In August 1936, two Colorado detectives found a young man walking alone around a rail yard. They arrested him for vagrancy and took him to meet with Sheriff George Caroll. This young man was Joe Arridy. He was 21 years old with an IQ of 46, and his intellectual ability was comparable to that of a six-year-old. After Joe Arridy met Sheriff George Caroll, his life would never be the same.
The story of Joe Arridy is a tragic story of injustice, lies, and abuse of power. This loveable, quiet, and shy young man was thrown into a world of rape, murder, court hearings, and executions. And he went through everything with a big smile on his face.
Resources
Joe Arridy - The Happiest Man Who Ever Lived on Death Row - Robert Perske
Rosalind Franklin collects the evidence to prove the structure of DNA. Colleagues steal the evidence from her desk and are awarded the Nobel Prize for it. Esther Lederberg discovers Lambda Phage, the Fertility Factor in bacteria, and invents replica plating. Her husband wins the Nobel Prize for it. Jocelyn Bell Burnell discovers pulsars, radio signals that give us our first evidence of Neutron Stars. Her academic supervisor wins the Nobel Prize for it.
These are the invisible women of the Nobel Prize.
Resources
Nobel Prize Women in Science - Sharon Bertsch McGrayne
All Nobel Prizes - Official Nobel Prize Website
Gender Bias in Nobel Prizes - Lunnemann, P., Jensen, M.H. & Jauffred, L.
Esther M. Zimmer Lederberg Memorial Website
Rosalind Franklin and DNA - Anne Sayre
The Double Helix - James Watson
The Nobel Prize is generally regarded as one of the most prestigious awards that one can achieve. But if you look at the numbers, there is a very obvious bias. From the first awards in 1901, until 2021, 25 organizations have been awarded the Nobel Prize. 885 men have received one. Only 58 have been awarded a Nobel Prize, in 120 years.
There is an extensive list of women who have had their achievements overlooked by the Nobel committee, and by the academic community in general. This two-part series aims to showcase the forgotten achievements of some of these women.
In this episode, we look at Nettie Stevens and her discovery of sex determination, Lise Meitner and her discovery of Nuclear Fission, and Chien-Shiung Wu and her discovery of Parity Violation.
These are the invisible women of the Nobel Prize.
Resources
Nobel Prize Women in Science - Sharon Bertsch McGrayne
All Nobel Prizes - Official Nobel Prize Website
Dr. Chien-Shiung Wu - Ashley Angelucci
Lise Meitner - A life in Physics - Ruth Lewin Sime
Nettie M. Stevens and the Discovery of Sex Determination by Chromosomes - Stephen G. Brush
Apartheid, a form of institutionalised white supremacy, was bought into South African law in 1948. Apartheid allowed for the white minority to be completely dominant while oppressing Black people, Asian people, and people of colour. Non-whites couldn't vote. They were forcibly removed from their homelands. They were not allowed to use white facilities, as everything from water fountains to hospitals was completely segregated.
Black South Africans faced countless atrocities at the hands of their white supremacist government, and anyone who spoke up against it was either thrown in prison, or killed. Even children weren't safe, as protesting Black South African school children were shot and killed for standing up against oppression.
As the decades went on, the international community became more and more vocal about the atrocities being committed in South Africa. Sanctions were placed on the nation, and many countries ceased all sporting relations with them. One notable exception was New Zealand.
Both New Zealand and South Africa were powerhouses on the rugby field and they weren't going to let the apartheid regime get in the way of a good bloody game of rugby. New Zealand initially sent all-white rugby teams to play in South Africa, before allowing some of their Polynesian players to join under the classification of "honorary whites".
In the same month that black school children were murdered by South African police while protesting apartheid, the New Zealand rugby team turned a blind eye and continued on a rugby tour of South Africa, insisting that sports had to be kept separate from politics.
Back home in New Zealand, oppressed people of color, and allies standing in solidarity fought to stop New Zealand's sporting relations with the white supremacist nation of South Africa. They found harsh opposition in New Zealanders that either supported white supremacy, or were willing to ignore it for the sake of a rugby match.
In 1981, the Springboks (South Africa's national rugby team), set out for a tour of New Zealand despite discouragement from the Commonwealth and the United Nations.
New Zealand was split down the middle as anti-apartheid protestors fought to stop the tour, police used extreme force against these peaceful protestors, and pro-tour rugby fans threatened death against them.
This is Injustice.
Resources
Patu! Film - Merata Mita
The 1981 Springbok Tour - New Zealand History
The 1981 Springbok Tour Schedule - New Zealand History
Clash on Molesworth Street - New Zealand History
Three things you didn't know about the Springboks Tour - Leonie Hayden, The Spinoff
Errol Tobias paved the way for Black Springbok Players 40 years ago - Nick Said, Daily Maverick
40 years on: Photographer Ans Westra in the thick of the 1981 Springbok protest - Zoë George, Stuff NZ