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Proclamation 10153 of March 1, 2021

Women’s History Month, 2021

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

Each year, Women’s History Month offers an important opportunity for us to shine a light on the extraordinary legacy of trailblazing American women and girls who have built, shaped, and improved upon our Nation.

Throughout American history, women and girls have made vital contributions, often in the face of discrimination and undue hardship. Courageous women marched for and won the right to vote, campaigned against injustice, shattered countless barriers, and expanded the possibilities of American life. Our history is also replete with examples of the unfailing bravery and grit of women in America, particularly in times of crisis and emergency. Women served our Nation during World War II, led organizing and litigation efforts during the Civil Rights movement, and represented the United States on the global stage in the fight for human rights, peace, and security. Far too often, their heroic efforts and their stories have gone untold—especially the millions of Black women, immigrant women, and others from diverse communities who have strengthened America across every generation.

In our current moment of crisis, women continue to lead. From vaccine researchers to public health officials to the countless heroines on the frontlines, women are working around the clock to defeat COVID–19. Women, and particularly women of color, also make up the majority of America’s essential workers, including educators and child care providers, grocery store workers, farmworkers, and others who are keeping our families, our communities, and our country afloat. This year has also marked an historic milestone of women’s leadership 232 years in the making, with the inauguration of America’s first woman Vice President.

As we celebrate the contributions and progress of women and girls, we must also reflect on the extraordinary and unequal burdens they continue to bear today. The COVID–19 pandemic has exacerbated barriers that have held back women—particularly women of color—for generations. Gender and racial disparities in pay continue to fester. A disproportionate share of caregiving continues to fall on the shoulders of women and girls. And now, job losses due to COVID–19 have set women’s labor force participation back to its lowest point in more than 30 years—threatening the security and well-being of women and their families and imperiling the economic progress of our entire Nation. The share of mothers who have left the labor force is three times that of fathers; in September 2020 alone, an astonishing 865,000 women dropped out of the American workforce. These trends are even more dire among women of color, with Black and Hispanic women facing disproportionately high rates of unemployment. At the same time, food insecurity has risen dramatically since the pandemic began, particularly in female-headed households with children, as have reports of intimate partner violence.

Since taking office on January 20th, Vice President Kamala Harris and I have made COVID–19 vaccination, relief, and broad-based economic recovery efforts a top priority. Our goal is not to return our economy to where it was before the pandemic struck. Our goal is to build back better—and