Women's History Month

Celebrate Women's History Month this October and Persons Day on the 18th

October marks Women's History Month, an opportunity for Albertans to recognize the many achievements of women. It is also a time to reflect on the continuing evolution of roles of women in today's society, and into the future.

The 2009 national theme for Women's History Month is Women in the Lead: Winter Sports.

For more information, visit Status of Women Canada.

Women's History Month also includes Persons Day on October 18. This date commemorates the 1929 Persons Case decision and the achievements of the "Famous Five", the Alberta women who fought and won the right for Canadian women to be officially deemed "persons" under the law. This year is the 80th anniversary of the Persons Case decision. For more information on the Famous Five and the Persons Case, visit Persons Case.

Listed below are events planned in Alberta to celebrate Women’s History Month in 2009 and the 80th anniversary of Persons Day:

Edmonton

The Women's Legal Education and Action Fund (LEAF) is hosting a Persons Day Breakfast downtown at the Coast Edmonton Plaza from 7:30 - 9:30 a.m. on November 4, 2009. The speaker for the event will be Doris Buss, Chair of LEAF and associate professor of LAW at Carleton University. Doris Buss has expertise in the areas of International Human Rights, Sexual Violence, War Crimes Prosecution and Women's Rights.

The YWCA Edmonton's The Power of Being a Girl conference, presented by InMotionNetwork, will focus on the developmental needs of at-risk girls and young women ages 12 - 15 years. The conference will coincide with the YWCA's Week Without Violence in October 2009. The event will take place on Thursday, October 22nd at Lister Hall on the University of Alberta campus in Edmonton. This day long conference will include the following sessions: Yael Staav – Campaign for Real Beauty, as well as sessions on social networking, nutrition and fitness, gender barrier issues, yoga and hip hop. For more information, call 780-423-YWCA (9922).