Women's History Month is observed annually in March, across the world. The roots of Women’s History Month stem from the first wave of the feminist movement, with thousands marching across New York and other cities for women’s suffrage in the early 20th century. Since then, observance of Women’s History has been recognised through International Women’s Day (observed on March 7th) since the 1910s, Women’s History Week since the 1970s, and Women’s History Month since the 1980s.
Due to the intersectional nature of being a woman with other marginalisations, and the interlocking systems of oppression being the same, Women’s History Month is inherently entwined with other History Months, such as Black History Month, Disability History Month and LGBT+ History Month. The nuances of a History Month, rather than for example an awareness or acceptance month, enables the celebration of women who empower others, shining a lens on how to equitably include women in every aspect of society, and importantly to reflect on the shared struggles, shared overcoming of systemic barriers, shared community, and shared history of women.
The importance of Women’s History Month increases each year, as new developments across the world impact the lives of women. In the UK, as part of the wider purported ‘culture wars’ which the Conservative Party is stoking, a small minority of self-described feminists have sought to divide the feminist movement by excluding some parts of the community. These groups include the gender critical Trans-exclusionary Radical Feminists (TERFs), who argue that gender is inherently biological (biological determinism), and therefore erase trans and non-binary gender. Another group are the Sex Worker-Exclusionary Radical Feminists (SWERFs), who argue that sex work is inherently oppressive and that women who engage with sex work, despite the mainstream feminist view that they hold the ultimate bodily autonomy, are damaging to womanhood.
The minuscule minority of people who hold these views are often platformed and therefore give an untrue perspective of what the feminist, and broader women’s movement, has been about. This is a stark parallel to previous iterations of some feminist movements in the US and UK which excluded working class women and black women.
Women’s History Month serves to not only shed light on the empowerment of women and the overcoming of the patriarchy, but also to shed light onto the women’s movement and the challenges that come from within. It facilitates the opportunities to have the difficult discussions to understand why to some, womanhood needs to be gatekept. As systemic change for the progress of women’s rights across the world will take a long time, there will always be a need to observe Women’s History Month, to remember where the movement has come from and work towards a more equitable future.
Mx. Adam Khan
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