History has always been an all-boys club that denies any sort of female achievement to become recognized. And so, from the beginning of time, historians overlook women and erase the female point of view from the history books. Stories of great women throughout time are airbrushed out by men trying to paint their ideal picture.
In this new day and age, Women’s History Month goes back on the country’s tradition of erasing the accomplishments of an entire gender, and instead gives recognition that was never before granted.
Although these efforts are appreciated, one month isn’t nearly enough to celebrate the powerful force that is womankind. Women endure struggles that men can’t even attempt to comprehend. They are belittled and harassed in supposedly professional environments; they are expected to be silent and compliant in the role of the subordinate caretaker in marriage; their male political opponents call them nasty women and man-eaters to diminish their importance and silence their words.
On social media, feminists are mocked in memes that downgrade the importance of the movement and are labeled as overly-sensitive, hairy-legged, lonely, single women. Worse than this is the fact that many of the men who make these remarks remain unschooled on what feminist beliefs are and would rather believe that the movement is all about female dominance rather than total equality for both genders.
All year round women fight to tear down such beliefs and break through the glass ceiling. Giving women only one month is yet another way they are belittled in this world and receive less than they’re worth.
There is no Men’s History Month on the calendar because that would be ridiculous. The entire history of mankind shouldn’t be shoved into a 31-day box, and that logic shouldn’t be applied to womankind. The month of March isn’t dedicated to women out of sympathy, but rather because they are in a society that is trying to ease its guilt.
And for those that say Women’s History Month is a sexist holiday where feminists unfairly dominate history and media, that is exactly what men do the rest of the year. It’s time to level out the playing field.
It didn’t take just one month for Nora Ephron—journalist, playwright, screenwriter, novelist—to work in the male-dominated media industry that showcases women in an inferior light both on and off screen. Nor did it take a only month for Josephine Baker to refuse to perform to racially segregated audiences as she demonstrated how women are capable of being sensual human beings, rather than simply being hushed, and pushed into a corner. And it sure didn’t take just a mere 31 days for Malala Yousafzai to become an advocate and icon for female education worldwide after recovering from a bullet to the head on her way to school.
Women’s history shouldn’t be celebrated for just a month–it deserves to be the entire year. It’s a modification that need not only happen to the calendars, but also to society’s mindset.
