The Fix It Lass

18/10/2026

Happy 70th birthday to Mae Jemison -- physician, engineer, dancer, and the first Black woman ever to travel into space! In 1992, aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour, she orbited the Earth 127 times over eight days. But her journey began decades earlier, in a Chicago kindergarten, with a teacher who tried to talk her out of her dream.

"In kindergarten, my teacher asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, and I told her a scientist," Jemison recalled. "She said, 'Don't you mean a nurse?'" Mae did not mean a nurse. "Now, there's nothing wrong with being a nurse," she said, "but that's not what I wanted to be."

The people who shaped her aimed higher than that teacher did -- chief among them Martin Luther King Jr. "When I think of Martin Luther King," she said, "I think of attitude, audacity, and bravery. The best way to make dreams come true is to wake up."

Jemison entered Stanford at 16, earned degrees in chemical engineering and African American studies, took a medical degree from Cornell, and went to work as a physician -- including two years as a Peace Corps medical officer in Liberia and Sierra Leone. She trained seriously as a dancer, too, and nearly chose the stage over medicine. Then, in 1983, she watched Sally Ride become the first American woman in space, and applied to NASA. Out of some 2,000 applicants, she was one of 15 chosen.

On September 12, 1992, Jemison became the first African American woman in space. She carried pieces of her life up with her: a poster from her dance studio, a photo of Bessie Coleman, the first African American woman to earn a pilot's license. And she carried a private tribute to the show that had first convinced her someone like her had a place up there.

As a girl, she had watched Nichelle Nichols play Lieutenant Uhura on "Star Trek," one of the only Black women on television not cast as a servant. So each shift, Jemison opened her communications with Houston the way Uhura had: "Hailing frequencies open."

In 1993, "Star Trek" made Jemison one of its own. When the actor LeVar Burton learned that a real astronaut was a devoted fan, he invited her onto "Star Trek: The Next Generation," and she appeared as Lieutenant Palmer -- the first actual astronaut ever to join the cast.

The girl who had been told to dream smaller had made it to space, and then onto the bridge of the ship that first showed her it was possible. At 70, Mae Jemison is still telling young people the same thing she had to learn as a girl in that Chicago kindergarten. "Never be limited," she says, "by other people's limited imaginations."

To share Mae Jemison's inspiring story with children, we recommend the picture book "Mae Jemison: Little People, Big Dream" for ages 5 to 8 (https://www.amightygirl.com/mae-jemison-little-people) and the chapter book for ages 6 to 8 (https://www.amightygirl.com/mae-jemison-1)

She is also one of four pioneering women of NASA featured in the "Women of NASA LEGO Building Set" at https://www.amightygirl.com/lego-women-of-nasa

Jemison is featured in a fun activity book about female astronauts which includes a variety of space-themed STEM projects: "Gutsy Girls Go for Science: Astronauts" for ages 8 to 11 at https://www.amightygirl.com/gutsy-girls-astronauts

Mae Jemison is one of 40 trailblazing black women featured in the uplifting illustrated biography, "Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History" for ages 6 to 10 at https://www.amightygirl.com/little-leaders

If you'd like to encourage your children's interest in science, you can find many girl-empowering science toys and kits in our post, "Top 60 Science Toys for Mighty Girls" at https://www.amightygirl.com/blog?p=10528

04/10/2026

I am on Vacation until October 13th!!

27/08/2026

We will always love you, Dolly. Rest in peace and joy.

04/06/2026

The 19th Amendment was passed by both houses of Congress in 1919, which began the state ratification process that would lead to the Amendment's certification in the Constitution on August 26, 1920.

But the battle for women's right to vote didn't end there. While it represented a major victory for the movement after nearly 70 years of activism, the 19th Amendment did not simply grant universal suffrage for all women.

Native American women were not considered US citizens until 1924, but until as late as 1962, individual states still prevented them from voting.

Asian American immigrant women were excluded from voting until the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 allowed them to gain citizenship.

Black women faced Jim Crow-era barriers like poll taxes, voter ID requirements, and acts of violence that threatened their ability to cast a ballot until the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Latina women faced literacy tests and other language-based setbacks that prevented them from voting until a 1975 extension of the Voting Rights Act.

As we celebrate this monumental achievement for women, we also recognize that only some of the women who fought for suffrage were able to exercise their newly-won right to vote. Despite being some of the movement's fiercest advocates, suffragists like Mabel Ping-Hua Lee, Zitkála-Šá, and Luisa Capetillo could not cast their first ballots in the 1920 election because of their race.

Today, we honor the women who not only fought for the 19th Amendment's passage, but also after it, as their efforts on behalf of their communities paved the way for the freedoms of all American women.

📷: Dora Lewis (seated), Abby Scott Baker (seated), Anita Pollitzer (standing), Alice Paul (seated), Florence Boeckel (seated), and Mabel Vernon (standing) conferring over ratification of the 19th Amendment at the National Woman's Party headquarters, 1919.

28/01/2026

81 years ago, Auschwitz was liberated by Soviet troops.

The Germans established the Auschwitz camp complex in the spring of 1940 in German-occupied Poland. In just over four years, about 1.1 million people were killed there—including about one million Jews.

Each year on the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, we remember the victims of the Holocaust and carry forward the messages of its survivors.

Photo: USHMM, courtesy of Belarusian State Archive of Documentary Film and Photography

28/01/2026

“Terrible things are happening outside...
Poor helpless people are being dragged out of their homes.
Families are torn apart. Men, women, and children are separated.
Children come home from school to find that their parents have disappeared.”

On this Holocaust Remembrance Day, Anne Frank's words from 1943 echo across time with haunting relevance:

“Terrible things are happening outside...
Poor helpless people are being dragged out of their homes.
Families are torn apart. Men, women, and children are separated.
Children come home from school to find that their parents have disappeared.”

Living in Nazi-occupied Netherlands during her final years, Anne Frank witnessed firsthand what life was like under a fascist, totalitarian state. Anne's words, as poignantly expressed in her diary, have resonated across generations as a powerful warning that unchecked government power; the systematic dismantling of press freedoms and academic independence; the deceptive power of propaganda to reframe persecution as necessary for public safety; the attacks on the judiciary; and the demonization of minority groups, including Jews, Muslims, and immigrants, can rapidly erode democracies, reminding us to remain vigilant against the early signs of authoritarian control.

In America today, we are witnessing many of these harbingers of authoritarianism in the actions of Donald Trump and Elon Musk. A call to action to urgently protect our democracy comes from the great statesman and civil rights leader John Lewis who observed: "When you see something that is not right, you must say something. You must do something. Democracy is not a state. It is an act, and each generation must do its part."

If you're looking to join the fight and stand up for democracy, you can connect with an Indivisible group in your area at https://indivisible.org/groups -- and find events at https://www.mobilize.us/indivisible/

If you cannot attend or organize an in-person event with your Member of Congress, 5 Calls makes it easy to contact your elected officials and speak out about the many alarming developments of recent months, at https://5calls.org/

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For books for children and teens about the often little-known stories of girls and women who lived through the Holocaust, visit our blog post, "60 Mighty Girl Books About The Holocaust" at https://www.amightygirl.com/blog?p=11586

To introduce children and teens to Anne Frank's story, you can find numerous books about her for all ages in our blog post “Hope in a Hidden Room: 15 Books About Anne Frank” at https://www.amightygirl.com/blog?p=12110

For books for tweens and teens about girls living under real-life authoritarian regimes throughout history that will help them appreciate how precious democracy truly is, visit our blog post "The Fragility of Freedom: Mighty Girl Books About Life Under Authoritarianism" at https://www.amightygirl.com/blog?p=32426

For books for children and teens about real-life girls and women who refused to be silenced, visit our blog post "Dissent Is Patriotic: 50 Books About Girls & Women Who Fought for Change" at https://www.amightygirl.com/blog?p=14364

For children's books about people, like Anne Frank, who had to flee their countries due to war, conflict, or political persecution, visit our blog post "Seeking Safety in a New Land: 25 Books About Mighty Girl Refugees" at https://www.amightygirl.com/blog?p=9981

28/01/2026

On International Holocaust Remembrance Day, we remember and honor the millions of lives lost in the Holocaust. Today and every day, we will not be silent and pledge to combat hatred and prejudice.

16/01/2026

16/01/2026

I meant to post something yesterday in honor of Dr. King's birthday.

As we celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr. Day today and honor his immense contributions to the U.S. Civil Rights Movement, we would also like to remember the critical role played by his wife, Coretta Scott King. Coretta was a prominent leader in the struggle for racial equality during the 1950s and 1960s, participating in the Montgomery Bus Boycott of 1955 and helping to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Following her husband's assassination in 1968, King took her husband's place as one of the Civil Rights Movement's leaders. She founded the MLK Center for Nonviolent Social Change in Atlanta and served as its president and CEO for many years. King became an advocate for a wide range of social causes, including women's rights, LGBT rights, world peace, and economic justice. As early as December 1968, she called for women to "unite and form a solid block of women power to fight the three great evils of racism, poverty and war." Until her death in 2006, King remained a staunch supporter of the downtrodden around the world, working on causes as varied as the peace movement of the 1960s and 1970s to the anti-apartheid movement during the 1980s.

Both Kings were tireless advocates for justice and equality for all people throughout their lives, embodying the belief, as Coretta once stated, that “Struggle is a never ending process. Freedom is never really won, you earn it and win it in every generation.”

To introduce children to the trailblazing Coretta Scott King, we highly recommend the stunning picture book "Coretta Scott" for ages 4 to 9 (https://www.amightygirl.com/coretta-scott), the new chapter book "She Persisted: Coretta Scott King" (https://www.amightygirl.com/she-persisted-coretta-scott-king), and the illustrated biography "Who Was Coretta Scott King?" for ages 9 to 12 (https://www.amightygirl.com/who-was-coretta-scott-king)

For adult readers who would like to learn more about her life and legacy, we recommend King's exceptional memoir "My Life, My Love, My Legacy" at https://www.amightygirl.com/my-life-my-love-my-legacy

For more stories of pioneering black women throughout history, check out the inspiring picture book "Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History" for ages 7 to 10 at https://www.amightygirl.com/little-leaders

And, to introduce children to more courageous girls and women of the Civil Rights Movement, we've shared our favorite books for young readers in our blog post, "50 Inspiring Books on Girls & Women of the Civil Rights Movement," at https://www.amightygirl.com/blog?p=11177

10/01/2026

Even if you disagree with the conclusions drawn from the videos -- even if you believe there is some justification for what Ross did -- all Americans should agree on this: An American citizen being gunned down in the street by a federal agent deserves a fair and impartial investigation.
Renee Nicole Good deserves justice. Her wife Rebecca, who watched her die and collapsed in the snow covered in her blood, deserves answers. Her three children deserve the truth.

"That's fine, dude. I'm not mad at you."

Those were Renee Nicole Good's last words to ICE agent Jonathan Ross -- the man who would shoot her in the head 26 seconds later.

"F*cking b*tch."

Those were Ross' first words as Renee lay dead or dying in her car.

On Friday, a new video emerged with footage from Ross' own cellphone, which he was holding throughout the encounter. The Trump administration rushed to share it, with JD Vance posting it as supposed proof that Ross "fired in self defense" and that "his life was endangered."

The video shows nothing of the sort.

What it actually shows is a woman speaking calmly and kindly to the officer who would end her life moments later. Not a crazed provocateur. Not a "violent rioter." Not someone who "weaponized her vehicle" to "kill federal agents," as DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin claimed. Not someone committing "an act of domestic terrorism," as Kristi Noem alleged.

It shows a woman who, when masked agents surrounded her car and began screaming orders and yanking at her door, made a decision to leave a frightening, rapidly escalating situation. And was killed for it.

Some will point to the moments before the shooting and ask: Why didn't she just comply? Why did she drive away? Her wife even said "drive, baby, drive" -- doesn't that make them partially responsible?

Let's be clear about what that argument is actually saying: that a mother deserved to be shot in the head for trying to leave.

Yes, Renee chose to drive away. Yes, Rebecca -- watching masked men surround her wife's car, yank at the door handle, and scream "get out of the f*cking car" -- urged her to go. And yes, Rebecca later sobbed to a witness, "It's my fault" -- the anguished cry of a woman covered in her wife's blood and brain matter, not a confession of wrongdoing.

But here's what cannot be forgotten: Just twenty seconds before the shooting, Rebecca had told Ross directly, "We don't change our plates every morning, just so you know. It'll be the same plate when you come talk to us later." She even added: "U.S. citizen. Former f*cking veteran."

Ross had recorded them. They had Renee's plates. They could find out where she lived -- blocks away. If agents wanted to charge her with obstruction or any other offense, they could have followed up. This confrontation did not need to happen in the street. They could have de-escalated, as any competent officer is trained to do. They chose not to.

And even if you believe Renee made the wrong choice by driving away -- even if you think she should have sat there while aggressive masked men screamed at her and grabbed at her door -- disobeying an order is not a capital offense. There is no crime in America for which the punishment is summary ex*****on by a federal agent. Not fleeing. Not "impeding." Not failing to comply fast enough with screamed commands.

To those who would say she "f*cked around and found out" -- this is America, not a war zone. "FAFO" is not a legal doctrine. It is not in the Constitution. It is not in any law enforcement manual. It is the language of thugs and authoritarians who believe that agents of the state have the right to kill citizens for disobedience. They do not.

This is not opinion. This is standard law enforcement training. This is DHS's own policy.

Eric Balliet, a retired ICE agent with 25 years of experience who was himself injured in a vehicular assault in 2008, reviewed the footage for CBS News. His conclusion was unambiguous: "If someone is fleeing, that is not a justification for the use of deadly force."

And the extensive video evidence -- captured from multiple angles by bystanders and neighbors -- confirms what actually happened in those final seconds.

As Renee begins to move her car, she turns her steering wheel to the right -- away from Ross, not toward him. Every independent analysis agrees: The New York Times, The Washington Post, ABC News, and CBS News all conducted frame-by-frame reviews and reached the same conclusion. She was trying to go around him. She was trying to get away.

Ross had positioned himself near the front of the vehicle -- a decision that Balliet called reckless and provocative. "I don't understand the tactical or law enforcement advantage of someone on foot in front of a moving, running or occupied vehicle," he said. "You're almost inducing a shooting if that person decides to flee."

But even having made that reckless choice, Ross was not trapped. As the car begins to move, he steps aside. He is no longer in its path.

And that is the moment he chooses to fire -- shooting into the car as it passes him, striking Renee in the head and killing her.

His first words after shooting a woman in the head? "F*cking bitch."

Uninjured -- as multiple videos confirm -- Ross walks over to Renee's car, now crashed against a utility pole. He looks at her bloody body. Then he turns around. Still filming. Instead of keeping his hands free as standard law enforcement practice requires, he had never once during the entire encounter put his phone down -- not when he approached her car, not when he positioned himself in front of it, not when he drew his weapon, not when he fired three shots into a fleeing vehicle.

Less than a minute later, he gets in his car and leaves what is now an active crime scene.

Former GOP Rep. Adam Kinzinger, no liberal, reacted to the footage: "So an officer has his phone out recording obviously distracted, shoots a woman and calls her a 'f'ing Bitch' and they think that HELPS the case?!?"

So here we are. A 37-year-old woman -- a mother of three -- is dead. Whether you call it a killing or a murder, the reality is the same.

An American citizen is gone because of the recklessness of an ICE agent who made all the wrong choices. He chose to escalate. He chose to position himself in front of a car. And most damningly, he chose to fire at a woman who was driving away from him.

The Trump administration has spent virtually every moment since Renee's death attempting to smear her reputation and spin an endless web of lies. They have called her a "domestic terrorist," a "violent rioter," a "professional agitator." They have claimed she "violently, willfully, and viciously ran over" an officer who is visible on video walking away uninjured moments after shooting her.

Trump himself doubled down on Friday, spreading conspiracy theories that Renee was part of a shadowy "leftwing network" trying to "incite violence." His most unhinged remarks, however, were reserved for the witnesses to her killing. One bystander, having watched Ross quickly glance at Renee's mangled body and then rapidly return to his car to drive away from the scene, screamed "shame" at him repeatedly.

To Trump, this was not a normal human reaction to witnessing the horror of a woman being shot point blank in the head -- it was evidence she was a "paid agitator." He seemed genuinely baffled that anyone would react so emotionally. He even complained that her horrified screaming made the video inconvenient to watch: "The news sort of turned her down, turned her off because you're trying to watch -- she was so loud and so crazy and just not normal."

"When somebody sees something like that," Trump chillingly mused, as if reviewing a performance, "they don't go screaming and screaming, and the same words. So, I guess you could say, professional, but I didn’t think she did a very good job.”

Then there is JD Vance, who has been perhaps the most vile in his attacks. He called Renee's death "a tragedy of her own making" and claimed she had been "brainwashed" by "left-wing ideology." He described her as a "deranged leftist." And in a moment that revealed the full moral bankruptcy of this administration, Vance declared that her killer -- the man who shot her in the head and called her a "f*cking b*tch" -- "deserves a debt of gratitude."

Vance then made the administration's intentions explicit: there would be no accountability. He declared that the officer is "protected by absolute immunity" and was "just doing his job" -- effectively announcing that the administration has already decided the outcome of any investigation or potential prosecution before it has even begun. This assertion has been broadly debunked by legal experts.

Former Hennepin County Attorney Michael Freeman, who filed criminal charges against Derek Chauvin over the murder of George Floyd, told CNN bluntly: "The vice president is wrong. We have a rogue officer acting in a malicious way that killed a 37-year-old woman in cold blood. He had no reason to fear for his life. And I believe he will be prosecuted successfully in state court."

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, a former attorney general, also responded to him directly: "[Vance] is profoundly and pathetically a weak human being. What we need right now is not idiotic gaslighting from the sitting vice president of the United States, but a thorough investigation."

But a thorough investigation is exactly what this administration is blocking. The FBI "reversed course" just hours after agreeing to a joint investigation with Minnesota, shutting out state investigators entirely and seizing sole control of all case materials, scene evidence, and witness interviews.

This is a striking departure from standard practice -- including the FBI's own policy, which states that state and local agencies are "not subordinate to the FBI" and that investigative resources are typically "pooled in a common effort."

The Trump administration wants to keep the investigation internal -- where they can control the evidence, control access to witnesses, and control the story that emerges.

If the administration truly believed their self-defense narrative would hold up to scrutiny, they would welcome independent validation. Instead, they are doing everything in their power to prevent it. Innocent people don't block investigations. As Governor Walz observed, Noem has made herself "judge, jury and ex*****oner."

Even if you disagree with the conclusions drawn from the videos -- even if you believe there is some justification for what Ross did -- all Americans should agree on this: An American citizen being gunned down in the street by a federal agent deserves a fair and impartial investigation.

Renee Nicole Good deserves justice. Her wife Rebecca, who watched her die and collapsed in the snow covered in her blood, deserves answers. Her three children deserve the truth.

Renee went outside to watch over her neighbors. She smiled at the man who would kill her and said, "I'm not mad at you."

He shot her in the head and called her a "f*cking bitch."

Renee deserved better. America deserves better.

Call your elected officials. Demand accountability. Demand a real investigation -- not a cover-up run by the same people who lied about it within hours.

Call your representative at (202) 224-3121. Demand they cosponsor the articles of impeachment being filed against Kristi Noem.

Over 1,000 protests demanding justice for Renee are being held across the country this weekend -- to find one in your area, visit https://tinyurl.com/yeyffdp8

To help Renee's wife and son at this terrible time, there is a GoFundMe campaign at https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-for-renee-goods-wife-and-son

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To view the newly released video from Ross' cellphone, visit https://www.facebook.com/reel/1459236089323487

For a very comprehensive compilation of the many witness videos taken of the scene before, during, and after Renee's killing that offers a clear and definitive analysis of how events unfolded, step by step, at https://www.nytimes.com/video/us/100000010631041/minneapolis-ice-shooting-video.html?smid=url-share

For the CBS expert video analysis: https://www.cbsnews.com/minnesota/news/ice-shooting-minneapolis-retired-agent-video-analysis/

To read more about how the Trump administration is blocking Minnesota officials from investigating Renee's murder, visit https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/08/us/minnesota-ice-shooting-news.html?unlocked_article_code=1.C1A.l2gW.DhSTc_7vPV94&smid=url-share

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For books for children and teens about the importance of standing up for truth, decency, and justice, even in dark times, visit our blog post, "Dissent Is Patriotic: 50 Books About Women Who Fought for Change," at https://www.amightygirl.com/blog?p=14364

For books for tweens and teens about girls living under real-life authoritarian regimes throughout history that will help them appreciate how precious democracy truly is, visit our blog post "The Fragility of Freedom: Mighty Girl Books About Life Under Authoritarianism" at https://www.amightygirl.com/blog?p=32426

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