Have you heard of Henrietta Leavitt, Annie Cannon and Williamina Fleming? They are to astronomy what Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson are to NASA and the space race. If the latter three names are familiar, you probably saw the movie Hidden Figures, or read the book upon which it is based: Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Who Helped Win the Space Race, by Margot Lee Shetterly. All six women worked as “computers” – a job description dating from the 1600s.
Hidden Figures tells the story of the three African American women who worked for NASA from the 1930s to 1960s. I recently saw the play Silent Sky, written by Lauren Gunderson in 2015, which focuses on Leavitt, Cannon and Fleming, female astronomers at Harvard University before Hidden Figures is set (around 1880 to 1940). They catalogued the sky and are credited with shaping our knowledge of the stars. In the play, Leavitt, who graduated as an astronomer from Radcliffe College, was passionate about her profession and eager to use Harvard’s telescope, but women were relegated to a menial role: classifying what they observed on star plates, or photographic negatives, which could contain 100,000 stars each. Harvard has 500,000 plates.
When I saw Silent Sky at the beginning of February, I knew that International Day of Women and Girls in Science was coming up (February 11) and that added to my enjoyment. Like the mathematicians in Hidden Figures, I was happy the story of these women, who had such an impact on our knowledge of the sky, was being told. They set the standard, still used today, for measuring distances in space.
From the stars back down to earth, some people still argue that we’re beyond the need to prop up women and continue with proactive hiring policies to ensure equity in the workforce. However, that’s not true. (I don’t want to minimize the importance of recognizing people of colour. I have blogged about that here and here.)
Even in 2023, there are systemic factors, such as structural barriers, bias and gender stereotypes, which discourage girls and women from pursuing careers in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). In the U.S., women represented only 27 per cent of STEM workers in 2019 (United States Census Bureau). In Canada, that number is less than 25 per cent. This is despite studies showing that women outnumber men in postsecondary institutions and attain higher educational levels.
In the U.S., women employed full-time, year-round in STEM occupations mostly earn less than men, as the table below illustrates. There is only one STEM occupation where women’s earnings exceed men’s: computer network architects. However, men dominate this occupation at 92 per cent.
Data from the Pew Research Center show that men in STEM earn nearly $15,000 more per year than women ($85,000 compared to $60,828) and the disparity grows for Latina and Black women who earn an average of $52,000 per year.
How do we close the STEM gap? There are groups around the world doing excellent work to give girls and women the skills and confidence they need to succeed in math and science. There are multiple efforts to showcase women in STEM, and we know role models are crucial. There are programs in place to attract, recruit and retain women at the college/university level and once they enter the workforce. There is a growing trend to emphasize equity, diversity and inclusion in the workplace. There is legislation in place to protect women at work and fight discrimination. All of these efforts are necessary. Because at the end of the day, women can, and do, make valuable contributions in STEM. Society must ensure that women are encouraged and able to fulfill their promise – and reach for the stars.
On this International Day of Women and Girls in Science, here are some scenes from the play Silent Sky so you can meet Henrietta Leavitt, Annie Cannon and Williamina Fleming.
Stacey Johnson
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