March is women’s history month, honoring all the women who have changed history. Women have lacked basic human rights for most of history. You may be shocked at just how many things we take for granted were passed into law in just one generation. Even today we have many rights and freedoms that weren’t given to our mothers and grandmothers.
It may be hard to grasp just how recent laws were passed granting women human rights. Women have only been able to vote for 104 years. The Equal Pay Act (which is hard to enforce) was passed in 1963. The Civil Rights Act was passed in 1964, prohibiting discrimination based on race, color, sex, religion, gender, and nation of origin. Title IX, which passed in 1972, prohibits sexual discrimination in educational institutions receiving federal support. The Violence Against Against Women Act funds and provides support for victims of domestic violence and rape and was passed in 1994 and was reauthorized to extend coverage to Native American women in 2013. Excluding the right to vote, all of these rights and freedoms were passed within the last 61 years.
These laws wouldn’t have been able to pass if it weren’t for the brave women who fought for social justice and equality for all. These women have been labeled feminists, which by definition means a women’s rights advocate on the basis of the equality of the sexes; a supporter of feminism.
“Feminism is the belief in social, legal and economic equality for women. It means not being told that you can’t do something because you are a woman. It means having a voice and using it. And that when you do, people listen, social studies teacher Mrs. Miriann Meyeringh said.
This brings to question, what does it mean to be a woman?
“I think the word “woman“ can mean different things to different people in different places and at different times,” Mrs. Meyeringh said. “I feel that with it comes many privileges and some disadvantages – especially from the way I was raised. I hope that the definition of what it means to be a woman can continue to evolve and that we are allowed to feel differently about our roles in society. Just that freedom to feel differently about what it means is a freedom that many others don’t have in their countries. Not having to conform to a prescribed definition of woman is what woman ideally means to me.”
Mrs. Meyeringh teaches the Women’s Studies at school and feels it is an important subject for an all-female institution to discuss these issues.
“Women’s history month is everything to me. I teach Women’s Studies at an all-girl school. It’s always Women’s History month in my classroom,” Mrs. Meyeringh said.
No matter what class she teaches, Mrs. Meyeringh treats every day as part of women’s history month, showing the girls that their voices matter.
“Thanks to Mrs. Meyeringh, I have found myself being able to participate in conversations that require a higher level of thinking,” junior Lexie Hernandez said. “Women’s Studies taught me how to advocate for myself and other women, and has given me different perspectives on life.”
As women’s history month grants a month to celebrate and recognize the women who have changed history, many believe the work is not over.
“We have a long way to go. But we have also come a long way,” Mrs. Meyeringh said. “A lot requires major cultural shifts in norms we have come to accept as the status quo for way too long. Thankfully, not only are women able to access education to help us reach places we were prevented from in the past, but with more women having a seat at the table, more opportunities have been carved out for us.”
