Serena Williams & Civil Rights Icon Ruby Bridges Set to Be Inducted Into National Women’s Hall of Fame

Two icons, tennis phenom Serena Williams and civil rights pioneer Ruby Bridges, are set to be inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame, NBC News reports. Bridges and Williams have been added to the 2024 inductee class, along with eight other honorees announced this past spring. 

Both women have contributed enormous strides in the world. Williams, a 23-time Grand Slam tennis champion, is one of the most decorated athletes of our time. She was also recently honored as the first athlete to win the Fashion Icon Award from the Council of Fashion Designers of America. 

Meanwhile, Bridges was just 6 years old when she first made history, becoming one of the first Black students to desegregate schools in New Orleans in 1960. Bridges is depicted in the famous Norman Rockwell painting entitled “The Problem We All Live With.” Bridges has continued to be an activist throughout her life, founding The Ruby Bridges Foundation more than 24 years ago, which advocates for tolerance and change through education.

“The 2024 inductee class has broken barriers, challenged the status quo, and left an impact on history,” the Hall of Fame said via announcement.

The two will be inducted alongside Kimberlé Crenshaw, a civil rights activist and a leading scholar on critical race theory, Loretta Ross, founder of the National Center for Human Rights Education in Atlanta, and Dr. Patricia Bath, a pioneering ophthalmologist, and the first Black woman doctor to receive a medical patent, who will be inducted posthumously. 

“The 2024 class of inductees are scientists, activists, performers, and athletes who are the changemakers of today and inspiration for the women of tomorrow. Their dedication, drive, and talent got them here, and we’re thrilled to honor them on the national stage,” said Jennifer Gabriel, chief executive of the Hall of Fame.

The induction ceremony will be broadcast nationally for the first time ever. For the full list of the Class of 2024 National Women’s Hall of Fame inductees, click here.