How New Jersey children learn the importance of women's history through the ABCs
At the Alice Paul Center for Gender Justice, children flipped through the pages of history during a special reading of The ABCs of Women's History on Saturday.
The book's author, Rio Cortez, and illustrator, Lauren Semmer, visited the center to share stories of influential women, both well-known and lesser-known, who helped shape the world.
"A big part of why we made this book together [is] we really want children to be able to see themselves as a part of the story," Semmer said.
The event, held at the childhood home of suffragist Alice Paul, was part of a book tour Semmer and Cortez are doing throughout Women's History Month, featuring various story times and school visits. Both women said the location of Saturday's event was meaningful.
"Any historical landmark that had to do with women's history is a really special place for a book like this," Cortez said. "It was also super special because we had many generations of women in the audience."
Eight-year-old Colette MacDonald enjoyed the book reading as well as the accompanying coloring pages. She was drawn to coloring illustrations of Venus and Serena Williams – two athletes from whom, she said, she can learn a lot.
"Girls are strong and they can do a lot of things like boys can do," she said.
Molly Gonzales, the advocacy manager at the Alice Paul Center for Gender Justice, said events like Saturday's were in line with their mission to build action through the lens of history.
"It is imperative that we have children raised on the stories of powerful women," Gonzales said.
Paul, who was instrumental in advocating for the passage of the 19th Amendment, also authored the Equal Rights Amendment in 1923. She made many sacrifices, including going on hunger strikes and being jailed for vocalizing her beliefs. Gonzales says she loves welcoming young people to learn about her.
"We're only really allowed to learn about women who said 'thank you' and 'please' and sat quietly, and Alice was not one of those women," Gonzales said. "The women who really did make change are the women that took up space, demanded action, who are loud."
Seven-year-old Leilani Chowdhury was beginning to understand Paul's impact as she walked through the historic home.
"She did a really good thing and she was really brave," she said.
Cortez and Semmer, too, hope young girls see themselves as brave.
"They can take their ideas and the things that they want to do, and their passions, and go out into the world and do great things," Semmer said. "Because history is fun, and being a woman is fun."
