On Thursday, I went to a screening of Hidden Figures hosted by UR Common Ground. This group works to promote diversity and inclusion on our campus, and I think that the screening of this movie was a great event for them to host. This movie is based on a true story; the African-American female mathematicians working for NASA that were instrumental in the success of the US during the Space Race of the 1960s. The film pointed out the immense obstacles this group of women had to overcome simply to be able to do their jobs and be taken seriously. The ways in which these women persevered was incredible. They proceeded to thrive in an agency that was dominated by white males.

I think this movie was a great choice to show on this campus because it sparked discussion about race and privilege. Racism is still deeply engrained in American society, and is not as departed from the prejudice and practices that existed in the 1960s. The story of these women is incredibly important to share because of how their names and impact had been virtually overlooked and forgotten about. These women received much less credit than they deserved for the great work they had done for NASA. This movie was a step in the right direction in highlighting the impact of largely silenced and invisible people, many times women and minorities, that often work behind the scenes of great scientific progress.