Women’s History Month: Kwolek’s Kevlar!
It’s nearing the end of March, and as always I don’t feel like I have nearly accomplished all that I need to by now. I officially really, truly need to turn my ‘office’ brain off and switch to full time farmer. It’s always a rough transition. I find Spring always difficult, it rains, it’s sunny, a storm rolls in, it hails, it pours, it’s sunny, it’s sunny and snowing. I’ve been reflecting a lot about what is going on all around us and I am disheartened by the violence shown toward our Asian American and Pacific Islander community. I’ve been reflecting a lot about emails expressing overwhelm and asking for guidance on navigating whitesupremacy and capitalism - essentially requests for unpaid consultation. I’ve gotten smarter and harder about my boundaries.
I started farming because I wanted to help my community… little did I know that farming would help me find my community. As I reflect on why I wanted to feed people I am realizing it has never come from a place of guilt or saviorism. I am all too aware that my individual actions will not save this planet from destruction, I cannot help every person that needs help. But I could add a drop in the bucket towards the future I wanted. What feelings have motivated me then? Strength, resiliency, determination, stubbornness. I farm and aim to feed my community from a place of fire, a sharp razor edge focus on proving I am not extinct, that the Sinixt are NOT EXTINCT.
I can only imagine that this passionate drive is the underlying momentum that pushes so many women in so many professions forward. We are here. We are strong. We are just as capable.
For this month celebrating strong women I wanted to highlight a Female Inventor in Agriculture. I googled it and came across Stephanie Kwolek who invented Kevlar while working for the DuPont Company, a chemical company that has a whole sector focused on agriculture. In my past cyclist years I bought bike tires reinforced with Kevlar, learning who created this material was extra exciting. Kevlar is a super strong polymer that even steel bullets can’t penetrate! It’s also a heat-resistant material that’s lighter than fiberglass. Today, hundreds of products, including bulletproof vests, spacecrafts, helmets, tennis racquets, tires, and protective cut resistant gloves are made using Kevlar. In 1994 Staphanie was the forth women to be inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame, and also received the National Medal of Technology (1999), and the Perkin Medal. These are all rare honors for women to be recognized and receive. (Link to reference)
I sure wish I had some of Stephanie’s Kevlar cut resistant gloves in my kitchen when I cut the tip of my thumb off a few years ago cooking dinner after a long day spent in the fields. Actually I might head out and buy some now, for the kitchen and the field. We do try to keep our harvest knives sharp!
Be safe out there! Cheers! Farmer Michelle
