No matter what timeline in history you look at, women have always been treated differently. It’s almost like history always finds a way to repeat itself.

Could you imagine being a vessel for human life but having to hide your opinions from the world? Women weren’t given the right to vote until 1920, unlike white men who had the privilege to do so since 1820. Men believed that women couldn’t handle politics, and that discussions of world topics were too complex for them to handle. Talks about economics, war and trade were the responsibilities of men, but birthing life to America was the “simple” job of a woman.

Throughout the 1920s, during America’s industrial boom, men started to thrive in the economy. Whether from selling oil, producing cars, handling stocks, and even the war effort, the economy boomed. But in the early 1900s, it was expected for women to be submissive and willing. No investing, making their own money, buying property or even having a job for them.

Why? What sets women apart from men? One woman in particular, Sarah Breedlove, later known as Madam C.J. Walker, set a standard for women in the 1920’s. Madam C.J. Walker was the first woman/ first African American woman to own a million dollar company. She did it without the help of men. She didn’t quit when men didn’t want to listen to her; it pushed her more. At the time she lived in a man’s world, and women didn’t have any say or didn’t have anything of their own. As an iconic philanthropist, she paved the way for women and brought new inspiration to society.

Not only did Walker create a new world of hair care, she left a legacy of strong will and determination. Women followed in her footsteps and started to stand up for their rights. Rosa Parks was named the “first lady of civil rights” and “the mother of the freedom movements.” Do you think she got those names by not prevailing and backing down from what she stood for? She believed in something and fought for it, and at the end an uproar began, much like Madam C.J. Walker.

Andrew Tate is an American- British misogynist podcaster and social media personality. Meanwhile, his network is worth 700 million dollars and he has over 4.6 million followers on Instagram before getting banned. He has based his career around degrading and belittling women, “Women shouldn’t be allowed to take self defense classes because they’re “incapable of violence” and “not built for fighting,” Andrew Tate has said.

He also has about 600,000 monthly listeners on his podcast and has been viewed on TikTok over 14 billion times. He has a large following of young boys between 13 and 17. Essentially through malicious tweets and comments, he’s teaching young boys to be controlling and hateful to women at a young age. “I think the woman belongs to the man,” Tate has said. When you have a man like Andrew Tate, before we know it there are going to be hundreds of Andrews, and history is just going to repeat itself.

Not all men are like Andrew Tate, but those who are make it a lot harder for women like Madam C.J. Walker to feel empowered. History always finds a way to repeat itself, and with that, it takes change to create new history.