Celebrating Herstory

Yasmeen Lee with a smile on her face. (Photo by Trinity Battle)

This month, we celebrate all the amazing women that have worked hard, created vast changes and made powerful moves. We celebrate and acknowledge women all around the world for their accomplishments and perseverance. This month is Women’s History Month. 

Now, although the amazing work of women should be acknowledged every day, it is quite nice to have a month of celebration for all the ladies out there. In honor of Women’s History Month, we decided to highlight a woman who puts her blood, sweat and tears into everything she does, earning impressive awards for her work. 

We spoke with Yasmeen Lee, a public health major, Honors Fellow, Presidential Scholar, Odyssey Scholar and Lumen Prize recipient. She has earned these recognitions throughout her years studying at Elon. Now, as a senior, she is not only proud to be able to represent all of these programs on campus but also to be able to encourage other students to apply for these same programs and scholarships.

Lee was recognized for her most recent award, the Lumen Prize, through the research she conducted for her public health major. The research project, entitled “Understanding Social Media’s Impact on Breastfeeding Black Millennials,” reveals how social media can be used as a way to influence the breastfeeding outcomes of black millennial mothers. 

Lee said the curiosity to learn about breastfeeding in the black community came from a class she took her freshman year and from her own mother’s experience. During the class Anthropology of Babies, Lee was assigned to write about her birth story and whether or not she was breastfed. After learning that her mother quit her job because it denied her maternity leave, she found that black women are the least likely demographic to breastfeed its children.

This information initiated the long journey of research for Lee alongside her mentor Dr. Stephanie Baker, assistant professor of public health studies.

Elon senior Yasmeen Lee. (Photo by Trinity Battle)

Ever since beginning her research during her sophomore year, becoming a more confident researcher is one of the many things Lee said she gained throughout the process. She also mentioned becoming comfortable with humility, calling it the most pertinent lesson she learned through conducting research. 

“Academically, humility is how we learn and allow ourselves to be receptive to new information,” Lee said. “Working in public health encompasses the understanding that there is always more to learn as communities change and we learn to evolve with them.”

Lee considers her research as a form of community activism for the black community. She explained that the topic of breastfeeding is met with a negative connotation and is considered taboo because of the connection to the historical mistreatment of the bodies of black women, she said. 

Her research opened the door for people to share their stories about breastfeeding—something that can be therapeutic for many. 

“As a black woman myself, I hold a personal stake in my research, but I see it mostly as an opportunity to change the narrative about and within the black community in regard to breastfeeding and motherhood,” Lee said.

And it has. Since then, Lee has had the opportunity to present her research to the public. She and Dr. Baker traveled to Philadelphia to present her research at the American Public Health Association’s Annual Meeting and Expo last November. 

“I was happy that my hard work on my proposal had been successful, but I knew that the work I set out to do was bigger than myself,” Lee said when asked about her reaction to being awarded the Lumen Prize. “I was really anxious about having to speak for black mothers, as I had no experience in motherhood. However, I think a lot of momentum can come from working through anxiety.”

This is not the end for Lee either. After graduating, she plans to work in Alamance County in the Elon Service Year Fellowship program and enroll in graduate school to pursue her master’s degree in public health. 

Lee advises others who are looking into research to find the topics by which they are personally impacted and motivated. Contrary to popular belief, research does not have to be strongly related to one’s major or minor. Research is an investigation of something bigger that helps others grow. 

“Find the topic that you feel passionate working on and find the research mentor that believes in your vision,” Lee said.

So go on and be a Marie Curie.