Push Girl Hall of Fame

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Tammy Duckworth shows us all that a Push Girl keeps her eyes on the future instead of dwelling on the past. This former helicopter pilot and Iraq War veteran lost both her legs in combat, but that didn't dampen her resolve. She went on to a high ranking position in the US Department of Veteran Affairs and is now running for Congress. She's fighting for all the great American institutions that support Push Girls like her in chasing the bright future they dream of. Check out her moving speech from the Democratic National Convention last night: http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7420510n Tell your friend she's got a little Tammy Duckworth in her. Share now to give her a little push. Got your own Push Girl in mind? Your friend, your mom, your icon, some random superwoman we need to know about? Submit a photo on our wall, and tell us why she’s got that Push Girl mojo. Agree or disagree with someone on the list? Don’t hold back. Comment away.

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Do you accept suggestions? If so: Verity Lambert.

We certainly do, thank you Taiey!

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Born without a fibula in her right foot, basketball and volleyball champ Katie Holloway became an amputee before turning two ... and discovered her love for sports soon after. Recruited by Cal State Northridge for her talent at shooting hoo

ps, Katie then went on to the Paralympic sitting volleyball team where she quickly proved herself an "ace". Later this year, Katie is set to appear as a special guest on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. This Push Girl has spiked her way into our Hall of Fame for her athletic prowess and her advocacy for people with disabilities. Tell your friend she's got a little Katie Holloway in her. Reblog now to give her a little push.

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Alice Walker sees the world differently, and not just because a childhood accident left her blind in one eye. This civil rights firebrand and talented novelist is famous for penning "The Color Purple", but she's also focused on pushing over the status quo, one prejudice at a time. Read her work, and you'll get true Push Girl inspiration. Tell your friend she's got a little Alice Walker in her. Share now to give her a little push.

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‎Mother Teresa ... her very name means Push Girl. This tiny woman with a big heart inspired generations with her selfless work among the poor, sick, and dying of India. She felt the call to tend humanity, and she more than answered it. Need we say more? Exactly.  Tell your friend she's got a little Mother Teresa in her. Reblog now to give her a little push.

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This sharp-witted lawyer, activist and writer, Harriet McBryde Johnson, once described herself as a "disabled, liberal, atheistic Democrat," but like any Push Girl, her incredible achievements defied categorization. As a very public face of the disability rights movement, she regularly blew minds and challenged assumptions - helping people to get their Social Security, standing up for Congress in the public battle over Terry Schiavo, and speaking up against the "pity based tactics" of certain charity organizations. This wheelchair using Push Girl may be gone, but her fire still burns bright!  Tell your friend she's got a little Harriet in her. Reblog now to give her a little push.

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Here's a headline:  Push Girl Takes Journalism By Storm. To get the full scoop, let us introduce you to Katharine Graham. Tasked with taking over "The Washington Post" in 1963, Katharine boldly stepped up to the challenge. Along the way, she brought home quite the array of awards for the mantelpiece, and helped take down a US President in the process. The person that ran the paper during Watergate deserves some of the credit beyond just the reporters, don't you think? The truth is that all of her accomplishments she did in a male-dominated industry where sometimes even her own employees didn't accept her. Would it be farfetched to speculate she may be one of the inspirations behind Millennium Trilogy character, Erika Berger. Yes or no, our op-ed says:  Never mess with a push girl!

Tell your friend she's got a little Katharine Graham in her. Reblog now to give her a little push.

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Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Maria Alyokhina and Yekaterina Samutsevitch would just be another three punk rockers playing to small crowds if it weren't for a little thing called Free Speech. These three members of a Russian protest band called Pussy Riot have become international symbols in the fight against repression. Just sentenced to two years in a labor camp for criticizing the government, these women have never given up on their beliefs. And they have done it all with their own unique style. For taking the Push Girl revolution to Red Square, for speaking up where others remain silent, and for making the balaclava the must-have fashion accessory of the season ... we proudly join you with our fists in the air.

Tell your friend they've got a little Pussy Riot in them. Reblog now to give them a little push.

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Rosa Parks proved that sitting down can be a stand-up statement. While history may depict her famous refusal to get up from her bus seat as a spontaneous protest, this incredible woman had activist credentials that stretched well beyond. But, it was her famous 1955 act of civil disobedience that became a watershed event in civil rights activism and forever changed America for the better. It is for this uncompromising spirit in the face of repression that Rosa Parks takes her rightful seat in the Push Girl Hall of Fame. 

Tell your friend she’s got a little Rosa Parks in her. Reblog now to give her a little push.

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Josephine Baker was a singer, dancer, spy, activist, paragon of beauty, and member of social circles that included luminaries like Langston Hughes, Pablo Picasso, and Ernest Hemingway. Not bad, eh? She wowed audiences in her adopted France, worked for the resistance in the WWII, and returned back to the States to integrate concert halls and fight in the civil rights movement. If you think she sounds like a busy lady, wait until you hear about her 12 kids! This Push Girl was simply amazing.

Tell your friend she’s got a little Josephine Baker in her. Reblog now to give her a little push.

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We love the Olympics not only for the amazing feats of athleticism on display but also for the personal triumphs over adversity that bring the athletes to the games. Wilma Rudolph is a legend for both. At just age 16, she won a bronze medal in the 1956 Melbourne Olympics and then took home 3 golds four years later in Rome. But even to compete at all was a victory for Rudolph. A sickly child, she survived premature birth, whooping cough, chicken pox, scarlet fever, measles, and infantile paralysis caused by the polio virus. Who knew this girl with a brace on her twisted leg would become the fastest woman in the world and an international star?  Tell your friend she’s got a little Wilma Rudolph in her. Reblog now to give her a little push.

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Viva Frida Kahlo! Her striking surrealist paintings cemented her as one of the 20th century's most influential artists - able to communicate her inner self to the canvas in ways that made her a gobal icon. A survivor of childhood polio and then of a brutal traffic accident that left her suffering for the remainder of her life, Kahlo stretched the boundaries of what women's art could be. Her paintings depicted many topics and themes that were radical for the time--including bisexuality, communism, gender politics, death, and reproduction. For her power to transform her pain and personal experience into works of beauty, she is forever a Push Girl. Tell your friend she’s got a little Frida Kahlo in her. Reblog now to give her a little push.

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When you think of rodeos, you probably conjure up images of cowboys and bucking broncos. But what about a blind girl battling cancer and other medical issues? Take off your hats then to Tacey Raulerson, a pre-teen rodeo queen with a heart the size of Texas. Due to Retinoblastoma she had both eyes removed early in life. Plus she battled through many rounds of chemo along the way. But none of this stopped her from touring the rodeo circuit spreading joy and inspiration. She and her horse Tuff Enough have lassoed our hearts. Yeehaw!

Tell your friend she’s got a little Tacey in her. Reblog now to give her a little push.

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Love, money, and sex ... Helen Gurley Brown saw no reason why a modern woman couldn't have all three. In fact, she had some pointed advice on how to get them. As editor-in-chief of Cosmopolitan, Gurley Brown forwarded the sexual revolution and helped many women redefine their lives on their own terms – just as she did going from ad agency secretary to one of the nation's highest paid copywriters to the guiding force behind Cosmo. Unafraid to take a stand and a champion of progress and innovation, Helen Gurley Brown made being a Push Girl a way of life. And on her death, we celebrate the confidence, style, and intelligence she inspired in us all.

Tell your friend she’s got a little Helen Gurley Brown in her. Reblog now to give her a little push.

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What happens when you combine a once-in-a-lifetime voice with an unstoppable, uplifting spirit? Well, that's easy ... you get Joan Baez. Since 1959 Joan's music has been heard around the globe - pushing for social change, inspiring the down

trodden, and bringing joy. She's a Push Girl for not only standing up to the forces of repression but also in using her talent to foster hope, beauty, and love. Tell your friend she’s got a little Joan Baez in her. Reblog now to give her a little push.

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When Kayla Harrison stood on the podium to accept Team USA's first gold medal in judo, you wouldn't have guessed that this Olympian - who so easily dispatched her opponents - had even greater personal obstacle to overcome. Molested by her c

hildhood coach, Kayla could easily have run away from the sport she loved. Who would have blamed her? But she showed her true grit to not only grapple with her terrible experience but also to courageously share her story with the world in order to give other women like her a voice. She's a shining example for both her country and push girls everywhere. Tell your friend she’s got a little Kayla Harrison in her. Reblog now to give her a little push.

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Actress Sally Field won an Oscar for her portrayal of this textile factory worker who spun her belief in workers' rights into forming a union...much to the chagrin of her higher-ups. Norma Rae was based on a real person--union organizer Crystal Lee Sutton, who agitated for better working conditions for her fellow workers at the J.P. Stevens textile plant in North Carolina during the 1970s. Sutton's fictional counterpart introduced the worker's rights cause to moviegoing audiences across the United States, and "Norma Rae" remains a classic underdog story interwoven with a timeless social message.

Tell your friend she’s got a little Norma Rae in her. Reblog now to give her a little push.