Happy Women’s History Month! The observance will be in its 28th year on March 1 of “commemorating and encouraging the study, observance, and celebration of the vital role of women in American history.” Our state is shaped by the presence, expressions, and contributions of strong, diverse, and trailblazing women.
Although, our state isn’t kind to its women. We rank 47th in quality of life compared to other states, combining factors like female uninsured rate (dead last at 51st) and unemployed women (44th). And of course, there is less and less access to reproductive healthcare in our state with every piece of legislation passed by extremist, anti-abortion conservatives. Texas women face many adversities, but they persist nevertheless, advocating for a version of Texas and its people that’s better.
For March 2024, consider supporting organizations or people who are pushing the needle forward for women in Texas like Deeds Not Words, the League of Women Voters, Planned Parenthood Texas Votes, and an array of abortion funds and women's groups. In turn, Progress Texas compiled a list of featured women, events, and resources for you, below.
Texas Women:
Emma Beatrice Tenayuca was a Latina labor leader, union organizer, and civil rights activist best known for leading a major food-industry strike. She organized other Mexican American female workers in the 1938 San Antonio pecan shellers strike, standing united and empowering her community during the Great Depression.
A Mexican American newspaper reporter, teacher, and activist, Jovita Idar, is known for her advocacy to preserve Hispanic Heritage through journalism, education, and social services. She single-handedly protected her newspaper headquarters when the Texas Rangers came to shut it down, created a free kindergarten, and wrote her entire life, focusing on the rights of equal rights for immigrants and women.
From Houston, Texas, Barbara Charline Jordan was an American lawyer, politician, and university professor. No other African American had been elected to the Texas Senate since 1898, and Jordan took part in landmark decisions such as the U.S. involvement in Vietnam, federal aid to public schools, legal aid for the poor, minimum wage, and the impeachment of President Richard Nixon. During her time in the Texas Legislature, Jordan sponsored or cosponsored more than 70 bills.
Events
Virtual
- March 2: Delivering change for women & children around the globe
- March 7: #SheDares Stories: Amplifying Women's Voices
- March 8: Finding your voice: The journey to self-expression & trusting your gut
- March 8: Visionary Women: Celebrating champions of change
Austin
- March 1: Freedom Fridays: DJ Shani & Veneer *Women's history month edition*
- March 1: BookPeople Presents: An Evening with Amanda Churchill
- March 2: Mini-Writing Workshop and Open Mic with Spike Gillespie
- March 3: Women in STEM: Free First Sunday at the Bullock Museum
- March 3: When I Get Home: Listening Event & Celebration of Women’s History Month
- March 26: Bookpeople Presents: Sarah Rose Etter: Ripe
DFW Region
- EVERY SAT.: Craft Workshop: Stitching HerStory at the South Dallas Cultural Center
- March 9-10: Women’s History Month Market featuring female small business owners
- March 16: Women’s History Month Celebration: African Textiles workshop
- March 23: Shattered: Women Breaking Barriers at the J. Erik Jonsson Central Library
Houston Region
- ALL MONTH: Women Who Dare: An Art Exhibit of over 35 works at Central Library
- March 1: Opening Reception for Platform: Martha Tuttle
- March 2: Girls on the Green: Women-led businesses, musical entertainment, and artists
- March 3: Celebrating Women's History Month with Art & Fashion at Bisong Art Gallery
- March 3: Women's History Month Celebration - Texas Medical Center Orchestra
- March 19: Lecture: “Disability and Reproductive Justice”
San Antonio Region
- ALL MONTH UNTIL March 22: Delita Martin Exhibit at UTSA Southwest Campus
- March 2: Women’s History Month Mariachi Concert
- March 2: Breaking the News - Film Screening on who decides which stories get told
- March 4: The ERA Project: The Power of Women’s Liberation Movement
- March 7: Our Stories: A Conversation
- March 21: Revolutionary Women of TX and Mexico
Resources
Juanita J. Craft Civil Rights House Tour
The Juanita J. Craft Civil Rights House is one of only three house museums in the nation honoring major female figures in the modern civil rights movement.
Hosted by comedians Ava Smartt and Arielle Isaac Norman, Gender Fluids is a podcast based out of Austin, Texas about the wilder and more grotesque elements of sex and gender.
“Two women. Half the population. Several thousand years of history. About an hour.” This podcast explores historic women to amplify their stories.
Podcast: Intersectionality Matters!
Intersectionality Matters! is a podcast hosted by Kimberlé Crenshaw, an American civil rights advocate and a leading scholar of critical race theory.
Resources for Teaching Women’s History
This March is Women's History Month. The Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Gallery of Art, National Park Service, Smithsonian Institution and United States Holocaust Memorial Museum combine resources to amplify and celebrate historic women.
Editorial Note: Progress Texas is not an organizer of the listed events. If you have more Women’s History Month events or resources you would like to add to the list, please send them to tatum@progresstexas.org.
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