2023: Celebrating Women Who Tell Our Stories
Throughout 2023, the NWHA will encourage recognition of women, past and present, who have been active in all forms of media and storytelling including print, radio, TV, stage, screen, blogs, podcasts, and more. The timely theme honors women in every community who have devoted their lives and talents to producing art, pursuing truth, and reflecting the human condition decade after decade.
From the earliest storytellers through pioneering journalists, our experiences have been captured by a wide variety of artists and teachers. These include authors, songwriters, scholars, playwrights, performers, and grandmothers throughout time. Women have long been instrumental in passing on our heritage in word and in print to communicate the lessons of those who came before us. Women’s stories, and the larger human story, expand our understanding and strengthen our connections with each other.
As in previous years, the Alliance, which is centered in Santa Rosa, California, will encourage local communities throughout the country to use the year’s theme to guide their own celebrations. The NWHA will popularize national efforts through online celebrations, a special magazine, and thematic products that recognize and honor these brave, accomplished, and influential women who told – and continue to tell – our stories. Today and over the years ahead, their dedication and shared desire to give voice to the voiceless are critical to keeping us informed, entertained, and aware.
Unladylike 2020 – collection of 26 animated documentaries about women who changed America
Grace Abbott
Social Work Pioneer & Champion of Children, Immigrant, and Women’s Rights.
1878–1939
Charlotta Spears Bass
Newspaper Editor, Civil Rights Crusader & First African American Women Vice Presidential Candidate
1888–1969
Gladys Bentley
Gender-Bending Harlem Renaissance Performer and Musician
1907–1960
Zitkála-Šá/Gertrude Simmons Bonnin
Composer, Author & Indigenous Rights Activist
1876–1938
Louise Arner Boyd
First Woman to Lead Arctic Expeditions
1887–1972
Martha Hughes Cannon
First Woman State Senator & Public Health Pioneer
1857–1932
Sonora Webster Carver
Daredevil Equestrian & Advocate For the Blind
1904–2003
Margaret Chung
First American-Born Chinese Female Doctor
1889–1959
Bessie Coleman
First African American Woman Aviator
1892–1926
Gertrude Ederle
First Woman to Swim the English Channel
1905–2003
Williamina Fleming
Trailblazing Astronomer and Discoverer of Stars
1857–1911
Meta Warrick Fuller
Trailblazing Sculptor & First African American Woman Recipient of Federal Art Commission
1877–1968
Lillian Moller Gilbreth
Pioneering Inventor & Industrial Engineer
1878–1972
Jovita Idar
Educator, Journalist, Suffragist & Civil Rights Activist
1885–1946
Sissieretta Jones
Opera Star & First African American Woman to Headline Concert at Carnegie Hall
1868–1933
Queen Lili‘uokalani
First Sovereign Queen and Last Monarch of Hawai‘i
1838–1917
Annie Smith Peck
Record-Breaking Mountaineer, Suffragist & Educator
1850–1935
Susan La Flesche Picotte
First American Indian Physician
1865–1915
Ynés Mexía
Accomplished Latina Botanist
1870–1938
Jeannette Rankin
Suffragist, Peace Activist & First Woman Member of Congress
1880–1973
Rose Schneiderman
Pioneering Labor Organizer & Suffragist
1882–1972
Tye Leung Schulze
Advocate for Trafficked Women & First Chinese American Woman Federal Government Employee
1887–1972
Mary Church Terrell
Educator, Suffragist, Civil Rights Activist & Co-Founder of the NAACP
1863–1954
Maggie Lena Walker
Entrepreneur & First African American Woman Bank President
1864–1934
Lois Weber
Actor, Screenwriter & First Woman to Direct a Feature-Length Film
1879–1939
Anna May Wong
Trendsetting Movie Star and Fashion Icon
1905–1961