Funmilayo Ransome Kuti

Francis Abigail Olufunmilayo Thomas was born in Nigeria in 1900. Funmilayo (the name she went by) was the fisty female student at her elementary school and then studied in England before returning to Nigeria and becoming a teacher. In 1932, she gathered a few young women together to start the Abeokuta Ladies Club (ALC), which began as a small, polite group focused on learning proper etiquette, drinking tea, and doing crafts, and evolved into a powerful organization that challenged the exploitation of women workers, and sought to empower women by advocating for country-wide reforms, women's education and healthcare, and suffrage.