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7 things you didn't know were invented by Black women

Gabi StevensonFeb 25, 2023, 19:21 IST

Valerie Thomas, the inventor of the illusion transmitter, and Patricia Bath, the brains behind the Laserphaco probe.NASA/Interim Archives/Getty Images; Jemal Countess/Getty Images

Black women are behind some of the world's most groundbreaking and significant inventions.
Marie van Brittan Brown was the brain behind the first home security system.

Marie Van Brittan Brown invented the first home security system in the 1960s.

A building security system.Letizia Le Fur/Getty Images

Valerie Thomas was behind the illusion transmitter, which NASA later used in its satellite technology.

Valerie Thomas stands in front of a blackboard at the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, 1979.NASA/Interim Archives/Getty Images

Sarah Boone invented and patented the first modern ironing board in 1892.

An iron on an ironing board.Huzaime Wahid/EyeEm via Getty Images

Mary Beatrice Davidson Kenner's sanitary belt was the predecessor to the menstrual pad.

An early sanitary belt made by Kotex.Joshua Yospyn for The Washington Post via Getty Images

Bridget "Biddy" Mason invested her money and effort into developing the area that would become downtown Los Angeles.

A street in modern-day downtown Los Angeles, California.Alexander Spatari/Getty Images

Dr. Patricia Bath was an ophthalmologist who invented a cutting-edge device for cataract surgery.

Dr. Patricia Bath at the Tribeca Disruptive Innovation Awards during the 2012 Tribeca Film Festival on April 27, 2012.Jemal Countess/Getty Images

Tahira Reid Smith invented the automatic double dutch machine as an undergraduate engineering student at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

A long-distance couple had 7 dates across 7 continents with a final penguin-themed proposal in Antarctica