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March is a busy month. It signifies the start of spring, as well as St. Patrick’s Day. However, in addition to the seasonal holidays, it also holds the title of “Women’s History Month” in America. The holiday was made by women to celebrate their contributions to social movements, technology, art, and life. So we know why it was made, but then what about the “how”?
During the early 20th century, the beginnings of Women's History Month started with just the day of February 28th being recognized as “National Women’s day” in the United States. Soon after, other countries began to adopt the same idea, which turned it into an “International Women’s Day”.
Feminists in the U.S. continued to spread the celebration every year, and the need for this holiday dedicated to women was increased by the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire in New York City. The tragic incident took place in late March of 1911, when a factory fire killed 146 young girls who were employed there as sweatshop workers at the time. The worst part of this was that the deaths could have been avoided if the owners had had proper safety features installed in the building. This factory fire not only raised awareness for people working in sweatshops but also for women and the feminist movement.
A few years later, “International Women’s Day” was moved from February 28th to March 8th. In the 1970s, the single day expanded into an “International Women’s Week”, with the celebrations for that first beginning in Santa Rosa, California. This week in March slowly expanded into an unofficial “Women’s History Month”, which was finally made official by Congress in 1987.
Intersectionality, which in this case describes the cross between race and gender, also played a big role in the feminist movement. During both the Feminist and Civil Rights movements in America, black women were excluded from each for either racist or sexist reasons. And although feminists and other equality groups thrive all over the world, in Philadelphia especially there have been many notable women who have fought for civil rights and made history.
Marian Anderson was a Black singer born in 1897. She performed in concerts all over the world, visiting multiple places in Europe, South America, and Asia to sing for people. She returned to America in 1936 and performed at the White House. However, afterwards she was denied the opportunity to perform at Constitution Hall solely because the owners of the monument were racist. This set the country off, and the owners who denied Anderson faced a large amount of backlash. Anderson then hosted a concert at the Lincoln Memorial, where she sang in protest of the discrimination. She gathered a crowd of more than 75,000 people, in addition to a much larger audience of listeners over the radio.
Grayce Uyehara was a Japanese-American woman born in 1919. During World War ll, Executive Order 9066 was signed. This order incarcerated about 120,000 Japanese Americans. She and her family were forcibly removed from their home and placed in the Rohwer internment camp, located in Arkansas. After being released and moving to Philadelphia, Uyehara played a large part in the campaign to the U.S. Government for a formal apology for the Japanese-American internment that happened during the war. Today, women like Marian Anderson and Grayce Uyehara are just a sample of all the female historical figures we celebrate during Women’s History Month.
The month of March pays tribute to all women, regardless of their age, race, or sexuality. By buying from women-owned businesses, educating yourself on women’s history, or even just complimenting a woman you know, you can celebrate Women’s History Month within your own community.
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