The month of March brings with it many events, such as St. Patrick’s Day, March Madness and the beginning signs of spring. March is also known as Women’s History Month, and this year various university organizations have teamed up with the Women’s and Gender Equity Center to sponsor events that honor the 30th anniversary of The National Women’s History Project.
Events started on Monday with a discussion about the recent Vagina Monologues performances that took place Feb. 25 to 27. The events have been sponsored by many organizations on the UW-Eau Claire campus and in the Eau Claire community.
“It is important to talk about women’s issues because they are often marginalized or silenced,” said WAGE Women’s Issues Program Coordinator Abby Vercauteren. “They’re not often discussed, especially things like sexual assault, eating disorders, stuff that isn’t necessarily fun to talk about, but it is really important to end the silence and to get it out there.”
Vercauteren said Women’s History Month is important because it focuses on recognizing women that have been left out of history. The theme of the 2010 Women’s History Month is “Writing Women Back Into History,” which has inspired events sponsored by professors and students from both the history and English Departments.
On Tuesday, March 9, Eau Claire faculty, a graduate student and an undergraduate student will hold a forum discussion titled “Writing Women Back Into History.” The discussion will be about how they became interested in women’s history and the challenges they have faced in their scholarship research. It will take place at 4 p.m. in the Alumni Room.
Another event in the near future is the screening of the film “Pray the Devil Back to Hell” on Sunday, March 7 and Monday, March 8 in Davies Theater. There is also a prose and poetry reading by English professor Karen Loeb and Patti See, senior student services coordinator in the academic skills center, on Thursday, March 11 in The Cabin of Davies Center. And there will be a belly dancing performance by Peanut Butter & Gypsy in the Schofield Auditorium at 7 p.m. on Saturday, March 13.
On Monday, March 15, senior psychology and political science major Lauren Novak, along with members of the Human Trafficking Abolitionists, will hold a discussion about the history of human trafficking and prostitution and how it is continued today. Novak will be presenting her research and said people should come to her discussion to learn about the modernization of slavery in the form of human trafficking, specifically sex trafficking.
“I think a lot of people don’t really realize that there are still women’s issues that exist today,” Novak said. “They feel that equality has been achieved, but there’s so many ways that is hasn’t been, and that’s what a lot of the events are about.”
Vercauteren organized the events being held and is hopeful both males and females will be in attendance. She is most excited about the forum discussion on March 9, the poetry and prose reading on March 11 and Novak’s presentation on Human Trafficking.
For those interested in attending a Women’s History Event, Vercauteren recommends the film screenings and discussions of the films “broken,” directed by Eau Claire alumna Juli Stone Pitzer, about the distortion of the female body image. Or she suggests “In Good Conscience,” a film about an American nun who ministers to gay and lesbian Catholics. “broken” will be screened on March 16 at 2 p.m. and 3 p.m., and “In Good Conscience” will be screened on March 23 at 6 p.m. Both events will be held in Davies Theater.
