Katherine expressed her upset and frustration at having to walk half a mile to use the nearest bathroom for “coloured” people. They were expected to work in the room for “coloured computers” in the west section of Langley’s segregated campus, a long distance away from NASA’s working hub. The film gives an insight into their shocking working conditions. Similarly, Mary’s husband often finds it difficult to accept her ambition as a black woman trying to achieve equality.Īs black women, Katherine, Mary and Dorothy were also subject to blatant racism and segregation whilst working at Langley Research Center. Katherine meets a man who undermines the mathematical abilities of women. The women also deal with casual sexism, even from their significant others. Katherine was assigned to assist Al Harrison’s Space Task Group however, she was the only woman working in a team of white men who were dismissive and hostile. It is revealed that she was responsible for checking the capsule’s landing coordinates.Īlthough the film focuses on Katherine, we see her relationship with her colleagues Mary and Dorothy and the gender discrimination they faced in their daily lives. For instance, the film shows Katherine’s importance in John Glenn’s successful orbit of the Earth. Katherine Johnson, Mary Jackson, and Dorothy Vaughan played vital roles as mathematicians and engineers in some of NASA’s historic space missions. It is based on Margot Lee Shetterly’s non-fiction book of the same name.

The film is set in the 1960s and tells the true story of three African American women who worked at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) during the Space Race. Hidden Figures, released in 2016, is definitely one of my favourites. I have always been a fan of films based on the lives of inspirational women in history.

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