Photo courtesy of UTSA's Institute of Texan Cultures, San Antonio
Light collection, 1938.
Women's History Month celebrates stories, culture, identity
(March 3, 2003)--The University of Texas at San Antonio celebrates Women's History Month March 3-31 with the theme, "Testimonios: Celebrating Our Stories."
Activities throughout the month will underscore issues such as culture and identity; educating mind, body and spirit; and identity and the arts as well as activism and feminism. This is the first year the UTSA community celebrates women's history for an entire month.
For nearly 20 years, UTSA has celebrated Women's History Month by spotlighting the contributions of locally and internationally prominent women, including former governor Ann Richards; attorney Sarah Weddington, who argued Roe v. Wade before the Supreme Court; and Judith Zaffirini, the first Latina senator in Texas.
The first event will celebrate the opening of the Women's Studies Institute. The institute will support interdisciplinary study and research regarding women and gender, present lectures and annual conferences, and develop a research agenda to provide an affirmative intellectual and social climate for faculty, students and scholars.
Over the years, the celebrations have expanded from five to the current 50 events. This year's activities will include Faegheh (Fawn) Shirazi, who is internationally recognized for her groundbreaking research in material culture and its influence on gender identity and discourse in Muslim societies. Her most recent scholarly work includes the recently published manuscript, "The Veil Unveiled: Hijab in Modern Culture."
She is a contributing author to "Religious Expression in Dress Commitment and Conversion from a Cross-Cultural Perspective." Shirazi will discuss images of Muslim women in popular culture.
Vicki Howard, professor of women's studies at Hartwick College, will speak about the relationship between business and gender ideology, focusing on the American jewelry industry's failed campaign for the male engagement ring in the 1920s and its successful promotion of the double ring wedding ceremony during World War II.
Her lecture, "A Real Man's Ring: Gender and the Invention of Tradition," is a preview of an upcoming article in the Journal of Social History.
Additionally, Norfolk University professor Page Laws will discuss the implications of films with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. She will examine the conventional notions of male beauty and eternal feminity.
This year's events include lectures, workshops, films, readings, exhibits and performances at the UTSA 1604 and Downtown campuses. All activities are free and open to the public.
See the complete schedule for UTSA Women's History Month.
For more information, call Jasmin Dean at (210) 458-4550.
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© The University of Texas at San Antonio, 2003