Numerous Women’s History Month events are scheduled on the Colorado State University-Pueblo campus in March to celebrate the accomplishments of women.
The campus events, which include refreshments, will be co-sponsored by the Diversity Resource Center, the Latino Student’s Union, CSU-Pueblo Women’s Studies Department, CSU-Pueblo Fraternity and Sorority Life, CSU-Pueblo International Students Association and SOUL.
According to the History channel, Women’s History Month in the United States grew out of a weeklong celebration of women’s contributions to culture, history and society in the school district of Sonoma, California in 1978.
Presentations were given at dozens of schools, hundreds of students participated in a “Real Woman” essay contest and a parade was held in downtown Santa Rosa.
To coincide with Women’s History Month 2011, the White House issued a 50-year progress report on the status of women in the United States. It found that younger women are now more likely than their male counterparts to hold a college degree and that the number of men and women in the labor force has nearly equalized.
A few years later, the idea had caught on within communities, school districts and organizations across the country.
In 1980, President Jimmy Carter issued the first presidential proclamation declaring the week of March 8 as National Women’s History Week. The U.S. Congress followed suit the next year, passing a resolution establishing a national celebration. Six years later, the National Women’s History Project successfully petitioned Congress to expand the event to the entire month of March.
International Women’s Day, a global celebration of the economic, political and social achievements of women, took place for the first time on March 8, 1911. Many countries around the world celebrate the holiday with demonstrations, educational initiatives and customs such as presenting women with gifts and flowers.
The United Nations has sponsored International Women’s Day since 1975.
The U.N. General Assembly adopted its resolution of the observance of International Women’s Day “to recognize the fact that securing peace and social progress and the full enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms require the active participation, equality and development of women; and to acknowledge the contribution of women to the strengthening of international peace and security.”
Each year, March is designated as National Women’s History Month to ensure that the history of American women will be recognized and celebrated in schools, workplaces and communities throughout the country.
The month’s activities began at 5 p.m. on March 2 in the DRC, which is located in OUC 031. There was a discussion of how beauty standards and perceptions have changed for women throughout the decades.
On March 9 at noon in the DRC, Dr. Dora Luz Cobian Klein, a CSU-Pueblo professor of Women’s Studies, Chicano Studies, and Spanish, will discuss the women who have made an important difference in her own life.
Participants will learn what to do and how to protect themselves in threatening situations with a self-defense class at 6 p.m. on March 10 in the Multipurpose Room of the Student Recreation Center. Comfortable clothing should be worn.
International student members of CISA will share how women are seen and portrayed in different cultures beginning at 5 p.m. on March 11 in the DRC.
Learning the importance of choosing to eat healthier is the topic of a women’s health lunch led by CSU-Pueblo alumnus Perla Ontiveros at noon on March 12 in the DRC.
The Latino Student Union organization will sponsor a “Celebrando a la Mujer” dinner and dance on March 13 from 6 p.m. to midnight in the OUC Ballroom. The event is free for CSU-Pueblo students with ID and $5 to the public. Entertainment will include a DJ and a performance by the Ballet Folklorico.
Dr. Judy Gaughan of the History Department will be presenting “First Ladies and Emperors’ Wives” on March 17 at 3:30 p.m. in the Diversity Resource Center. The talk is free, and refreshments will be provided. Dr. Gaughan’s presentation is part of the Women’s Studies program’s “Cool Women, Hot Ideas” program, which features a different faculty speaker each semester discussing research related to women’s issues.
Domestic Violence will be the topic of the Re-Thinking Diversity event at noon on March 18 in the DRC. Mass communications professor Cheryl Law will share how she survived a 20-year abusive relationship and now chooses to teach others by raising awareness of domestic violence.
The month’s activities will close with the film, Luminarias at 6 p.m. on March 31 in the DRC. Snacks will be provided. In the film, four professional women meet at an East Los Angeles restaurant called Luminarias to share secrets about their careers, love, family and sex.
For more information on any of these events, contact the DRC at 719-549-2627.
