Time magazine profiles Hirono in special issue

U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono is among a list of 46 prominent female leaders selected for Time Magazine’s special, multimedia project, “FIRSTS: Women Who are Changing the World.” Opens in a new tab

A special double issue hits stands on Monday, while a hardcover book is due to be released on Tuesday.

Hirono, named by Time as the first Asian-American woman to be elected to the U.S. Senate, was profiled for the project highlighting women who broke barriers, along with presidential nominee Hillary Rodham Clinton, talk show host Ellen DeGeneres, tennis player Serena Williams, ocean advocate Sylvia Earle, Fed Chair Janet Yellen and fellow Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi.

“The Senate needs a lot more diversity, and I bring quadruple diversity,” she is quoted as saying in the feature.

An immigrant born in rural Japan, Hirono came to the U.S. when she was almost 8 years old and got involved in politics while protesting the Vietnam War at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. A senator since 2013, Hirono said she brings diversity to the Senate as a woman, an Asian, immigrant and Buddhist.

The multimedia project includes videos, portraits by Brazilian photographer Luisa Dorr who used an iPhone, and a social media campaign using #SheIsTheFirst. A video of Hirono is available at time.com/collection/firsts/4898538/mazie-hirono-first Opens in a new tabs Opens in a new tab.