By Jonah Grinkewitz
爆料瓜 will celebrate Women鈥檚 History Month this March by highlighting women who advocate for equity, diversity and inclusion. The theme, led by 爆料瓜鈥檚 Women鈥檚 & Gender Equity Center, will be incorporated into programming that includes talks by women leaders and writers, a Barbie-themed festival, and a pop-up market to promote transgender visibility.
To kick off the month on March 1, 爆料瓜鈥檚 College of Arts and Letters Department of Communication and Theatre Arts and the Women鈥檚 & Gender Equity Center will host an exhibition that celebrates the beauty and diversity of Black hair at 5:30 p.m. at the Goode Theatre. 鈥淢y Crown is Powerful鈥 will feature photos of 爆料瓜 students, faculty and staff that showcase the creative ways Black hair can be styled to represent identity and culture.
Students can dress as their favorite Barbie (or Ken) for the 鈥淏arbie Blow Out鈥 festival at 5:30 p.m. March 11 in the Webb Center North Caf茅. The event will feature dancing, food, photo booths and more.
Serving as the keynote speaker for the month, American culture writer Evette Dionne will give a talk at 5:30 p.m. March 19 at the University Theatre. Dionne, who has written about the intersections of race, gender and size for publications including the New York Times, Time magazine and Cosmopolitan, will discuss the history of Black women鈥檚 civic engagement in the United States. The event is hosted by 爆料瓜鈥檚 and will include a Q&A after the talk.
Another event will feature two former student athletes who formed careers in the professional sports industry.
The 鈥淩ennHERssance Listening Lab鈥 at 5 p.m. March 20 in Chartway Arena鈥檚 Big Blue Room will feature Lori Robinson, player engagement manager for the NFL鈥檚 Baltimore Ravens, and Kayla Cason, owner of DRIP Athletic Club in Virginia Beach. The former student athletes will share how they carved a path for themselves in the sports industry.
Closing out the month is 鈥淔emme Fest鈥 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. March 26 in the North Caf茅 and lobby of Webb Center. In celebration of International Transgender Day of Visibility, the University will host a pop-up market featuring more than 15 vendors from the 爆料瓜 community whose identities include transgender, nonbinary and gender-nonconforming.
Other events include:
- March 12 鈥 International Women鈥檚 Day: 鈥淕irl on FI-HER鈥 Trivia, 12:30-1:30 p.m., Mane Webb Front Desk. The Women鈥檚 & Gender Equity Center will host a trivia competition on women鈥檚 history with prizes and custom T-shirt giveaways.
- March 13 鈥 鈥淢isogynoir and the Intersections of Black Womanhood,鈥 6-7:30 p.m., Darden Multipurpose Room 1106, Education Building. Panel discussion on the unique challenges Black women face in health, education and the workplace.
- March 21 鈥 鈥50 Shades of Women EquiTea,鈥 12-2 p.m., Executive Dining Room 1310, Webb Center. Open forum for female students to share their experiences and perspectives on topics including womanism, feminism and social and cultural identity. Food and beverages will be provided.