Google celebrates Amelia Earhart’s 115th birthday
Google Doodle paid tribute to Amelia Earhart, the first woman pilot to fly across the Atlantic alone, on what would have been her 115th birthday.
From a young age, Earhart challenged gender stereotypes by demanding to be allowed to do anything boys were permitted to do.
After earning her financial independence, she learned how to fly and bought her first plane “Canary.” She set many aviation records including the women’s altitude record of 14,000 feet.
“Now and then women should do for themselves what men have already done — occasionally what men have not done — thereby establishing themselves as persons, and perhaps encouraging other women toward greater independence of thought and action,” Earhart was quoted by the Christian Science Monitor as saying.
Beyond her impressive career, Earhart consistently upheld her belief of gender equality. She considered herself an equal to her husband, whom she married in 1931.
She also led a protest against gender discrimination when Helen Richey, the first woman pilot hired by a commercial airline, left her job because the company did not think she was strong enough to fly in bad weather.
Approaching her 40th birthday, Earhart wanted to go on her last trip and be the first woman to fly around the world.
“I have a feeling that there is just about one more good flight left in my system, and I hope this trip is it,” Earhart said, according to the Huffington Post.
Unfortunately, the feat was not accomplished and Earhart disappeared mysteriously in 1937.
