White people in general need to be much more careful about labeling someone "the first" to do or be anything, because the truth is we absolutely don't know. This reinforces the myth that only white/western institutions have value or legacy worth preserving.
It's very unlikely that anyone recent enough for us to know their name is "the first" to study or do something or gain meaningful knowledge about a subject. It's much more likely that they were simply the first to be accepted as an expert by Western colonial institutions.
For instance, I just saw a tweet describing Mary Anning as "the first" female paleontologist. Peoples all over the world have been fascinated with fossils for time immemorial. We must ask ourselves, why does Mary Anning get cited as the first? The answer is colonialism.
While Mary Anning was a scientist worthy of recognition, it is wildly unlikely that she was "the first". She was the first to be recognized by colonial institutions, not the first overall, and that difference is critical to how one views science and the world overall.
It's absolutely critical for scientists to realize that the European system of what we call "science" didn't become dominant because it was better than other systems. It became dominant because of colonialism.
By describing anyone as "the first", we assert that this European system and view of the world is the only one that matters, and write off all other ways of exploring nature or life. The words you use matter. Think about their implications.
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