Women’s history is celebrated internationally throughout March, corresponding with International Women’s Day on March 8th. March is to honor the vital role women played in history and recognize how far women have advanced to equality. 200 years ago, who would have thought a female would become the youngest self-made billionaire, or win 23 major single tennis titles, or be a world-famous television star? Women today play crucial roles in the world and their accomplishments shouldn’t be hidden.

Kylie Jenner, at only 21 years old, became the youngest self-made billionaire passing Mark Zuckerberg, creator FaceBook. Kylie was able to harness her family’s fame to launch her own businesses, including a cosmetics line, Kylie’s Cosmetics, and a lip kit called Kylie’s Lip Kit. Also, Kylie and her sister Kendall launched a clothing brand for PacSun and TopShop called Kendall and Kylie. Aside from business, Kylie has become possibly the biggest social media influencer ever. With her 129 million followers on Instagram, it becomes clear how much of an influence she is; Marc Sine stated, “Her social media is her most notable quality because people thrive to be like her.” In 2015 she was named one of Time Magazine’s most influential teens. Demonstrating her influence, in 2018, Kylie tweeted about her diminished interest in Snapchat which resulted in Snapchat losing 1.3 billion dollars in market value the next day.

Serena Williams, the most dominant female tennis player ever, showed the world that females too can be world class athletes. Williams has won 23 Grand Slam singles titles and four Olympic gold medals. Facing adversity, Williams persevered. In 2011, doctors found blood clots in her lungs causing a potential retirement. The next year she came back to win a gold medal in the Olympics. Because of how good she was, she has constantly accused of cheating. Talia Mooney says this makes her motivational because “She ignores all the bad things people say.” Williams is also an advocate and prominent figure for women equality. Williams stated, “The success of every woman should be the inspiration to another. We should raise each other up. Make sure you’re very strong, be extremely kind, and above all, be humble.” Most recently, she starred in a Nike commercial which celebrated women in sports for International Women’s day.

Ellen DeGeneres began her career as a stand-up comedian before starring in her own sitcom Ellen. In 2003, she created The Ellen Degeneres Show. From her show, she now has a net worth of 450 million. In 1997, she came out as gay, becoming the first lead in sitcom history to openly acknowledge her homosexuality on air and has also been a strong advocate for LGBT rights. After coming out, her show faced harsh criticism from many; an ABC affiliate even refused to air her episodes. In 2016, President Barack Obama awarded Ellen with the Presidential Medal of Freedom for being a passionate advocate for equality and fairness. The Presidential Medal of Freedom is just one of many awards Ellen has received; she has earned nearly 30 Emmy’s and 15 People’s Choice awards. Mackenna Patterson says that “a person becomes influential by the way a person can impact another person’s life.” Ellen impacts many lives through being open about her sexuality and has donated millions of dollars to help people. Her impact will be forever lasting.

Although Women’s History Month is in March, they play a vital role in society and their accomplishments should never be masked. Kylie Jenner, Serena Williams, and Ellen DeGeneres have all had major influences on the world. Women helped shape the world we live in today, no matter if they are famous or not.