Emma Bodnar '25
The upcoming month of March - women’s history month - is one of pending excitement at Fontbonne Hall. Promising a much more interesting and interactive celebration than last year, students and staff alike have been working hard to make this year’s international women’s day an overall better experience.
As an all-girl's school, women’s history month is a period to commemorate important female figures in history. However, commonly, only the same handful are celebrated, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but takes away from the accomplishments of lesser known women. Moreover, it poses a question: why do we know so little about so many influential women that paved the way for so many modern achievements we have today, and how come they aren’t nearly as celebrated as some of the others?
Unfortunately, usually due to a lack of record of their stories or their stories being lost over time, tales of these women’s accomplishments are difficult to come by. One of the most common reasons for their mystery, however, is the fact that men often take credit for their feats.
Katherine Wright - the younger sister of the famous Wright brothers - was really the only reason they got as far as they did, boosting their popularity with her own charm and candor. She often nursed Orville back to health after his many accidents from flying, but has never been heard of before because of her older brothers’ fame.
Zheng Yi Sao, one of the most successful female pirates of her time and quite possibly one of the most successful in history, isn’t known by anyone despite her reign as a pirate queen. Overlooked by more well known male pirates, Zheng Yi Sao’s success is overshadowed and underplayed.
So many impactful women have the same dilemma - the Kopp sisters, Arsinoe IV, Victoria Woodhull, Mary Read, Anne Bonny, and so many more have been left out of history books simply because they’re women. Why is it fair that they’re overlooked in favor of men who couldn’t have done what they did without women laying the foundation for them?
As young women in a society dominated by the perspectives and tales of the rich, successful men, it’s our job to dig through the past to find the inspiring figures who should be recognized for their sacrifices. Some even laid down their lives to help the cause for the sake of a better future, just to be forgotten or erased.
The fast-approaching women’s history month isn’t just for celebrating the same women and learning nothing more than the same information over and over, but a chance to explore more of history’s unsung heroines.
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