Women's History Month: History

Theresa Malkiel c. 1910

Women's History Month can trace it's origins back to Socialist Activist Theresa Malkiel. Malkiel was a Jewish immigrant originating from the Russian Empire. Malkiel and her family came to the United States in 1891 when she was 17 to avoid further persecution from the Russian Empire.

Malkiel became a leading member of the Socialist Party of America, advocating for women, African Americans, immigrants and child laborers, and arguing that true equality for such groups would only come from socialist movements.

Malkiel's ideology inspired her to create the first National Women's Day on February 23rd, 1909.

The Second National Women's Day took place on February 27, 1910. Covered by the New York Times, the event was scheduled at Carnegie Hall. By 1911, the idea of a "women's day" began to spread across the United States and internationally.

Sources

The First International Women's Day was celebrated in Germany on March 19th, 1911. According to the Socialist Project, this date was chosen to commemorate the 1849 revolution, where "the Prussian king recognized for the first time the strength of the armed people and gave way before the threat of a proletarian uprising. Among the many promises he made, which he later failed to keep, was the introduction of votes for women."

Two and a half million flyers were distributed to encourage participation, stating: “Comrades! Working Women and Girls! March 19 is your day. It is your right. Behind your demand stands Social Democracy, organized labor. The Socialist women of all countries are in solidarity with you. March 19 should be your day of glory!”

By 1914, International Women's Day was celebrated on March 8th worldwide. Across the globe, women recognized the day as a political tool, often gathering on the day to protest for women's equal rights. This is especially true for women in Russia.

Russian women first observed International Women's Day in 1913, however, meetings were prohibited by order of the Tsar. Women's Day 1914 saw many organizers imprisoned, "for the slogan “for the working women’s vote” had naturally become in Russia an open call for the overthrow of Tsarist autocracy" (Socialist Project). Eventually, Russian women turned International Women's Day into a mass strike of the working class, culminating into the Russian Revolution of 1917.

German Poster for Women's Day, March 8, 1914, demanding voting rights for women.

Sources

Photograph of Jimmy Carter Signing Extension of Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) Ratification. 1978

After World War Two, women began celebrating Women's History Day on March 8th. In 1978, The Education Task Force of Sonoma County, California planned a “Women’s History Week” celebration. They planned for the week to correspond with International Women's Day (March 8th). This week-long celebration spread across the U.S..

In 1980, National Women’s History Project lobbied for Women's History Week to receive national recognition.
Their efforts were succeful, and in February 1980, President Jimmy Carter issued the first Presidential Proclamation declaring the Week of March 8th, 1980 as National Women’s History Week.

The weekly recognition was acknowledged by later presidents until 1987, when Congress passed Public Law 100-9. This law designates every March as Women's History Month.

Now, Women's History Month is celebrated internationally to honor the history and achievements of women past and present.

Sources