Women’s History Month acknowledges the many contributions of women to the landscape of society.
Much like the 19th century women’s rights movement, which was organized by five women and gave way to the first women’s rights convention in Seneca Falls, New York, Women’s History Week (which would later, under legislation, become Women’s History Month) was born out of a grassroots organization, The National Women’s History Project (now, The National Women’s History Alliance), by five women in Santa Rosa, California determined to see women’s historical accomplishments recognized.
The earlier movement, despite its too oft neglect of women of color, laid the groundwork for the suffragist movement, beginning around 1848, culminating in the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment in 1920. While women of color were often not permitted to organize and speak alongside their white counterparts due to the intersection of their race and sex, this did not stop them from forming their own women’s suffragist clubs around the country and gathering as a conglomerate, of sorts, in the form of the National Association of Colored Women (NACW). The NACW’s motto “Lifting as we Climb,” coined by co-founder Mary Church Terrell, was based on the belief that the success of one propels the entire race forward.
Progress was slow yet somewhat steady after the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment as the Fair Labor Standards Act would follow sometime later as World War II saw many women take on roles outside of the home replacing men, who had gone off to war, in the workplace. It would not be, however, until the height of the Civil Rights Movement when women would benefit from years of protesting for equal rights as Congress passed a landmark 11 titles all addressing discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, and sex. Years later, these protections, specifically under Title VII, would include sexual orientation and gender identity.
By the mid to late 1970s, led by Molly Murphy MacGregor, Women’s History Week was born. MacGregor, a college instructor at the time, discovered insufficient information about the Women’s Movement in textbooks, so she galvanized and fought to institute Women’s History Week in Sonoma County, California. Together, with four of her colleagues, she founded the National Women’s History Project (NWHP) with the goal of preventing the diminishment and erasure of women’s history.
Word began to spread of Women’s History Week in Sonoma County, California and, before long, under President Jimmy Carter, in 1980, the first Presidential Proclamation declaring March 8 Women’s History Week was issued. In 1987, after being petitioned by the NWHP, Congress declared March Women’s History Month.
In March, we celebrate Women’s History Month.
According to the National Women’s History Alliance, this year’s Women’s History Month theme is “Women Who Advocate for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion.”
In the more than 150 years since the Women’s Movement began, women of diverse backgrounds have realized hard-fought rights and freedoms that have further enriched society.
The Institue for EDI at Chase Brexton, celebrates all women and, per the purpose on which The Institue was founded, aims to “disrupt the behaviors, beliefs, and policies that sustain systemic inequities, structural racism, and other discriminatory practices.”
Happy Women’s History Month!
Women’s History Month: Women's History Month (womenshistorymonth.gov)
To learn more about the history and legislative documents that designated March Women’s History Month, visit The Library of Congress.
To learn more about the first women’s rights gathering, visit: The Seneca Falls Convention
California Commission on the Status of Women and Girls: Women of Color and the Fight for Women’s Suffrage | CCSWG (ca.gov)
Sojourner Truth’s “Ain’t I a Woman”: Sojourner Truth: Ain't I A Woman? (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov)
The Fifteenth Amendment: The Fifteenth Amendment (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov)
The Nineteenth Amendment: The Nineteenth Amendment (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov)
To read more about the controversial views of Seneca Falls Convention organizer Elizabeth Cady Stanton, visit: For Suffragette Elizabeth Cady Stanton, All Women Were Not Created Equal : NPR
Black Women and the Vote: How Early Suffragists Left Black Women Out of Their Fight | HISTORY
“Women and Colored Women,” The Crisis (August 1915): Document 10: Mary B. Talbert, "Women and Colored Women," August 1915 | Alexander Street Documents
National Association of Colored Women (NACW): National Association of Colored Women's Clubs | NACWC | Washington, DC
Rosie the Riveter: The real story behind this war poster (youtube.com)
Who was Rosie the Riveter?: Who was Rosie the Riveter?
Stories of Real-Life “Rosie’s” This woman is making sure the legacy of Rosie the Riveter is always remembered (youtube.com)
Real-Life Rosie the Riveter Continues Serving the Community: Real-life Rosie the Riveter continues serving community (youtube.com)
Timeline of Legal History of Women in the United States: Detailed Timeline - National Women's History Alliance (nationalwomenshistoryalliance.org)
Women’s History Milestones: Timeline: Women’s History Milestones: A Timeline
Weeks vs Southern Bell (Video): SPECIAL REPORT: Act of Courage - YouTube
Bowe vs Colgate-Palmolive: NOW files the appeal in Bowe v. Colgate Palmolive « National Organization for Women (brynmawr.edu)
The Civil Rights Act of 1964: Eleven Titles at a Glance The Civil Rights Act of 1964: Eleven Titles at a Glance (congress.gov)
What is Title VII of the Civil Rights Act? (Video): What Is Title VII of the Civil Rights Act? (youtube.com)
Griswold vs Connecticut (1965): Griswold v. Connecticut | Constitution Center
Molly Murphy MacGregor: 'I helped start Women's History Month over 40 years ago. Here's why it matters' - ABC News
Women’s History Month Alliance (NHMA), previously, The National Women’s History Month Project (NWHP) selects and publishes the yearly theme for Women’s History Month. Read about the origin and efforts to nationally recognize and transform National Women’s History Week to National Women’s History Month.
Women’s History Month Public Law: Public Law 100.9 - March 12, 1987 To Designate the Month of March, 1987 as “Women’s History Month”
International Women’s Day is celebrated annually on March 8 and has been since 1911.
Lilly Ledbetter: Ledbetter, Lilly | Women of the Hall
What is the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act?: What is the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act? (youtube.com)
Ruth Bader Ginsburg: Ruth Bader Ginsburg | National Women's History Museum (womenshistory.org)
Chisolm ‘72: Unbought & Unbossed (Trailer): Chisholm '72: Unbought & Unbossed Official Trailer (youtube.com)
Women on the Supreme Court - 2022 - RepresentWomen
Four female Supreme Court Justices begin new term | It's A DC Thing - YouTube
Wilma Mankiller: Wilma Mankiller | First Female Chief of the Cherokee Nation | #SeeHer Story | Katie Couric Media (youtube.com)
Biography of Wilma Mankiller: Biography: Wilma Mankiller (womenshistory.org)
Mabel Ping-Hua Lee: Dr. Mabel Ping-Hua Lee (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov)
Mabel Ping-Hua Lee (Video): Back-to-School Series #3: Asian American Trailblazers - Mabel Ping Hua Lee (youtube.com)
"We must look to our own people, communities, and history for solutions. We must trust our own thinking again." Chief Wilma D. Mankiller
Read about a few strong, innovative, and impactful women below.
Molly Murphy MacGregor: MacGregor’s grassroots efforts led to the institution of the first Women’s History Week locally in Sonoma County, California. Women’s History Week was recognized nationally before this week was extended to a month-long recognition. The Sonoma County woman behind Women’s History Month (pressdemocrat.com)
Lilly Ledbetter: Ledbetter sued her employer, Goodyear Tire & Rubber, after working for the company for 19 years and two years shy of her retirement, as she was being paid significantly less than her male counterparts. She then filed a sex discrimination suit in 1999 against Goodyear which, ultimately, went to the Supreme Court. In 2007, the Supreme Court stated she had waited too late to file her charge; however, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, dissented and urged Congress to correct this wrong. After testifying before Congress, under President Obama, the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 was signed into law. Video: What is the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act? (youtube.com) Ledbetter, Lilly | Women of the Hall
Dolores Huerta: Born in 1930, Huerta is one of the most influential labor rights organizers in America’s history, known for working with Cesar Chavez to fight for farmworkers rights and being instrumental in the enactment of the Agricultural Labor Relations Act of 1975. Women of Color and the Fight for Women’s Suffrage | CCSWG (ca.gov) Dolores Huerta Biography (womenshistory.org)
Sojourner Truth was an abolitionist and suffragist, perhaps best known for her searing speech, “Ain’t I a Woman,” at the Ohio Women’s Convention at Akron in 1851. Though she never learned to read or write Sojourner Truth’s speeches were ones of power and beauty. Born a slave, Truth escaped slavery in 1827. Truth would successfully sue for her son's return and in 1828 moved to New York City. Her religious convictions grew and in 1843 she said the Spirit directed her to fight for universal justice. She soon started actively preaching for the end to slavery, for the rights of black people, and for women. Though illiterate, Truth dictated her memoirs, The Narrative of Sojourner Truth: A Northern Slave and started a lecture tour containing her famous “Ain’t I a Woman” speech. Among her peers, Truth’s insistence that black people and women receive the vote simultaneously was the exception. 15 Influential, Iconic, and Inspiring Women Writers Through History | Busboys and Poets 15 Influential, Iconic, and Inspiring Women Writers Through History | Busboys and Poets Video: Sojourner Truth: Women's Rights Activist And Abolitionist | 7 Days Of Genius | MSNBC (youtube.com)
Mabel Ping-Hua Lee was a suffragist and the first Chinese woman to graduate with a doctorate from Columbia University and in the US. Lee mobilized the Chinese community in America to support women’s right to vote. Because Chinese immigrants were not considered citizens, the ratification of the 19th Amendment in 1920, which removed voting restrictions on the basis of sex, did not give Lee the right to vote. Dr. Mabel Ping-Hua Lee (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov) Mabel Ping-Hua Lee ’1916: A Pioneer of the Suffrage Movement | Barnard Magazine Video: Back-to-School Series #3: Asian American Trailblazers - Mabel Ping Hua Lee (youtube.com)
Wilma Mankiller is honored and recognized as the first female Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation. She is also the first woman elected as chief of a major Native tribe. She spent her remarkable life fighting for the rights of American Indians. Biography: Wilma Mankiller (womenshistory.org) Video: Wilma Mankiller | First Female Chief of the Cherokee Nation | #SeeHer Story | Katie Couric Media (youtube.com)
Rosie the Riveter: Term used to refer to women who, during World War I and World War II, replaced men in manufacturing and production jobs after they went off to war. The women, called “Rosie’s” contributed to the World War II wartime effort by producing a great number of items with planes being the most manufactured. As a result, many workers - “Rosie’s” - handled rivet guns, hence the term “Rosie the Riveter.” Who was Rosie the Riveter? Video: Stories of Real-Life “Rosie’s” This woman is making sure the legacy of Rosie the Riveter is always remembered (youtube.com) (Video) Real-Life Rosie the Riveter Continues Serving the Community: Real-life Rosie the Riveter continues serving community - YouTube
Shirley Chisolm was an American politician who became the first black woman elected to Congress in 1968. With the campaign motto, “Unbought and Unbossed,” Chisolm represented the Beford-Styvesant neighborhoods, which is the 12th congressional district, serving New York residents for seven terms. A trailblazer, Chisolm ran for President of the United States of America, being the first black woman to do so on a major party ticket. During her presidential announcement, Chisolm highlighted her intersecting identifies as she famously said, , "I am not the candidate of black America, although I am black and proud. I am not the candidate of the women's movement of this country, although I am a woman and equally proud of that. I am the candidate of the people and my presence before you symbolizes a new era in American political history." Video: Chisholm '72: Unbought & Unbossed Official Trailer (youtube.com)
Sandra Day O’Connor, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor, Ketanji Brown Jackson – the first woman to serve on the Supreme Court; the second woman and the first Jewish woman to serve on the Supreme Court; the third woman, first woman of color, and first Latina to serve on the Supreme Court; the fourth woman and first Black woman to serve on the Supreme Court, respectively. Women on the Supreme Court - 2022 - RepresentWomen Video: Four female Supreme Court Justices begin new term | It's A DC Thing - YouTube
Visit The Institute for EDI's Anti-Racism Resources page here: Anti-Racism Resources | Chase Brexton Health Care
