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Women's History Month
 | | Dr. Anna Shaw and Carrie Chapman Catt, founder of the League of Women Voters, lead an estimated 20,000 supporters on New York's Fifth Avenue in a 1915 women's suffrage march. (© AP Images) |
| Women's Rights Movement in America sparked at convention in Seneca Falls, New York in July 1848. Delegates issue a Declaration of Sentiments calling for equality with men, including the right to vote. In 1920, with the ratification of the 19th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, American women finally gained the right to vote. In 1981, the U.S. Congress passed a resolution establishing National Women's History Week. In 1987, Congress expanded the week to a month, and has since passed such a resolution every year. Congressional action is followed by a U.S. presidential proclamation declaring March as Women's History Month. |
Women's History Month, 2009 - A Proclamation By The President Of The United States Of America (3/3/2009)
Articles
U.S. Celebrates Women's Contributions to the World Every March: Women's role in the environmental or "green" movement is 2009 focus
By Louise Fenner
Washington — The world-renowned marine biologist, author and environmentalist Rachel Carson is the inspiration for the 2009 National Women's History Month theme, Women Taking the Lead to Save Our Planet.
Carson's 1962 book Silent Spring focused the world's attention on the harm to human health and the environment caused by the indiscriminate use of pesticides. Its message was that mankind's growing reliance on these chemicals carried real and not fully understood risks. (More)
Seneca Falls Convention Began Women's Rights Movement: Issued declaration calling for equality with men before the law
By Deborah M.S. Brown
Washington -- The women's rights movement in the United States began in Seneca Falls, New York, in July 1848 when Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott called for a convention "to discuss the social, civil and religious condition and rights of woman." In effect, Seneca Falls would become the genesis for the women's rights movement. Cady Stanton and Mott had met in London in 1840 as delegates to the World Anti-Slavery Convention. But when denied a place on the floor with the rest of the female delegates, Mott and Cady Stanton left the hall and began to talk about the lack of women's rights in general. What was needed, they determined, was a convention for women to discuss how they could secure the same rights as men. But it would be almost eight years before the two women met again and called for such a convention in Seneca Falls, New York. (More)
Women's Rights in the United States: Improvement in women's status advances that of communities, nation
By Jane Morse
Washington -- In the United States, women's rights have a long, constantly evolving history. In recent decades, significant steps have been taken to improve education, health, family life, economic opportunities and political empowerment for women. The U.S. experience shows that, as the status of women advances, so does that of their families, their communities, their workplaces and their nation. (More)
Women Play Key Role Shaping U.S. History, Society, Scholar Says: Historian answers questions on women's contributions to the United States
By Mark Betka
Washington -- American women have made and continue to make important contributions to society, a U.S. historian says, but more can be done for women worldwide to improve parity with men on such issues as salaries and access to social benefits. "Areas of special importance are access to education, health care, employment, and full political engagement," historian Susan Ware said in a March 8 State Department webchat marking International Women's Day. "This forward momentum will need the input of both men and women," Ware added. (More)
Historian Stresses Importance of Women's Suffrage: Right to vote was first step in effort to achieve equality, Cooney says
By David Anthony Denny
Washington -- Prejudice against women has been a problem throughout history and still undermines efforts to achieve equality between men and women, says historian Robert Cooney. Suffragists knew that without the right to vote, without political power, women "didn't have a chance" to change their position in society, he said. However, he observed, "those in power rarely give up their power easily." (More)
Women Increasingly Likely To Be Leaders in U.S. Higher Education: Harvard University latest of top U.S. colleges to appoint woman as president
By Carolee Walker
Washington – Harvard University's selection of a woman as its new president is part of a trend in U.S. higher education to open its leadership posts to women. More women than ever attend universities, and slating women for leadership positions in higher education is a natural outgrowth of this pattern, says Catherine Hill, director of research at the American Association of University Women (AAUW). (More)
U.S. Women Making Strides in Education, Entrepreneurship: A demographic profile of women in the United States
American women -- 152 million or 51 percent of the U.S. population -- increasingly are making their influence felt in all spheres of American life. Recognizing that education is their ticket to economic success, women now graduate high school at rates higher than those of men -- 87 percent for women; 85 percent for men. In the age range of 25 to 29 years, 32 percent of women compared to 25 percent of men obtained bachelor's degrees or higher in 2005. On the other hand, a higher proportion of males in the general population had a bachelor's degree or higher (28.9 percent compared with 26.5 percent of women). (More)
USINFO Webchat transcript
Life as a Businessperson, Mother and Muslim in America
March 12, 2009
What do American Muslim women believe and practice? What is it like to be a Muslim businesswoman in America? Kari Ansari will answer questions such as these and talk about how she balances the pressures of her roles as businesswoman and mother.
Empowering Young Women to Run for Political Office
March 5, 2009
Jessica Grounds works to inspire women worldwide to have confidence in their ability to lead other people and bring change to their communities. Learn how her organization Running Start helps get women interested in politics and how young women around the world can become more involved in their communities.
The Significance of America's Women Inventors
March 10, 2008
Throughout the 20th century, and now into the 21st, innovation has been greatly enhanced by the imagination and vital contribution of women inventors. Celebrate and learn more about the significance of women inventors with author Ethlie Ann Vare.
Expert Discusses How American Women Fought to Vote
Guest: Robert P. J. Cooney Jr., who has studied the historic drive to win the right vote by American women for more than 15 years
Date: March 15, 2007
Electronic Publications
Women of Influence chronicles how 12 American women broke new ground, some by championing equal rights for all and others by their accomplishments in fields such as government, literature and even war. (PDF)*
Rachel Carson: Pen Against Poison tells the story of Carson's life and the difference her book, Silent Spring, made to the world. The publication's first article, "A Quiet Woman Whose Book Spoke Loudly," shows how Carson got to know the natural world as a scientist and naturalist. The second article, "A Book That Changed a Nation," places Silent Spring in the context of a few other pieces of writing that altered U.S. history. The third article, "A Persistent Controversy, a Still Valid Warning," describes the ongoing debate over the pesticide DDT. (PDF)*
Women in Politics: This publication by the State Department's Bureau of International Information Programs (IIP) offers stories of women who believed they could make a difference by participating in politics and government, and forged ahead to do so. (PDF file, 1.35 MB)*
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*(To view and print PDF files, please download the FREE Adobe Reader.)
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