Women's History Month offers opportunity to reflect, reeducate, resist
March is a time to reflect on the incredible contributions of women throughout history--the unsung heroes. For centuries, women have been forced into molds, their capabilities belittled despite all they had to offer. While drastic progress has been made in this country in the fight for women’s rights, steps have also been taken backwards through recent year’s legislation. It’s for this reason that now, more than ever, we need to recognize the strides women have made in establishing themselves as strong, independent leaders.
The origins of women’s history month date back to 1981 when Congress requested that the president declare the week beginning March 7 “Women’s History Week.” This further evolved to become an entire month in 1995, and since then, US presidents have issued a series of annual proclamations designating the month of March as “Women’s History Month.” In the United States, women have historically been deemed “homemakers,” their potential squashed by the idea that all a woman is fit for is marriage, childcare, and housework. While this is the ideal life for some women, many have other aspirations, which is why having options is so important.
These freedoms did not come easily, as women fought tirelessly for their rights. There are of course the prominent figures in women’s history such as Susan B. Anthony (Women’s suffrage activist), Rosa Parks (Civil Rights Activist), and Ruth Bader Ginsberg (Supreme Court Justice); however, there are countless women who have made invaluable contributions to the women’s rights movement with little acknowledgement. For one, Mary Ware Dennet, an artist, suffragist, birth-control reformer and anti-war advocate who founded the first birth control organization in the United States, the National Birth Control League.
Such figures exist all over the country, and one in particular, Henrietta Lacks, has made enormous contributions to the medical field. Lacks worked on a tobacco farm for much of her life until she was diagnosed with cervical cancer. Without her consent or knowledge, a sample of her cancer cells was taken by a doctor. Researchers who studied this sample found that her cells kept reproducing, ultimately making them immortal. This contributed to the polio vaccine as well as discoveries regarding the growth of cancer cells. To this day, Lack’s cells are studied around the world, and her story “has brought into question the ethics of patient privacy and has exposed the mistreatment of people of color in healthcare” (The Representation Project).
Jane Cooke Wright was another incredible contributor to the medical field who was among the cancer researchers to discover chemotherapy. “In 1964, Wright was the only woman among seven physicians who helped to found the American Society of Clinical Oncology, and in 1971, she was the first woman elected president of the New York Cancer Society” (TIME).
The accomplishments of Wright are incredible considering that women hadn’t even been granted access to further education a century prior. When women began breaking into higher education before it was nationally established, they often faced intense scrutiny, and some even went through all of college just to have their well-earned degrees withheld. Even after the first coed university (Oberlin) was established in 1837, women who pursued STEM-related degrees and careers were ridiculed. For a long time, women in such fields were ostracized from their peers as it was such a male dominated field. In 1970, women made up 8% of STEM workers and 38% of workers overall. However, by 2019, women in STEM occupations had more than tripled to 27%, and women made up about 48% of the workforce (Census.gov).
Furthermore, more than half (59%) of women ages 16 and older participated in the workforce in 2022, and made up 47% of the workforce (Census.gov). This is an incredible statistic considering society’s perception of a woman’s “role” just decades prior. It wasn’t until the 1940s and 1950s that women gained access to a true variety of jobs with ample opportunities to join the workforce. While the country’s men were away at war, there was no one to fill their roles, so many women were pushed into jobs such as aircraft production, shipyards, and army supply depots. By the post-war era, around 35% of women participated in the workforce, and thus began the integration of women in typically male-dominated fields.
Another rather significant issue for women in the 20th century was the right to vote. It wasn’t until 1920 that the 19th amendment made it illegal to deny the right to vote to any citizen based on their sex, thereby making women’s suffrage a constitutional right. This was granted after years of tireless efforts in the Women’s Suffrage Movement, in which women wrote, lectured, marched, and fought with every fiber of their being for the right to vote; a right which men had already been granted. The movement’s origins are rooted in the 1848 Seneca Falls Convention, which was organized by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott. The New York convention, which was the first women’s rights convention, produced a list of demands in the “Declaration of Sentiments,” which outlined what they felt should be the basic rights of American women. It’s because of these efforts that in 2022, 53% of women voted, compared to 51.3% of men (Census.gov).
This tenacious history makes the country’s recent state so enraging when it comes to women’s liberties. In June of 2022 Roe V. Wade was overturned, which seemed to be the catalyst for the recent attack on women’s rights. While many pro-lifers argue that it’s not an attack on women’s rights, rather a focus on babies' lives, there seems to be a complete disregard for the already established lives of women and mothers. Since this decision, many states have enacted restrictions on abortion, which have made doctors fearful of providing what is sometimes life saving treatment. Roe V. Wade had been a huge marker of progress in women having full bodily autonomy when it was established in 1973, and less than 50 years later it has been removed, putting millions of women at risk.
Beyond government, women have always been a highly targeted population, especially when it comes to violence. Nearly 3 in 10 women (29%) in the US have experienced rape, physical violence, and/or stalking by a partner and reported it having a related impact on their functioning (National Domestic Violence Hotline). This statistic doesn’t account for the mass of women who haven’t reported such violence, likely due to the often dismissive attitudes people often have when it comes to victims. Many are quick to say that a woman could easily falsely accuse a man of sexual assault and ruin his career, but in actuality, a mere 2-8% of reports are estimated to be false (EVAWI). Perhaps instead of jumping to conclusions when a woman decides to come forward about these experiences, we as a society should acknowledge her trauma, rather than focusing on the reputation of the assailant. Rather than asking what she was wearing, concentrate on educating youth on sexual assault and its long-term effects to prevent future aggressors from becoming just that.
Belittling a woman’s experience is far too common within our society, and extends to the medical field as well. Women are often brushed off as dramatic when reporting medical concerns, and they are “often dismissed at higher rates than those of men” (NPR). Furthermore, “one study shows that middle-aged women with chest pain were twice as likely to be diagnosed with a mental illness than their male counterparts” (NPR). Health concerns are commonly chalked-up to hormones or mental health, and this medical gaslighting is often denied by those in the field. Conditions such as endometriosis “can decrease quality of life due to severe pain, fatigue, depression, anxiety and infertility. Some individuals with endometriosis experience debilitating pain that prevents them from going to work or school” (World Health Organization), but it’s all in their heads, right?
The contributions of women are vast, and while an immense amount of progress has been made there is still much ground left to cover. As President Ronald Reagan stated in Presidential Proclamation 4903, “American women of every race, creed and ethnic background helped found and build our Nation in countless recorded and unrecorded ways.” Women have never, and will never, stay silent for long. Despite the constant hurdles thrown at them, women have proven their resiliency and strength through their long, tireless history of fighting for their rights; rights which should have been established long before they were. This month serves as a marker for nationwide progress, and a reminder that history must be acknowledged in order to prevent women from falling back into the claws of oppression.
by Emma Toney
Published March 17th, 2025
Oshkosh West Index Volume 121 Issue VI