Commemorating Women's History Month
Tasnim Eissa
With so many male-dominated industries, many women find it difficult to make their voices heard and excel in certain fields. Every March in the United States, Women's History Month is a celebration of historical and modern-day women in an attempt to educate and empower the young women of today through activism and inspirational stories.
In American schools, students are significantly limited to what their curriculum provides, which can take away from the millions of striking stories of women around the world. These untold stories highlight the women who challenged oppression and mistreatment and were able to make an impact on history, society, and culture. It is of the utmost importance that we preserve and carry on the legacies of history's most impactful female figures to motivate and inform young women of today about the importance of combating oppression.
Misogyny, or prejudice against women and girls, is a historical trend that dates back to the ancient Egyptians. Countless influential female figures have been erased from history books as a result of men throughout history that found their success threatening. Ancient Egyptian ruler Hatchepsut, said to be one of the most instrumental rulers of ancient Egypt, was almost completely erased from history because her people were unable to accept the fact that a woman could be a successful ruler. The English chemist and X-ray crystallographer, Rosalind Franklin, was denied credit for her scientific breakthrough known as The Double Helix. Two male scientists stole her idea and received the credit for her scientific contribution. It was not until four years after Rosalind's death in 1958 that she was finally acknowledged for her work. There are numerous other women who suffered similar fates and were forced to live in the shadows of their male counterparts for years, which is why recognizing these women for their accomplishments is so crucial.
Although the female empowerment movement has seen significant progress in recent years, women are far from attaining the equal status that we have been denied for decades. Transgender women are killed and harassed daily. Black women continue to face discriminaton by the American healthcare system. Young girls all over the world are forced to abandon their educational pursuits to spend their rest of their lives taking care of the home in third-world countries. Women are constantly paid dramatically low salaries in comparison to men doing the same job.
Internalized misogyny that is taught across various cultural groups and perpetuated in society sticks like glue and is hard to detach from the culture and the people it has imprinted on. Ignoring these problems will only maintain a sexist and unequal society. Women's History Month exists to change the damaging societal views of women that have hindered progress in the past. As G.D. Anderson once said, "Feminism isn't about making women stronger. Women are already strong, it's about changing the way the world perceives that strength."
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