Women Of The Week: Nigerian Bouncers, Mexican Astronaut, And Egypt’s Metro Drivers
Here are all the inspiring women you should know about this week.
From building Mexico’s aerospace industry to creating Nigeria’s first all-women bouncer squad, these are the inspiring women of the week.
1. Nigerian Women Bouncers The Dragon Squad
Founded by Emem Thomas, an all-woman bouncer squad in Nigeria called the Dragon Squad are busting stereotypes in the male-dominated industry.
Teased as a child for her body size, 37-year-old Thomas wanted to create a safe space for plus-size women to excel.
She hopes the Dragon Squad will help to break the barrier and demonstrate what women are capable of in every part of society.
Since its founding in 2018, the Dragon Squad now includes 43 women, who have worked at some 2,000 events, from club nights to political rallies, and house parties to funerals.
2. Mexican Astronaut Katya Echazarreta
With the dream of going to space as a young girl, Katya Echazarreta became the first Mexican-born and youngest American woman to travel to space in June 2022.
Now, she has made it her mission to grow Mexico’s aerospace industry and open up more opportunities for Mexican engineers.
“I could have moved up the ranks, grown as an engineer, eventually applied to an American astronaut program, it would have been much easier that way, of course, but for me it wasn’t enough,” Echazarreta told Spanish news outlet El Pais.
In December, she addressed the Mexican Congress to work on a bill that will “open the doors to Mexico’s new space era”.
The bill hopes to regulate the aerospace industry in Mexico and even allow private companies to launch rockets in the country.
3. Egyptian Metro Drivers Hend Mahmoud And Suzan Ahmed
Hend Mahmoud and Suzan Ahmed have made history as the first women metro drivers in Egypt, paving the way for women in a country where women’s rights are severely restricted.
“When I saw the ad (for the job), I was so excited, I felt I could succeed in this position especially that it’s the first time in Egypt (for women) and I thought it would be great for me to be one of the first women to be in this place,” Mahmoud told Reuters.
Ahmed, meanwhile, told Reuters that the biggest challenge was passengers’ bewilderment at seeing a woman driver, but added that most of the reactions had been positive.
“A lot of people were very encouraging, a lot of people came to us after the end of our shifts to wish us good luck, and a lot of women were excited and asked us how they could apply to become metro drivers like us,” she said.
