Major funding for backstory is provided by an anonymous donor, the National

Endowment for the Humanities and the Joseph and Robert Cornell Memorial

Foundation.

From Virginia Humanities, this is backstory.

Welcome to backstory, the show that explains the history behind today's headlines.

I'm Joanne Freeman. And I'm Brian Bello. If you're new to the podcast,

we're all historians. And along with Ed Ayers and Nathan Connelly, each week we

explore a different aspect of American history. When the 116th Congress was

sworn in this past January, a historic number of women took office. Today,

131 women served in the House and Senate, making Congress the most female and

most diverse it's ever been.

We did it!

So I think it's official that I am

that I am Congresswoman elector.

In my name, Mexico, you are sending one of the very first Native American women to Congress.

Despite the fact that we were running against a 10-term incumbent, despite the fact

that it was your first time running for office, despite the fact that we didn't have the money,

despite the fact that I'm working class, despite all those things. We won.

But women and politics continue to face an uphill battle. Even after their election,

Congresswomen such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Rashida Tilead have faced criticism for their choice

of clothing and language. One radio commentator in Atlanta even suggested Lucy McBath

should, quote, go back to the kitchen. So today on the show, we look at women in Congress,

...