March is Women’s History Month. The National Women’s History Project, a nonprofit educational organization, selected six women from widely varied backgrounds to be recognized during Women’s History Month 2002. The honorees are:
-Alice Coachman, the first African-American woman to win an Olympic gold medal in track and field. At the 1948 games she broke the Olympic record for the high jump.
-Dolores Huerta, who worked to improve conditions for migrant workers and was the co-founder (with Cesar Chavez) of the United Farm Workers Union.
-Gerda Lerner, who escaped from Nazi terrorism at 17. The leading pioneer in the field of women’s history, she was the first woman in 50 years to be president of the Organization of American Historians.
-Dorothy Height, a leader for equal rights. She was president of the National Council of Negro Women for more than 40 years.
-U.S. Rep. Patsy Mink, the first Asian-American woman elected to the House of Representatives. She played a key role in the enactment of Title IX legislation, which opened educational opportunities to girls and women.
-Mary Louise Defender Wilson, a cultural bridge to the 21st century, she has helped keep the spirit of the Dakota Indians alive through storytelling.
Important as these women’s stories are, your story is equally important, says the National Women’s History Project.
The organization is collecting personal histories from women of all walks of life for its Remembrance Project.
Mail your story to the National Women’s History Project, 3343 Industrial Drive, Suite 4, Santa Rosa, CA 95403.
The celebration of Women’s History Week began in 1978 in Sonoma County, Calif.
Congress named March as Women’s History Month in 1987.
Read more about the honorees and the Remembrance Project at http://www.hwhp.org.