March is Women's History Month!!!!

[Cin]

Anna Rüling
First Known Lesbian Activist

[Cin]

Lesbian rights pioneers Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon formed the Daughters of Bilitis in 1955. Together for 51 years, they became the first same-sex couple to obtain a marriage license and marry in the United States Feb 12, 2004.

[The_Lady_Snow]

[The_Lady_Snow]

[weatherboi]

About Saffire - The Uppity Blues Women

It's not often that dreams come true. In the case of the acoustic blues trio, Saffire--The Uppity Blues Women, that's just what happened. Over the course of nine recordings and thousands of gigs, the group has gone from virtual obscurity to one of the most popular, witty, and just plain satisfying acoustic blues groups on the scene today. These women tear into their material with passion, dedication, and originality. Every song they cover becomes theirs, and their originals blend seamlessly with their interpretations. They are indeed the torchbearers for the original classic uppity blues women like Bessie Smith, Sippie Wallace and Victoria Spivey.

The members of Saffire--The Uppity Blues Women are: Gaye Adegbalola, Andra Faye, and Ann Rabson.

[weatherboi]

Founder and 1st president of The American Red Cross

[girl_dee]

According to the gospels Mark and John, Mary Magdalene was the first person to see Jesus after he rose from the dead. All four canonical Gospels attest that she witnessed Jesus' crucifixion and burial. The 21st century has seen a restoration of Mary Magdalene as a patron of women's ministry. This is in direct opposition to other notions that she was a repentant prostitute.

[The_Lady_Snow]

first female to participate in an NFL-sponsored tryout

[little_ms_sunshyne]

I have a story to share because dammit I want to tell someone...

Every day I allow my 5th grade class to run a "news show". It includes a weather report, local news report, world news, and natural disaster updates (I am a science teacher after all). For Women's history month I gave my reporters the task of reporting on Women in history. They reported on Maya Angelou, Jane Austin, Sally Ride, Rosa Parks, etc. My students enjoyed hearing the daily reports. Yesterday, the last day of school before Spring Break, we are just about ready to start the news when I get an email that I have no choice but to respond to right away. I tell them to begin the news while I send the email and that I would be listening. I am completely caught up in this email when I here the voice of one of my reporters say "Ms. Copeland is my Science teacher and she is an influential women of today." My jaw drops and I can feel myself get choked up. I held it together, but sat there and listened as my student read a report she wrote on my life. You really never know who you are influencing. My heart was happy all day.

[Kobi]

Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir became Iceland's first female Prime Minister and the world's first openly lesbian head of government on 1 February 2009.

Jóhanna is a social democrat and Iceland's longest-serving member of Parliament. In the 1990s, when she lost a bid to head the Social Democratic Party, she raised her fist and declared "Minn tími mun koma!" ("My time will come!"), a phrase that became a popular Icelandic expression. In 2009, Forbes listed her among the 100 Most Powerful Women in the world. In September 2012, Jóhanna announced she would not seek re-election and would instead retire from politics.

In 2010, after her government banned strip clubs, paying for nudity in restaurants, and other means of employers profiting from employees' nudity, Jóhanna said "The Nordic countries are leading the way on women's equality, recognizing women as equal citizens rather than commodities for sale." After the decision was made she was hailed by her fellow feminists with Julie Bindel claiming Iceland has become the most feminist country in the world.

[Kobi]

c. 594
Japanese Empress Suiko encourages the spread of Buddhism and orders the construction of Buddhist temples.

600
Women in England may be publicly punished as “scolds,” a practice that will continue for 1,000 years.

632
Queen Sondok becomes the ruler of the Korean kingdom of Silla. During her reign, she fights the kingdom of Paekche, sends students to China for education, and constructs Buddhist temples.

656
'A'ishah, widow of Muhammad, rebels against the caliph 'Ali in the Battle of the Camel at Basra.

c. 659
Indian Queen Vidya writes Sanskrit poetry.

721
According to legend, Princess Libuše and her husband, Premysl, found the city of Prague.

787
The second Council of Nicaea is convened by Byzantine ruler Irene to settle the question of worshipping icons. The bishops rule in favour of icon worship.

801
Charlemagne outlaws prostitution.

c. 900
The practice of binding the feet of aristocratic women becomes popular in the Chinese court.

c. 950
An anonymous Norwegian woman writes Wise Women's Prophesy, a history of the world, including prophecies for the future.

988
Vladimir I of Russia converts Russia to Christianity and marries Anne, sister of Byzantine Emperor Basil II. With this act, Byzantine culture is introduced to Russia and the Crimea.

c. 1010
Japanese author Murasaki Shikibu finishes the Genji monogatari (The Tale of Genji), a masterpiece of Japanese literature.

c. 1070
Englishwomen embroider the Bayeux Tapestry, using wool thread on linen to record the events of the Norman Conquest.

c. 1118
In France, Héloïse begins her doomed romance with Peter Abelard. The relationship outrages her family, and Héloïse flees to a convent in Argenteuil, where she is later made prioress.

1147
Eleanor of Aquitaine accompanies her husband, French King Louis VII, on the Second Crusade. After their marriage collapses in 1152, she marries the future King Henry II of England.

1152
Abbess Hildegard of Bingen completes Scivias, a recollection of her visions that had been confirmed as authentic by a committee of theologians.

c. 1160
Frau Ava of Melk is one of Germany's first female poets.

1220
At the University of Paris, women are banned from practicing medicine.

1319
Chinese calligrapher and painter Guan Daosheng dies after a career that included a number of commissions for Emperor Renzong.

1350
The presence of more than 3,000 nuns in England reflects the flourishing of convents and religious orders for women in the Middle Ages.

1351
England's Treason Act considers any murder that subverts the usual hierarchies, such as a servant killing his master or a wife killing her husband, to be petty treason.

1384
Jadwiga is crowned “king” of Poland. Two years later she marries Grand Duke Jogaila of Lithuania, thus uniting the kingdoms.

1390
London licensing law for doctors requires a university education, thus barring women from the profession.

1390
At the University of Bologna, Dorotea Bocchi takes the chair of medicine, formerly held by her father.

1397
Under the Kalmar Union, Denmark, Sweden, and Norway are united under Queen Margaret I as their sole monarch.

1405
Italian-born French scholar Christine de Pisan writes The Book of the City of Ladies, in praise of women and in defense of their virtues.

1406
In Korea plans are made for training women doctors to serve female patients who refuse to be treated by male doctors.

1429
Joan of Arc, supported by Queen Yolande, begins her military and religious campaign against the English. At the Battle of Orléans she leads the French army to victory.

c. 1436
The mystic Margery Kempe finishes dictating her autobiography, The Boke of Margery Kempe, to two clerks. The book is one of the earliest English autobiographies.

1448
Margaret of Anjou, the wife of Henry VI of England, establishes Queens' College, Cambridge.

1455
Female English silk manufacturers petition the crown to stop competition from Lombard silk manufacturers.

c. 1486
Johann Sprenger and Heinrich Kraemer publish Malleus maleficarum (“Hammer of Witches”), arguing that women, as the weaker sex, are more likely to be witches.

1492
Queen Isabella I of Spain finances Christopher Columbus's voyage of exploration to the East Indies. Columbus instead finds the West Indies.
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Next up: Early modern period: 1501 to 1800

[Dude]

pride parade picture <3
Barbara Roberts I delivered packages to this woman after her term as governor. Always sweet as could be , she sent me off with coffee and a muffin, more times than I could count. She answered the door in her robe and slippers,
I had no idea she was writing a book about grief at the time, which is apparently a must read. She is still doing a lot of good things , 20 years later.

A descendant of Oregon Trail pioneers and a fourth generation Oregonian, former Gov. Barbara K. Roberts has carried forth the tradition of trailblazing and innovation. Roberts began her years of public service as an advocate for disabled children as she fought for the educational rights of her autistic son. While Roberts was governor (1991-1995), Oregon was recognized by Financial World Magazine as the seventh best-managed state in the nation. Roberts was recognized as a strong advocate for environmental management, a national leader for human and civil rights, and among the nation's foremost reinventors of effective government during her governorship.

While Roberts was governor, Oregon won the prestigious "Innovations in Government Award" from the Ford Foundation and the Kennedy School of Government in recognition of the nationally acclaimed Oregon Benchmarks Program. Roberts used the Benchmarks measurable goals as an integral part of her budgeting and planning efforts while governor.

Before being elected governor, Roberts was elected Oregon's Secretary of State (1985-1991) as well as serving as an elected member of the Oregon House of Representatives (1981-1985). Roberts also has served as a county commissioner, an elected school board member, and an elected community college board member.

Roberts taught for several years at Portland State University’s Hatfield School of Government as an associate director of leadership development, retiring from that position in 2004. Before that, she had a five-year association with the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. She served as director of the Harvard Program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government, and later as senior fellow to the Women and Public Policy Program. In 2001, The Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University honored Roberts with "The Alumni Public Service Achievement Award."

An active and dynamic public speaker, Roberts focuses on issues of leadership, women in politics, environmental stewardship, and death and grieving. She is a member of the board of trustees of Population Action International in Washington, D.C., and Innovation Partnerships in Portland. Roberts is also a member of the Advisory Councils for the Oregon League of Conservation Voters, Oregon Compassion in Dying, and the Lewis and Clark Bicentennial Celebration. Roberts also serves as the co-chairwoman for the Oregon Public Affairs Network and on the advisory committee for the Robert Straub Library at Western Oregon University. Roberts is a past board member for the Oregon Hospice Association, the Women of the West Museum in Boulder, Colo., and the Human Rights Campaign in Washington, D.C.

One of Roberts’ main focuses since 2001 has been establishing and fundraising for Portland Relief Nursery, a child abuse prevention agency that will serve at-risk, low-income families in Portland’s St. John’s area. As finance chairwoman for the past two years, Roberts helped spearhead fundraising totaling more than $3 million. The center opened in October 2002 and plans to serve more than 100 families annually.

Roberts’ book, Death Without Denial, Grief Without Apology: A Guide for Facing Death and Loss was published in 2002. Her book has received numerous accolades from readers and reviewers alike. The book editor for the Salem Statesman Journal, Dan Hayes, selected Roberts’ book as one of the "Top 10 Oregon Books of 2002." Hayes noted, "This book offers the gifts of comfort, compassion, wisdom, and hope. No mater what your beliefs, this book has comfort and wisdom for you."

In 2002, Roberts received the "Children’s Cancer Association Award" for her book. Death Without Denial, Grief Without Apology has become a favorite among hospices, often offered to hospice families, and is now used by university classes on death and dying. Her book is now in its third printing. In 2004 Death Without Denial, Grief Without Apology was published in Japanese by President Sha Publishers of Tokyo.

Presently, Roberts is working on her autobiography, which focuses on her years as governor and her unique trailblazing role as the first woman elected Governor of Oregon.

Roberts was married to Oregon State Sen. Frank Roberts, who died in 1993. She has two adult sons, Mike and Mark Sanders.

[The_Lady_Snow]

Congresswoman, recipient of Profile in Courage Award, Gun Control Advocate, Survivor.