During her tenure, Vaughan took radical initiative to build bridges across the color and gender divide, collaborating with white computers while planning and strategizing project teams with male colleagues. Dorothy's visit to the segregated library with her children depicts another obstacle to equality in the Jim Crow South. Dorothy Vaughan and many of the former West Computers joined the new Analysis and Computation Division, a racially and gender-integrated group on the frontier of electronic computing. Hidden Figures highlights the women in the backdrop of NASAs successful space missions whose stories were almost swept by the waves of the male-dominant, majority White history of the United States STEM endeavors. I felt that hearing this story made me more aware of the hardships women had/have to deal with as far as the workforce, even though I have heard of events of social injustice to them through social media, history classes, etc. Both the book and the movie are perhaps some of the most empowering and deserved works of (and for) the history of women. In 1979 she took a demotion to serve as an administrator in the Equal Opportunity Specialist field where she worked to elevate women in science, engineering, and mathematics at NASA. This movie was beyond a great hit, but a film that resonates with current issues of race, gender roles, and identity. Yes, they were real! The whole of the novel shows how they continually rise above these obstacles, and their successes illustrate the positive outcomes that a more egalitarian environment can foster. It is amazing that men of science thought that women were particularly great for computing busy calculations. Yet, nobody recognized the important work women were doing and they were compared to mindless factory workers or something. Back then, Dorothy Vaughan was one of the greatest black women at NASA. There is a big push to get more women in STEM careers in recent years. A shared passion for mathematics and science enabled a group of mixed ethnic backgrounds to send mankind into space. Small gestures go a long way in creating a sense of belonging. Typical Hollywood space movies usually feature one type of hero: male astronauts who defy the odds to soar into space and back again. Provost Summer Read Panel-October 6 - Grand Challenges Forum After graduation, Mary Jackson taught math in public schools in Maryland, which was still segregated at the time. She became a human-computer for NASA, initially assigned tho the West Area Computers, then reassigned to the Guidance and Control Division. Your email address will not be published. The point over teamwork was emphasized where it claims that we should surround ourselves with like-minded people, but also be ethnically different to offer different options on how to approach problems. They not only succeed, but in their journey they become heroes in Americas race to space against Russia. Hopefully, my current classes will soon give me time to get to know the story of Hidden Figures myself. You are leaving a secure area of the website and will be logged out. Their courage and perseverance is truly inspiring. I agree with the professors that Hidden Figures tells the story of unsung heroes and give credit where credit is due. Dorothy Vaughan was an African American mathematician and human computer who worked for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) during the Space Race. This movie, book, and panel highlighted what everyone already knows; women, especially minority women, have long been denied the recognition, empowerment, and respect they deserve. That evidence being that the women portrayed in the book worked at NASA during the space race. This small gesture makes a significant impression on the women, and gives them a greater sense of . Thank you for visiting Museum of the Bible. They all had the same core for their struggles (sexism and racism), but it was brought out in different ways for all three of them. Those who speak of NASA's pioneers rarely mention the name Dorothy Vaughan, but as the head of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics' (NACA's) segregated West Area Computing Unit from 1949 until 1958, Vaughan was both a respected mathematician and NASA's first African-American manager. It was Dorothy Vaughan who led Johnson and Jackson and helped them get their start in NASA. The issue, however, is that the contributions these brilliant pioneers made largely went unnoticed. I thought it was quite a twist that the author used actual events, but molded it to tell a compelling story at the same time. Like the women in the movie, he overcame his disadvantage through his passion for the subject, and earned the respect of his peers, who were born in the United States with English as a first language. And although his initial attempt to apologize makes things even more awkward, he later comes back with a sincere apology, and eventually wins her heart. In the case of the Hidden Figures, the goal was to put a man on the moon before Russia did. Dorothy Vaughan. This story was inspiring because she went back to school and earned her doctorate with a 4.0 GPA throughout the entire process. where its more about who you know and who do you go to church with rather than what you can do. They beautifully portray women in light of their accomplishments while also taking into account the depths of their own characters, something that is often overlooked. One of her goals throughout the film is to advance her career and become the first African American supervisor at NASA. Jackson grew up in Hampton, Virginia where she graduated from high school with the highest honors. Figure 4: Dorothy Vaughans NASA Retirement ID card. Passion, when focused, motivates one to work toward a goal and becomes the great equalizer in an otherwise unequal society. However, I have heard many great comments regarding the book. I definitely want to at least see the movie so I can better understand the passion that was shown by not only the discussion panel but also by the large audience that showed up for this novel. By these efforts, I do not believe that in the coming years we will find the STEM world succumbed to the same demeaning behavior at the same scale as encountered by those in the book. White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, where she lived . Katherine Goble Johnson (Taraji P. Henson). Throughout the discussion, it was hard to follow what was being said and the context of the book because I have not watched or read it myself. Dorothy Vaughan, ne Dorothy Johnson, (born September 20, 1910, Kansas City, Missouri, U.S.died November 10, 2008, Hampton, Virginia), American mathematician and computer programmer who made important contributions to the early years of the U.S. space program and who was the first African American manager at the National Advisory Committee for . This sentiment of the movie is a documentary of a sort was propagated in part due to advertising for the movie. Dorothy Johnson Vaughan - Education, Early Life & Family - Biography Let us know in the comments section. We invite you to come learn more about Dorothy Vaughan and the interaction of scripture and science in her life and the lives of many more scientists throughout history in Scripture and Science: Our Universe, Ourselves, Our Place. Just as we were getting used to the shocking depictions of discrimination fueled by racism and bigotry, the movie threw us a bit of a curve. One of the students that spoke in response to the talk talked about how his mother was called stupid by a lot of the people that she cared about the most. Answered: Mary Jackson OR Dorothy Vaughan. OR | bartleby Hidden Figures: 6 Important Discrimination Examples - Shortform However, as explained in the book, the United States involvement in World War II created huge demand for skilled labor in the Defense Sector. When I was in high school, many hours were spent under the hood of a car, making modifications, improving deficiencies, changing the very basic machine that we used every day. This raises the question; what obviously negligent views do we or will we perpetuate in years time and can such distaste be justified? In 2015, Johnson was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal in 2019. Mary Jackson (Janelle Monae, left), Katherine. Firstly, representation in the media matters greatly, and the public needs more access to watching, listening, and reading more narratives that center around women, people of color, and their achievements. I am so glad that the stories of these women were found , and I hope we soon unearth the contributions made by other women and minorities that have been lost in history. What lessons did you learnfrom the movie? Although I have read the book, it is very interesting to listen to the panel and to obtain a different perspective. Originally a white mans job, the field became quietly dominated by womenwho worked at a cheaper pay rateduring World War II. I was amazed at the amount of history hidden from us. Back then, being a computer was an occupation. She graduated cum laude from college at age 19 with a bachelors degree in mathematics. Biography of Dorothy Vaughan, Groundbreaking NASA Mathematician - ThoughtCo Some of these struggles were made up, however, because the director took liberties to make Al Harrison a hero. Racism and Inequality Theme in Hidden Figures | LitCharts She was based in their Langley Research Centre. In 1949, six years after starting at NACA, Dorothy Vaughan crashed through the glass ceiling by becoming the first Black woman manager of West Computing, a division of Black women workers at NACA previously managed by white women. While not as evident in todays society, the idea behind the theorem is still prevalent in todays society. They can, however, be inspired by Mrs. Johnson, Mrs. Vaughan, and Mrs. Jackson and follow in their footsteps to become mathematicians, physicists, engineers, computer scientists, etc. } It is a short narrative poem that tells the story of how the speaker interacts with, and eventually overcomes, prejudice. She overcomes many obstacles. } Hearing the story of the women in Hidden Figures was not only inspiring, but eye opening. We are having an onset of a post-modern response to bigotry. The stories of these resilient women are uplifting, and their witty retorts in response to those who underestimate them, provide pure entertainment. You can learn more about it on our website. Women, only about 34% of the workforce, hold low-paying jobs as secretaries or factory workers. Although the panel of professors comments on the novel were very interesting, what struck a chord with me the most is when Dr. Leveaux talked about the Negro Theorem and how she was told from a young age that she had to work twice as hard as others only to get half of what they got. When he came to the United States, he was a political refugee from Vietnam. As electronic computers became more essential, Vaughan recognized the computers importance and became an expert programmer. Another important aspect of the book that I enjoyed from the panel discussion was teamwork. The author shared this information from archives through telling a fictional story utilizing characters and a story plot; using many references and resources.