Hidden Figures - Margot Lee Shetterly

pragmatic majority, the West Computers
knew, were the ones who had the power
to break down the barriers that existed at
Langley.
Their facilities might be separate, but
as far as the West Computers were
concerned, they would prove themselves
equal or better, having internalized the
Negro theorem of needing to be twice as
good to get half as far. They wore their
professional clothes like armor. They
wielded their work like weapons,
warding off the presumption of
inferiority because they were Negro or
female. They corrected each other’s
work and policed their ranks like
soldiers against tardiness, sloppy
appearance, and the perception of loose
morals. They warded off the negative
stereotypes that haunted Negroes like