hidden figures, These Talented Black Women at NASA

Hidden Figures is a film released in 2016. It is the film adaptation of the book “Hidden Figures” which shows women calculators at NASA. The film took place in the middle of the Cold War (in the 1960s) and the conquest of space was an important issue at that time. These talented women must prepare the trajectories of the rockets for the Mercury program and the Apollo mission. The figures of the shadow also show the discrimination they suffer because of their skin colour and their gender since the majority of engineers in NASA are men. What are the discriminations of the time and especially how has it evolved?

Striking inequalities

During the film, we can discover that these black women suffer double discrimination and inequality They are women, in a scientific field where men are the majority and we can see that they are discriminated against because of their skin colour, which is black during the period of segregation in the United States.

The inequalities are striking: we already see that there are differentiated toilets between black and white women. But that’s not all, because even in everyday life, buses, cinemas and even the neighborhoods where they live are separated from the whites.

In the film we also note that black women do not have the right to access a position of engineer, in the same place as men. They have work benefits and are not recognized at all by other employees and by the public. They were seen as sub-citizens. Their contribution to missions was never recognized by NASA until recently.

The developments observed

Nevertheless we can see changes during the film. We see that towards the end of the film, the engineers begin to get used to the presence of black women and are a little more respected. The director of NASA decides to remove the toilets separated between black and white.

At that time there were new laws against racial segregation in the United States. In 1964, US President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the first founding text against racial discrimination in the United States.

The Exploits of Katherine Johnson

Katherine Johnson, the main character of the shadow figures, made exploits during the film. She has great facilities in school and more particularly in science and mathematics. When she arrives at NASA, they immediately notice that she has great abilities to solve the calculations.

American astronaut John Gleen trusts him completely before taking off for space. He even said during the film «if she (Katherine Johnson) says that they are good (the calculations), then I am ready to go». This shows that despite the discrimination and inequalities suffered by this woman, the astronaut trusts him and in no way doubts his ability as a black woman.

In November 2015, U.S. President Barack Obama presented Katherine Johnson with the Medal of Freedom.