Women’s History Month is celebrated every March to honor the important contributions of women from the past and present in American history, culture and society. Key figures that are often highlighted during Women’s History Month include Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony, who were the primary leaders in the fight for equal rights for women, Amelia Earhart, who was the one of the world’s first female pilots, Rosa Parks, who refused to give up her bus seat for a white man, sparking the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and Marie Curie, scientist and the first woman to win a Nobel Peace Prize.
Women’s History Month originally began in 1978 as a weeklong local celebration in Santa Rosa, California, organized by the Education Task Force of the Sonoma County Commission on the Status of Women. The celebration then spread across the country as other communities began to hold their own Women’s History Week celebrations. The celebration eventually received national recognition from President Jimmy Carter in February 1980, when he issued the first Presidential Proclamation declaring the Week of March 8th as National Women’s History Week. The following presidents continued to proclaim National Women’s History Week every March until 1987, when Congress passed a law designating March as “Women’s History Month.” Additional resolutions were passed from 1988 to 1994 authorizing the President to issue annual proclamations designating March as Women’s History Month. This tradition has since continued, making 2026 the 40th anniversary of Women’s History Month.
Since the first Women’s History Week in 1978, other countries have joined the United States in honoring women and their contribution to history and culture, including Canada and Australia. The National Women’s History Alliance chooses a theme each year for Women’s History Week. The 2026 theme is Leading the Change: Women Shaping a Sustainable Future, highlighting women who are driving innovation and systemic change across environmental, economic, and social sectors, fostering long-term sustainability and equity for people and the planet. Themes from the past have included the 2025 theme Moving Forward Together! Women Educating & Inspiring Generations which celebrated the collective power and influence of women and the 2024 theme Invest in Women: Accelerate Progress which focused on gender equality as a human rights issue. Beyond the themes, Women’s History Month represents the correction of underrepresentation of and discrimination towards women while also celebrating their many achievements and impact on the world.
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