San Diego Community College District

San Diego City, Mesa, and Miramar colleges, along with San Diego Continuing Education, are celebrating Women’s History Month in March with an array of discussions, exhibits, films, and more that cover topics from poetry to women’s rights. 

All events are free and open to the public. Among them: 

February 9 through March 8
10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday
Women in Photography: Our Visual Voice
The Luxe Gallery at City College hosts a curated exhibit comprising works from 50 of San Diego’s top female photographers.
San Diego City College, Luxe Gallery, V Building, 1081 16th St., fifth floor, 92101.

Tuesday, March 6
9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Get Out the Vote
Mesa College is holding a voter registration drive sponsored by the Women’s Alliance Student Club and the Women in Science Club.
San Diego Mesa College, Sunrise Courtyard, 7250 Mesa College Blvd., 92111.

Friday, March 9
Noon to 2 p.m.
Sex and Sexuality in the Age of True Womanhood
A discussion led by Gloria Kim, Assistant Professor of  History and Faculty Advisor to the Mesa Women’s Alliance.
San Diego Mesa College, Mesa Commons 211B, 7250 Mesa College Blvd., 92111.

Monday, March 12
11 a.m.
Seventh annual Gracia Molina de Pick Feminist Lecture Series
San Diego historian Maria Garcia, recipient of the 2015 SOHO Cultural Heritage Award and author of La Neighbor: A Settlement House in Logan Heights, will be the featured speaker at the 7th Annual Gracia Molina de Pick Feminist Lecture Series. Garcia will discuss her book and the role of Chicanas in San Diego communities.
San Diego Mesa College, Mesa Commons, 211-A/B, 7250 Mesa College Blvd., 92111.

Tuesday, March 13
11 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Women Victims/Women Survivors
A sex trafficking survivor will be among those taking part in a panel discussion featuring representatives of several local organizations that work with victims of human trafficking and labor exploitation. Among the groups represented are the Bilateral Safety Corridor Coalition, the Center for Community Solutions, and the Center for Justice and Reconciliation. This event is being organized by psychology Professor Laurie Mackenzie and the Women’s Studies Advisory Committee.
San Diego Mesa College, Mesa Commons, 211-A/B, 7250 Mesa College Blvd., 92111.

Wednesday, March 14
12:30 p.m.
#MeToo: Gender Roles, Consent, and Sexual Assault from Ovid’s Metamorphoses to Today
English instructor Randall Ulyate will address the current wave of sexual assault allegations and the precedents seen in selected poems by Ovid.
San Diego Mesa College, Learning Resource Center, Room 435, 7250 Mesa College Blvd., 92111.

Thursday, March 15
11 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Film: Chinese Couplets
Director Felicia Lowe – in a work that is part memoir, part history, part investigation – details how a search for answers about a mother’s emigration to America during the Chinese Exclusion era reveals the often painful price paid by immigrants who abandoned their identity, the burden of silence they passed on to their children, and the intergenerational strife between immigrants and their American-born offspring.
San Diego Mesa College, Mesa Commons, 211-A/B, 7250 Mesa College Blvd., 92111.

Friday, March 16
6 to 9 p.m.
Women in Light: Weapon of Choice
An opening reception for this fifth annual Women in Light show, Weapon of Choice utilizes photography to illustrate, reflect, and engage with the community about what it means to be a woman fighting for equality. The show will be open for viewing Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. through April 13.
San Diego City College, Luxe Gallery, V Building, 1081 16th St., fifth floor, 92101.

Tuesday, March 20
7 to 9 p.m.
She was Warned: Dismantling Barriers, Building Bridges
An evening of storytelling that celebrates voices and experiences from a diverse group of San Diego women who are making history now. This event is part of the San Diego City College Social Justice Conference.
San Diego City College, Black Box Theatre, near the intersections of C and 15th streets, 92101.

Tuesday, March 20
6:30 to 8 p.m.
Unwritten Rules for Career Success: A Guide for College Women
Studying hard and doing well in class is just one component of career success. This session featuring Society of Women Engineers Advocacy Director Debra Kimberling is geared towards female college students and will focus on navigating unwritten nuanced rules in non-traditional fields for women and sidestepping hidden societal traps to keep your confidence fresh and career aspirations moving forward.
San Diego Mesa College, Learning Resource Center, Room 435, 7250 Mesa College Blvd., 92111.

Thursday, March 22
11 a.m. to noon
Women’s Words
Presented by the Dramatic Arts Program, Women’s Words is a collection of stage readings that include contemporary and historical works as well as musical performance pieces by women. The selected pieces represent women and women’s issues across cultures and time.
San Diego Mesa College, Sunrise Courtyard, 7250 Mesa College Blvd., 92111.
*** Due to weather, this event has been rescheduled. It will take place the first week of April.

Thursday, March 22
5 p.m.
Vagina Monologues
Mesa College students will present this Obie Award-winning tour of the forbidden zone that introduces a wildly divergent gathering of female voices, among them: a 6-year-old girl; a septuagenarian New Yorker; and a Bosnian raped survivor.
San Diego Mesa College, Apoliad Theater, 7250 Mesa College Blvd., 92111.         

Saturday, March 24
3 to 4:30 p.m.
Women’s Literature Discussion with an International Focus
Enjoy a discussion led by Spanish Professor April Koch that will cover contemporary women’s literary works with an international focus. This event is sponsored by the Diversity and International Education Committee, and attendees will receive a free book as long as supplies last.
San Diego Miramar College, H-105, 10440 Black Mountain Road, 92126.

Saturday, March 24
10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Women and Families Resource Fair
Counselors from San Diego Continuing Education student equity centers will be available to speak to people about program options and resources such as New Horizons, CalWORKs and more for those attending the Women and Families Resource Fair at the Jacobs Center for Neighborhood Innovation.
Jacobs Center for Neighborhood Innovation, 404 Euclid Ave., 92114

 

In addition, an exhibit titled Silence Breakers Step Up and Stand Together that highlights women and movements making a difference in fighting for social justice will be on display in the Mesa College Learning Resource Center foyer throughout March. Similarly, an exhibit highlighting women’s rights and sexual harassment, abuse, and empowerment will be on display at the campus Social Sciences Building.

Women’s History Month is aimed at highlighting the contributions of women to events in history and contemporary society. It traces its roots to the first International Women’s Day in 1911 and a 1978 Women’s History Week organized by a school district in Sonoma. President Jimmy Carter proclaimed the week of March 8 Women’s History Week in 1980, and Congress designated March as Women’s History Month in 1987.