Celebrating girls and differences during Women's History Month

By Ali Roberts

March is Women’s History Month in the United States, dating back to 1987 when Congress designated March as a celebration of the contributions women have made throughout American history (The Library of Congress, n.d.). While one month out of the year is not the only time to recognize women’s vast achievements, it is a good time to recognize how much work has been done by women to make space and place in a patriarchal society. It’s important to note here, however, that “woman” is not a monolith.

Women differ vastly across identities, geographies, privileges, sexualities, dreams, and aspirations. Thus, there is no such thing as The Women’s Movement. Rather, women’s movements have been built against particular and intersecting structures of power that affect different women in different ways. Standing in solidarity with each other is how we can move forward in the struggle for collective liberation without erasing the specific contexts in which movements have been built. Audre Lorde (1984) advocated for reclaiming concepts of difference from institutional distortions and recognizing it as a source of strength rather than division). One of these areas of difference that exists within women’s movements is that of age.

Girls have played a foundational role in the inspirations for movement throughout and across history. As bell hooks (1991) so eloquently explained, childhood is a space and time of great curiosity and theorization to make sense of the world and our place in it). While much of the celebratory focus is given to adults during months such as Women’s History Month, I see a crucial need to also consider girls and girlhood as a root from which our power and strength stems.

The Smithsonian National Museum of American History took a step to acknowledge the roles that girls have played in national women’s history by opening an exhibition in October 2020 called "Girlhood (It’s complicated)," which presents and celebrates stories that focus on girls and their contributions to women’s history. Here is an excerpt from the about page of the exhibition website:

The history of girlhood is not what people think; it is complicated. Young women are often told that girls are “made of sugar and spice and everything nice.” What we learn from the past is that girls are made of stronger stuff. They changed history. From Helen Keller to Naomi Wadler, girls have spoken up, challenged expectations, and been on the front lines of social change. Although definitions of girlhood have changed, what it means to grow up female in the United States has always been part of the American conversation (National Museum of American History, 2021).

"Girlhood (It’s complicated)" explores the influences girls have had in the realms of News and Politics, Education, Work, Wellness, and Fashion. The digital exhibition features artworks, videos, and stories of courageous, creative, and determined girls while illuminating the differences in adversity faced by different girls through intersections of race, class, and privilege. Girlhood features perspectives that have not historically been centered in mainstream conversations about women’s movements and illustrates the diversity and complexity of girlhood. The exhibition will tour the country from 2023 through 2025, but you can view the digital exhibition on the museum website here (https://americanhistory.si.edu/girlhood).

Women’s History Month is certainly a wonderful time to pause in gratitude and celebrate the achievements of women and girls across time and space. We must also keep in mind that this history is complex and fraught with struggles against which some are still fighting. If we can transcend time and think about the stories of historical women in the context of today, what do you think they would think of how things are now? What might they be proud of? What might they encourage us to stand up for? I wish to honor the legacy of the courageous women who came before me while recognizing that we are always in a process of becoming and leading more courageous women. There is still work to do.

hooks, bell. (1991). Theory as Liberatory Practice. Yale Journal of Law and Feminism, 4(1), 1–12.

Lorde, A. (1984). Age, Race, Class, and Sex: Women Redefining Difference. In Sister outsider: Essays and speeches (pp. 114–123). Crossing Press, c2007.

National Museum of American History. (2021, August 5). Girlhood. Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved February 16, 2022, from https://americanhistory.si.edu/girlhood.

The Library of Congress, National Gallery of Art, Smithsonian Institution, National Archives, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, and the National Park Service. (n.d.). Women's History Month. Retrieved February 16, 2022, from https://womenshistorymonth.gov/about/.