by Lacey Pfalz
Last updated: 9:05 AM ET, Tue March 8, 2022
Celebrity Cruises announces a key gender equality milestone this International Women's Day: one-third of its bridge officers are now female.
Only 2 percent of the entire population of mariners across the world are women, but Celebrity Cruises has made history on several occasions prior to this one in gender equality. Captain Kate McCue, the only female American cruise ship captain, was chosen as captain by Celebrity and in 2020 captained the first all-female bridge crew aboard the Celebrity Edge.
In addition to the incredible progress in gender equality, Celebrity has also changed its global logo today from one "X" to "XX," in honor of the female chromosome to celebrate International Women's Day. It's also launched a #BreakTheBias hashtag on social media.
The line's latest ship, the Celebrity Beyond, will also be helmed by Captain Kate when it debuts this April. She'll be the first female captain to take a ship out from where it's being built at the Chantiers de l'Atlantique in all of its 160-year history. She'll have a nine-person Bridge team along with her, four of which are female: Chief Officer Rachel Arnold (UK), Second Officer Dionysia Giapappa (Greece), Third Officer Gifty Adu Gyamfi (Ghana) and Third Officer Antonina Kolodziejczyk (Poland).
"Looking back at how far we've come in six years is quite extraordinary, and speaks volumes to the leadership and shared vision of the talented men and women I work with every day," said Celebrity Cruises president and CEO Lisa Lutoff-Perlo.
"Now, we have incredible women from 19 countries and at all levels of maritime leadership to encourage girls to consider this awe-inspiring industry that opens up the world with the transformative power of travel. We are so proud to pioneer this path and keep at this work so everyone who dreams of a career on board a cruise ship - whether they identify as male or female - encounters a new standard across the seven seas."
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