of history, and it couldn't get anymore apparent than with our Oakland-born Kamala Harris! As the first female, Black, and Asian American Vice President in American history, her 2021 inauguration is the glorious culmination of her efforts as California Attorney General and U.S. Senator. Still close to her humble Oakland roots, she often makes return trips to immerse herself in our vibrant culture, and continues to inspire all those looking up to her.
Notable Quote: “I may be the first woman to hold this office. But I won’t be the last.”
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(1907-1954)
While not from San Francisco, Frida Kahlo and husband Diego Rivera still left an indellible impression on the city from her visit in 1930. Having been so taken by the cultural confluences in our art and fashion, she went on to use our city as influences for her style and artistry in crafting functional disability garments, despite facing multiple debilitating hardships. Diego Rivera's murals can still be found around the city as lasting memories of the two's talented impact.
Notable Quote: "Nothing is worth more than laughter. It is strength to laugh and to abandon oneself, to be light."
See also: How San Francisco And Frida Kahlo Mutually Influenced Each Other's Fashion & Art
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(1921- 2014)
Yuri Kochiyama was a civil rights activist who advocated alongside Malcolm X while also fighting for Japanese American equality post-internment camps with the Civil Liberties Act of 1988. She was one of the globally-nominated women for the Nobel Peace Prize, and has since been remembered as a champion for both Japanese rights, and Black solidarity.
Notable Quote: "Life is not what you alone make it. Life is the input of everyone who touched your life and every experience that entered it. We are all part of one another."
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(1895-1965)
Best known for her raw and unfiltered showcasing of every day life during the Great Depression, Dorothea Lange's prowess for evocative photography has bestowed her with widespread acclaim, with many of her iconic shots like "Migrant Mother" now instantly recognizable. San Francisco is where Lange opened her first portrait studio after a harrowing trip from New York, settling in the Bay Area in 1918 where she continued to use our eclectic landscape as her subject and muse.
Notable Quote: "Photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it still."
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(1952-)
Amy Tan is a talented writer best known for her award-winning book, The Joy Luck Club, in which she elevated the identity and charm of San Francisco's rich Chinatown neighborhood, illuminating authentic angles of the lives and history of each street through her generational female characters and relatable experiences. The heartfelt book then became a stellar film in 1993, which then became preserved in the U.S. National Film Registry for its importance in reverently solidifying the city's Chinese culture, history, and community in such a complex and empowering narratives.
Notable Quote: “Writing is an extreme privilege but it's also a gift. It's a gift to yourself and it's a gift of giving a story to someone.”
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(1944-)
Alice Waters is a leader for her undying dedication towards clean eating and appreciation for healthy freshness, embodied in her Berkeley landmark, Chez Panisse. Her genuine grassroots efforts to uplift and feature produce from local farmers has helped to unify the community and promote better organic ingredients to the Bay Area. This committed effort was proven fruitful as Waters was awarded the National Humanities Medal in 2014, and you can truly taste the quality and care in her ever-popular restaurant.
Notable Quote: "Good food is a right, not a privilege."
Thank you to these incredible women for their hard work and committed vision, as the SF Bay Area quintessentially would not be the same without them!
See also: 10 Famous LGBTQ+ Icons To Know From San Francisco
Photography by: Courtesy of The Washington Post / Contributor via Getty Images
