More Than A Month: History Looks Like Her

Many may know March is Women’s History Month in the United States, but the actual origins of this national month might remain a mystery.

Women’s History Month started as Women’s History Week in 1978. According to the National Women’s History Museum, a group of educators out of Santa Rosa, California organized a local celebration. They chose the week of March 8 to coincide with International Women’s Day. The small event inspired others across the country, leading to communities hosting their own week-long celebrations the following year.

State departments of education promoted the celebration of Women’s History Week, and that momentum made its way to the federal administration. In 1980, President Jimmy Carter made Women’s History Week official. During his presidential proclamation, Carter emphasized women’s role in the construction of America.

“Too often, the women were unsung and sometimes their contributions went unnoticed,” Carter said. “But the achievements, leadership, courage, strength, and love of the women who built America was as vital as that of the men whose names we know so well.”

In 1987, Congress passed Public Law 100-9, officially designating March “Women’s History Month.” Since 1995, each president has issued an annual proclamation dedicating the month of March to the celebration of women everywhere.

Many women — such as Rosa Parks, Amelia Earhart and Malala Yousafzai — are well-known, talked about, and honored. But the list of groundbreaking women extends far beyond the average person’s knowledge.

One example is Claudette Colvin, a young African American girl who grew up during the Jim Crow era in Montgomery, Alabama. On March 2, 1955 — nine months before Rosa Parks was arrested for the same reason — Colvin refused to vacate her seat on the city bus to make room for a white woman. The police were called, but still she didn’t move. Technically, she was not breaking any of the segregation laws, and it was her right to stay seated. This didn’t matter to the officers, however. According to Colvin in an interview with “Democracy Now!” the officers roughly pulled her off the bus, shoved her into a police car, and handcuffed her through the window. She became the first person arrested for protesting Montgomery’s bus segregation laws.

“I could not move because history had me glued to the seat…Sojourner Truth’s hands were pushing me down on one shoulder and Harriet Tubman’s hands were pushing me down on another shoulder,” Colvin said.

Colvin told news outlets the heads of the Civil Rights Movement decided she couldn’t be the face of the boycotts for a multitude of reasons, including her age, darker skin color, class and pregnancy a few months after the arrest.

Colvin continued her advocacy throughout her life through The Claudette Colvin Legacy Foundation, which provides resources to children and young adults. The foundation confirmed her death on January 13, 2026, leaving behind a legacy that will never be forgotten.

Another example is Sylvia Rivera — a transgender woman of color who was among other well-known activists during the 1969 Stonewall uprising. Born in New York City in 1951, she had a rough childhood filled with beatings for experimenting with makeup and dresses. Rivera ran away from home at 11 years old and was a victim of sexual exploitation on the streets.

In 1963, her life changed forever when she met Marsha P. Johnson, a drag queen and civil rights activist of color. Both of these women bonded over the struggle they experienced concerning exclusion within the gay rights movement. Despite her active involvement during the six-day Stonewall uprising in which Rivera threw the second Molotov cocktail at police (though there’s a myth she threw the first), many gay people still discriminated against Rivera and other transgender individuals. During the 1973 Christopher Street Liberation Day Rally, organizers initially banned Rivera, but instead of staying silent, she climbed onstage and forcibly took the microphone. It was then that she delivered a speech condemning those who looked down on her after everything she’d done for the movement.

Her advocacy continued until her death in 2002. Rivera fought the rejection of transgender people in the Gay Activist Alliance and the Sexual Orientation Non-Discrimination Act in New York. The final bill, the Equality Act, prevents discrimination “on the basis of actual or perceived sexual orientation in employment, housing, public accommodations, education, credit, and the exercise of civil rights.” In collaboration with Marsha P. Johnson, Rivera also started the Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (STAR) that advocated for the transgender community and provided housing and food to those who needed it.

Throughout the rest of her life Rivera still experienced hardship, from battling homelessness to addiction, she went through a lot — attempting suicide at one point. She left New York City behind to take a break from activism. It wasn’t until Johnson’s death in 1992 that she returned and got involved again. She was given a place of honor at the 25th anniversary Stonewall Inn march in 1994, and started Transy House (modeled after STAR) in 1997.

Sylvia Rivera’s legacy continues with The Sylvia Rivera Law project, which works to protect individuals rights to gender expression without facing harassment. In 2015, she became the first transgender activist to have her portrait added to the National Portrait Gallery, and a monument was erected for her in 2021.

While she didn’t gain nearly enough recognition when she was alive, the world still remembers how she fought for her community.

Their stories are just a couple threads in a much larger tapestry of strength and resilience — they are a reminder that progress is built upon the backs of those who demand more.

Women’s History Month shines a light on the outstanding women who contribute to society every day, as well as the achievements made across a variety of fields. The aforementioned women, along with many others now appear in the National Women’s Hall of Fame. But these women aren’t the only ones deserving of acknowledgment. While some made a difference by fighting for women’s right to vote and other liberties, others contributed to change on a smaller scale.

Women’s History Month’s recognition extends beyond celebrities. It’s the women that can be seen day-to-day, living in a world that gives them an innate disadvantage. The single mothers, doctors, lawyers, musicians, first responders, stay-at-home moms, the rich, the poor, the successful and the unsuccessful. Everyone has a spotlight. Everyone deserves to be recognized.