by BTWCS
This is a monumental moment! Two icons, tennis phenom Serena Williams and civil rights pioneer Ruby Bridges, will be inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame, NBC News reports. Bridges and Williams have been named to the list of 2024 inductees, along with eight other recipients announced this spring.
Both women have made tremendous progress for the world. Williams is a 23-time tennis Grand Slam champion and one of the most decorated athletes of our time. She also recently received the Fashion Icon Award from the Council of Fashion Designers of America, becoming the first athlete to receive the award.
Bridges, meanwhile, first made history at age 6 when he became one of the first black students to desegregate schools in New Orleans in 1960. Bridges was depicted in Norman Rockwell’s famous painting The Problem We All Live With. A lifelong activist, Bridges founded the Ruby Bridges Foundation more than 24 years ago to advocate for tolerance and change through education.
“The 2024 inductees have broken barriers, challenged the status quo and made an impact on history,” the Hall of Fame said in the announcement.
The pair will join civil rights activist and leading scholar of critical race theory Kimberlé Crenshaw, founder of the National Center for Human Rights Education in Atlanta Loretta Ross, and pioneering ophthalmologist Patricia Dr. Patricia Bath was selected together. Black female doctor gets medical patent, will be induced after death.
“The 2024 inductees include the scientists, activists, performers and athletes who are today’s changemakers and an inspiration to the women of tomorrow. Their dedication, drive and talent got them here, and we are thrilled to have them in the national Honoring them on stage,” said Hall of Fame CEO Jennifer Gabriel.
The induction ceremony will be broadcast nationally for the first time.
For the complete list of inductees to the National Women’s Hall of Fame Class of 2024, please visit online at https://www.womenofthehall.org