March is Women’s History Month, an opportunity to explore the stories and perspectives of women, both past and present. The library offers programming and develops resources and collections pertinent to the history and achievements of women throughout the year, but this month of observation serves as a chance to focus our efforts.
See the Women’s History: Resource Guide for books, videos, websites, and educational materials relevant to Women’s History Month.
In-person and online events
Feminist Book Discussion Group, March 3
The library’s Feminist Book Discussion Group celebrates Women’s History Month by meeting to read and discuss Julia Lee’s “Biting the Hand: Growing Up Asian in Black and White America” on March 3 at 6 p.m.
This special series brings members of the public together to read, analyze, and chat about contemporary feminist texts through the lens of five topics: creation, care, community, climate, and computation.
The March meeting focuses on the topic of community, but it also explores themes which intersect with the feminist movement such, as race and identity.
The Feminist Book Discussion Group is presented in partnership with YWCA Princeton. Registration is requested, but not required.
Continuing Conversations on Race, March 3
Black Women and the New Jersey Civil Rights Movement
Hettie V. Williams, associate professor in African American History at Monmouth University and president of the African American Intellectual History Society, joins the “Continuing Conversations on Race,” to discuss how Black women forged interracial, cross-class, and cross-gender alliances locally and nationally, and were key to securing progressive civil rights legislation in New Jersey.
This program takes place virtually on March 3 at 7 p.m. Register for a Zoom link.
Presented in partnership with Not In Our Town Princeton.
HerStory Movie Series, March 4-25
Biopics and feature films depicting true stories about the lives of women are screened for Women’s History Month on each Tuesday at 2 p.m. Light refreshments will be served starting at 1:45 p.m.
March 4: “Coal Miner’s Daughter,” starring Sissy Spacek (1980, PG, 2 hours, 4 minutes)
March 11: “Queen Christina,” starring Greta Garbo (1933, NR, 1 hour, 37 minutes)
March 18: “Respect,” starring Jennifer Hudson (2021, PG-13, 2 hours, 25 minutes)
March 25: “A League of Their Own,” starring Geena Davis (1992, PG, 2 hours, 8 minutes)
Take & Make for Kids, March 8
Stop by the third floor Youth Services Dept. anytime on Saturday, March 8, to pick up a kit and make your own airplane at home. Kits will be on offer while supplies last.
Learn how Shaesta Waiz became the youngest woman in history, and the first woman from Afghanistan, to fly around the world in a single-engine aircraft in “Fly, Girl, Fly!: Shaesta Waiz Soars Around the World” by Nancy Roe Pimm.
Conversation: Joanne Ramos and Samantha Skey, March 17
The Annual Phyllis Marchand Leadership Lecture
Joanne Ramos, author of “The Farm,” will be joined by Samantha Skey, CEO of SHE Media, to discuss the role and possibilities of art in times of polarization.
This conversation takes place in the library’s Community Room on March 17 from 7-8 p.m. Registration is requested.
Dedicated to “inspiring excellence in community based leadership,” the Marchand Lecture is an annual library event held in honor of Phyllis Marchand, Princeton Township’s longest serving mayor and a leader and leadership mentor in the community for five decades.
”Regards Francophones: Visions of Women,“ March 20
Continuing through April 20, the exhibition “Regards Francophones: Visions of Women” showcases a diverse group of francophone artists from the tri-state area, presenting a unique exploration of womanhood through various artistic forms.
The exhibition features both classical and contemporary portraits, landscapes and still life paintings and photography, capturing the multifaceted nature of femininity.
Abstract, oil, acrylic and paper pieces provide a bold contrast alongside symbolic images like birds in flight, all contributing to a rich, dynamic dialogue on the theme of Women.
Finding Women Ancestors in New Jersey, March 27
New Jersey State Library genealogy librarian Regina Fitzpatrick joins the library on March 27 from 6:30-7:30 p.m. via Zoom to share strategies for locating New Jersey women in records collections from the Colonial era to the 20th century.
This program explores useful places to start, the ins and outs of various collections, what to do if you are unable to find a woman ancestor on an index, and how to search other people’s records for your woman ancestor.
To join this meeting, registration for the Zoom webinar is required.
Film: “Neon Dreaming,” March 29
This Canadian drama tells the story of a young girl using her vivid imagination to cope with the absence of her mother.
Running time: 1 hour, 23 minutes. Q&A to follow with filmmaker Marie-Claire Marcotte. Registration required.
Part of the Princeton FrancoFest. Presented in partnership with Kristine’s restaurant, Princeton Accueil, the Princeton French Film Festival, Konekte Princeton Haiti, Isabelle Delafosse, Denise Savary Derock, Tamara Gillon Photography and with the support of local organizations dedicated to promoting Francophone culture and language.
History and Resources
What we now know as Women’s History Month can be traced back to the 1970s, when grassroots efforts in the United States to organize an annual observance of women’s history gained traction. Organizers selected March for the observance to correspond with International Women’s Day, which dates to 1910. In the 1980s, responding to advocacy from the non-profit organization National Women’s History Project (now known as the National Women’s History Alliance), a combination of Congressional resolutions and presidential proclamations designated an annual Women’s History Week. Congress designated March as Women’s History Month in 1987 and renewed this observance annually until 1995, when yearly presidential proclamations replaced the Congressional resolutions. The U.S. president has announced March as Women’s History Month every year since. The National Women’s History Alliance selects an annual theme for Women’s History Month.
See the Women’s History resource guide for books, videos, websites, and educational materials relevant to Women’s History Month.
Also new to the library this March is the museum pass for the Alice Paul Center for Gender Justice. This institution, according to their mission, “builds contemporary action and intergenerational movement for gender justice through the lens of history and of place.” One pass lets in 4 visitors.
Content made possible with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities: Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this programming do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.