On March 12, 1987, Congress passed Public Law 100-9, designating March as National Women’s History Month. Each year, the President issues a special proclamation in recognition of the enormous contributions made by women to every aspect of American life, history and culture. Why was March chosen for the celebration? Perhaps because a number of iconic historic events pertaining to women occurred in this first month of Spring: International Women's Day, a global holiday since 1911, is celebrated on March 8; the first major Suffragist march on Washington occurred on March 3, 1913; The National Woman's Party, dedicated to obtaining the right to vote for women, was founded in March 1917; Title IX, which prohibited discrimination due to sex in federally funded education programs, was passed on March 1, 1972; and the Senate passed The Equal Rights Amendment on March 22, 1972. The celebration has a theme every year, chosen by The National Women’s History Alliance. The theme for 2023 is “Celebrating Women Who Tell Our Stories.” The NWHA will “encourage recognition of women, past and present, who have been active in all forms of media and storytelling including print, radio, TV, stage, screen, blogs, podcasts, and more.” Read more, learn more - check out the book titles below. Click on the book jacket to be taken to the catalog link.
“I raise up my voice—not so I can shout, but so that those without a voice can be heard. We cannot succeed when half of us are held back.” Malala Yousafzai
“Our collective experience has shown that when women have the power to make their own choices, good things happen.” Madeleine Albright
“We must reject not only the stereotypes that others hold of us, but also the stereotypes that we hold of ourselves.” Shirley Chisholm
“I am who I am today because of the choices I made yesterday.” Eleanor Roosevelt
“Until we get equality in education, we won't have an equal society.” Sonia Sotomayor