When Dr James Barry died in 1865, he became legendary to some, and infamous to most of his era.
He was a renowned military surgeon who rose the ranks to become inspector general of hospitals, one of the highest army medical posts, serving throughout the British empire.
To sum up his 50 years in medical career, Dr Barry was a humane doctor and a spirited public health reformer whose contribution to the practice reverberates to this age, 156 years after his death.
READ MORE
Ruto commits Sh100m for campaign against GBV
Femicide is not homicide: Urgent, specific actions need to be taken
However, beneath these groundbreaking achievements was a mountain of distressing discoveries that emerged on Barry’s death.
The morgue attendant who cleaned the body found out that Dr Barry was “a perfect female” and additionally discovered that she had once given birth.
As detailed in a story published by Mail Online, it came to light that Barry’s only hope of pursuing her passion in the medical field had been to shelve who she was by hoodwinking Edinburgh University, the Royal College of Surgeons and later, the British Army.
And so Margaret Bulkley was buried in the crossroads of gender, and James Barry emerged.
Ms Bulkley ditched her skirts for breeches and cunningly reduced her age to explain her petite frame, high pitched tone and hairless chin.
Quite unfortunate, but it took deception for Bulkley to become the first female doctor and surgeon in the United Kingdom.
It took shrewdness for Bulkley to perform one of the first successful caesareans that set a precedent to CS’s as we know them today.
Admittedly, we’ve come a long way after Dr Barry’s death.
Suffragettes have troubled the world for the better, and thanks to women like Wangari Maathai, we can hug a tree in Karura.
However, the bias still lingers.
A 2020 UN report revealed that 90 per cent of men and women hold a bias against women. Worldwide, over 50 per cent of men said they had more rights to a job than women.
Close to a third of respondents believed it was acceptable for men to hit their partners.
In the workplace, women are paid significantly less than men and are less likely to be in senior positions, and globally, 40 per cent of respondents thought men made better business leaders.
Sadly the study found there are no countries in the world with gender equality.
It’s a man’s world, or so the saying goes. It may be that women in history weren’t always able to vote, attend school, fight in wars, open bank accounts, or live adventurous lives.
For some women, that never stopped them from stepping up to the plate and handling business, even when it meant disguising themselves as men.
These women went ahead and helped win wars, cure diseases, shape nations, and set a yardstick for everything women are capable of. It’s on the back of these female giants we stand on today.
Although women may no longer need to dress as men to avoid persecution, the aforementioned UN study reveals that we still have a long way to go.
The world had better get there quickly because real-time research proves that educating, recruiting, and advancing women is not just the right thing to do but is better for business. Statistics, anecdotes, and common-sense point to diversity and inclusion increasing profits.
In business, profit talks and companies with more women in leadership positions are 25 per cent more likely to outperform their competitors financially.
So on this year’s IWD, we are breaking the bias and advocating for more inclusive, diverse, and fair living and working conditions.
My challenge to myself and all of you is to keep this conversation alive. If it means demanding a report on your company’s gender pay gap and asking for policies to overcome it, fall in line!
Every person or organisation that dares to break the bias sets a standard for others to follow. You and I have a voice, and now is the only time to use it!
