March is dedicated to celebrating women’s contributions to history, culture, and society. Women’s History Month started as Women’s History Week in Santa Rosa, California, executed in 1978 by The Education Task Force of the Sonoma County Commission. The organizers chose to celebrate in March since it lined up with International Women’s Day. Presentations were given at schools, parades were held, and many encouraged the commemoration. The movement expanded within communities, school districts, and other organizations nationwide. The National Women’s History Project successfully petitioned Congress to expand the event to the entire month of March. Women’s History is now being acknowledged and honored all over the world. 

During this month, society takes a moment to reflect on the underrated and overlooked achievements of women from all periods of history. Now more women are in politics, entrepreneurship, and sports (such as Olivia Pichardo being the first woman to play in a D1 college baseball game). Every year, a yearly theme is designated for Women’s History Month. The 2023 theme is “Celebrating Women Who Tell Our Stories.” This theme recognizes women who have been active in telling stories in print, radio, TV, blogs, podcasts, news, and social media. It honors women in every community who have devoted their lives to producing art and projects. 

There are many incredible women to acknowledge this month that were apparent in media and storytelling. One is Christiane Amanpour, a well-respected CNN journalist. Amanpour was one of the leading war reporters of the late 20th and early 21st centuries and covered numerous foreign affairs. She first came to public attention during the 1991 Persian Gulf War, when she reported from inside Iraq and Saudi Arabia.

Another significant figure is Anna Wintour. Wintour has been editor-in-chief of Vogue since 1988. She is widely regarded as the most influential fashionista. Vogue reaches over 12 million readers in print and an average of 1.2 million monthly visitors online, reassuring a powerful legacy for Wintour. 

Victoria Alonso was president of visual effects and animation production for many superhero films. Alonso worked on “WandaVision”, “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier”, “Loki”, and “Hawkeye”. She included many diverse characters in Marvel, such as in Shang-Chi and the Legend of The Ten Rings. 

ABC network reporter Karey Burke worked on “Only Murders in the Building”, which eventually became Hulu’s most-watched original comedy series. Burke also has helped establish key Marvel details for Disney, linking up WandaVision’s Jac Schaeffer with Shang-Chi director Destin Daniel Cretton to direct American Born Chinese for Disney+. Her next projects consist of L.A. Law for ABC and two more entries in Ryan Murphy’s American Story franchise for FX. 

Host and anchor Joy Taylor is a well-known face and voice on Fox Sports 1, known particularly for moderating the talk show “Skip and Shannon: Undisputed”. She also hosted radio shows at Barry University during her graduation in broadcast communication. Taylor also gained attention and fame for being the sister of American football player Jason Taylor. 

Audre Lorde was a prose writer and poet. Lorde spent her life combating racism and homophobia. She challenged the myths and stereotypes associated with black women and lesbians and advocated for LGBT equality and Civil Rights movements. Lorde also struggled with breast cancer and mastectomy. She empowered women like her by talking about her illnesses in the book “The Cancer Journals”. 

To participate in this significant movement, different types of brands took time to show their support for women. For example, Ford released a commercial presenting a redesigned car

without the inventions created by women such as a rearview mirror, turn signal, and more. Ford did a great job showing how vital women’s contributions are and how we would be lost without them. Delta Airlines posted a TikTok to celebrate Women’s History Month too, filming a bunch of female workers like engineers, pilots, and attendants. Hershey’s created a whole new wrapper 

bolding the word ‘she’. Baked by Melissa will donate to a STEM nonprofit $5 from every purchase. CASETiFY’s new International Women’s Day collection is designed by female creators and features phone cases with bold designs and phrases that empower women. 

While the whole month of March is devoted to it, we must always appreciate women – those close to us, and those from every period of time. They are brave for expressing themselves despite being at risk of backlash and hate. The world we live in now would not be the same without them, and therefore we should thank them for contributing to society after years of suffrage.