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It’s Women’s History Month, which means there’s no better time to not only celebrate women, but especially women in solidarity with other women.
The idea that women are in constant competition with one another isn’t true. Of course, while there’s nothing wrong with healthy competition, some of the most beautiful, fulfilling and long-lasting relationships women can have are with other women. Take, for example, the lifelong friendship of Gloria Steinem and Dorothy Pitman Hughes, who together founded Ms. Magazine in 1971 and remain allies till this day.
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In celebration of solidarity and support, below are 22 photos of women from the worlds of activism and entertainment who demonstrate the beauty of friendship between women.
Estelle Griswold and Cornelia Jahncke
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Here, longtime friends Estelle Griswold (medical advisor and Executive director of the Planned Parenthood Clinic in New Haven) and Cornelia Jahncke (President of Parenthood League of Connecticut, INC.) flash a victory sign as a result of the Supreme Court's 1965 decision that a law barring the use of birth control in Connecticut was unconstitutional.
Yvonne Orji and Issa Rae
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Yvonne Orji and Issa Rae were friends long before the premiere of Rae's hit show "Insecure" on HBO last year. They met online in 2008 when Orji was posting videos to YouTube and Rae was just gearing up for the creation of her popular web series "Awkward Black Girl." As Molly and Issa on "Insecure," they've molded one of the few dynamic and relatable portrayals of black female friendship on television.
Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin
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Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin have been longtime friends and collaborators, working together in the 1980s in movies like "9 to 5" and more recently in Netflix's "Grace and Frankie." Both women have long been vocal about feminist and gay rights.
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Laverne Cox and Janet Mock
Andrew Kelly / Reuters
Longtime friends Laverne Cox and Janet Mock have both made enormous strides in the last few years towards visibility for trans women, especially trans women of color. Both women have used their platforms in the entertainment and journalism worlds to speak out for their community.
Joyce Scott and Sandy Allen
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Joyce Scott and Sandy Allen are two life-long friends and community activists from Washington, DC. Both women had grandsons killled in street violence, tragedies that sparked their passion for community activism.
Illana Glazer and Abbi Jacobson
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Ilana Glazer and Abbi Jacobson are the bffs behind Comedy Central's hilarious "Broad City," which is loosely based on their escapades as two 20-somethings living in New York City. What's great about Glazer and Jacobson's friendship both on and off the show is that its supportive, intimate, and totally empowering.
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Kiyoko Yoshihiro, Gilda Grillo, Cecilia L. Negrete, Betty Friedan and Susan Kedgley
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In this photo from 1963, feminist friends from all over the world gather at the home of Women's Liberation leader Betty Friedan for the International Feminist Conference. Pictured are Japan's Kiyoko Yoshihiro; Brazil's Gilda Grillo; Mexico's Cecilia L. Negrete; hostess Friedan; and New Zealand's Susan Kedgley.
Phoebe Robinson and Jessica Williams
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Best friends and comedians Phoebe Robinson and Jessica Williams are the hosts of WNYC's hilarious podcast 2 Dope Queens, a show where they discuss everything from racist microaggressions to the beauty of Michael Fassbender.
Gloria Steinem and Dorothy Pitman Hughes
Monica Schipper via Getty Images
Here, longtime friends and feminist activists Gloria Steinem and author Dorothy Pitman Hughes recreate their iconic black-and-white photo from 1971 at the Ms. Foundation For Women 2016 Gloria Awards Gala,
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Jen Richards and Angelica Ross
Gabriel Olsen via Getty Images
Jen Richards and Angelica Ross are close friends and stars of the stellar web series "Her Story" (which Richards also created and wrote). The show is a badly needed answer to the lack of media being created by and for trans women of different backgrounds and experiences. As visible trans women and activists, Richards and Ross's collaboration has resulted in important and powerful conversations about trans representation.
Amber Tamblyn and America Ferrera
Instagram/amberrosetamblyn
Amber Tamblyn and America Ferrera met in 2005 after filming "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" (they still refer to each other as "sisters"). As their friendship and careers have grown, so too has their tireless work in activism -- both women were recently played active roles in the Women's March on Washington.
Blac Chyna and Amber Rose
Amanda Edwards via Getty Images
Blac Chyna and Amber Rose have one of the most surprisingly genuine and supportive friendships in Hollywood. Both women, once dismissed merely as hip-hop girlfriends, have carved out empowering and lucrative careers for themselves via social media. Here, Chyna supports Amber Rose at her second annual SlutWallk in Los Angeles in 2016.
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Yara Shahidi and Rowan Blanchard
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Yara Shahidi and Rowan Blanchard are two teenage Hollywood friends who (in addition to somehow dodging that awkward stage of puberty) are incredibly talented, intelligent, and outspoken intersectional feminists.
Patrisse Cullors, Alicia Garza, and Opal Tometi
Jeff Vespa via Getty Images
Patrisse Cullors, Alicia Garza and Opal Tometi are the friends and creators of the Black Lives Matter movement. Together, they've brought awareness to the realities of police brutality and systemic racism in the United States.
Malala Yousefzai and Muzoon Almellehan
Darren Staples / Reuters
Activist Malala Yousefzai and activist and Syrian refugee Muzoon Almellehan met in 2013 in a dust-blown refugee camp in Jordan, and made an instant connection. Here they are reunited before their first meeting at the City Library in Newcastle Upon Tyne, Britain in December 2015.
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Beverly Ditsie and Rebecca Sevilla
Jason Reed / Reuters
South African lesbian activist Beverly Ditsie talks with friend Rebecca Sevilla, Peruvian activist, after addressing the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women in 1995. Ditsie was the first woman to address the conference representing a lesbian group, the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission.
Beyonce and Nicki Minaj
Jamie McCarthy via Getty Images
When Beyonce and Nicki Minaj team up, the results are always black girl magic. These two black female artists not only give each other props whenever they get a chance, they also happened to have released one of the hottest tracks and videos of 2015, "Feeling Myself." (Now if only Yonce can get Remy and Nicki to make up...).
Sylvia Rivera and Marsha P. Johnson
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Sylvia Rivera and Marsha P. Johnson are two of the trans women of color who launched the historic Stonewall Riot in 1969. In 1970, the close friends founded STAR (Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries), an organization created to aid young trans kids of New York City.
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Viola Davis and Meryl Streep
Jonathan Leibson via Getty Images
Viola Davis and Meryl Streep are two of Hollywood's most talented actresses who also happen to be close friends in real life. Through their careers, both women have opened up Hollywood's ides about the kinds of roles that can exist for women over 40 and for women of color.
Diane Guerrero and Jackie Cruz
Christopher Polk via Getty Images
Actresses Diane Guerrero and Jackie Cruz met on the set of Netflix's "Orange is the New Black" in 2013, and have been BFFs ever since. Together, they have been outspoken about Latina representation in the media, as well as feminist causes and undocumented immigration rights.
The Women of the Women's March
Mario Tama via Getty Images
There wasn't a greater public outpouring of love and solidarity between women than at the recent Women's March rallies in Washington, DC and across the globe in January. Here, protestor Krista Bouton hugs a friend while demonstrating in DC.
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CORRECTION: A previous version of this story misstated the name of Beverly Palesa Ditsie as Palesa Beverly Ortaie.
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