Hidden Figures

The title, “Hidden Figures” has somewhat of a double meaning. Figures could mean mathematical figures, which is relevant to the movie. But just as relevant and important is the use of the word figures to mean people. In this case, the hidden figures being the black women who worked for NASA. Despite being some of the brightest minds NASA has, solving problems that stumped the white mathematicians who were given preferential assignments to them, these women are kept hidden and confined to lower level positions. That is, until Dorothy, Katherine, and Mary break out of the places they were once limited to, through extreme tenure and ability. While the USA prided and still prides itself on being the first country to send a man around the globe, many do not know about the black women who helped to make it happen, especially not before the release of this movie. One question posed by Ms.Kobus in her lecture was this; Why do some stories get told while others do not? While the story of these women at NASA has finally been told, it comes many years later, longer than the story should’ve waited. There is no simple answer to this question, but to me, stories like those of the women at NASA remain hidden for so long due to the fact that stories involving epic achievement and success usually tend to emphasize the seemingly powerful and talented people who made it happen. However, since historically only white men were seen as the most talented and powerful people, the emphasis was removed from people of color and women who achieved success, even if they were in fact responsible for that success. Sending a man around the moon was possible because of the work of many, but particularly the work of Mary. However, Mary, a person who is viewed as less talented and powerful, was left out of the news and history lessons and movies, as her status as a less talented and competent individual did not fit the narrative of this historic achievement, this show of power which many felt made the USA, “the greatest country”. I have observed this pattern in my studies in history classes throughout my more recent years at school. Women and people of color are mentioned much less throughout the teaching of history than white men, and if they are, it is mostly when discussing civil rights movements. Rarely are these peoples mentioned when learning about historical achievements unrelated to social justice. While less may have been able to make history worthy achievements due to their oppression and disadvantage, those that did accomplish great things often go untaught and not spoken about, a prime example of this being these black women’s work at NASA. While the people of color and women involved in social justice were extremely important, they are really the only ones that get mentioned in the retelling of history. Despite this, I still had never heard of Malcolm X before I got to high school. Even the people of color and women in social justice aspects of history can go unmentioned, but particularly the ones who weren’t exactly a part of those movements. This isn’t to say the women portrayed in Hidden Figures did not contribute in the fight for black women’s rights, just that they were not the same type of figures like Malcolm X. Even today, where many believe we are more forward thinking and equal in our society than ever, holes remain in history and may continue to remain forever, as important women and people of color are left off due to their once lower status than that of white men. While the telling of the story of Katherine, Mary, and Dorothy, and the other women at NASA has been important and amazing, it came much later than it should’ve, as successful and talented minority groups in history are forgotten or go untold. (A friendly reminder I did not attend the lecture :))