Every March, Americans celebrate National Women's History Month: a chance to recognize the diverse, and often under-recognized, achievements of women throughout history. It is celebrated with television specials, political speeches, classroom learning initiatives, and (more recently) social media posts aimed at honoring the special women in one's life.
But why is Women's History Month in March again?
There is a common myth that the location of Women's History Month in March refers to a strike organized by New York City female garment workers on March 8, 1857 (or, depending on which story you're listening to, March 1908). Reportedly, a group of women from several factories banded together to demand better working conditions and the right to vote, despite harassment by the police; The group eventually formed its own union.
It's an inspiring story—or would be, if it were true. There is no evidence that this strike, or the women's garment workers' union it inspired, ever existed. This myth was debunked in the late 1970s, when historian Françoise Pic pointed out that no contemporary newspapers covered the strike when it allegedly took place in 1857, and that the founders of International Women's Day The strike was never referenced by socialist leaders, from which Women's History Month developed.
Here's the truth: International Women's Day was first conceived in 1910 at the Second International Socialist Women's Conference. Its leaders, notably German activist Clara Zetkin, wanted to separate working women from the mainstream feminist movement, which they felt ignored working women. in favor of the bourgeois. However, there was no fixed date yet for the observance. In 1921 Zetkin proposed the date March 8 in honor of the workers' strike in Petrograd on that day in 1917, which marked the beginning of the Russian Revolution.
