The month of March is women's history month.
The entire month celebrates the history and the milestones women have crossed to get where they are.
Dr. Renee LaFleur, an associate professor of history at the University of Tennessee at Martin, is the Director of the Center for Women and Gender Equality. The center is hosting a number of events throughout March to honor women's history.
LaFleur explained what she wants students to get from these events.
"I want them to come away with an understanding of where body expectations come from, and that we should really be working on ourselves personally, and not always worrying about what other people and advertising are saying about us," LaFleur said.
LaFleur isn't alone in the month's endeavors. Laura Kepler, hall director for Cooper and Assistant Director for the Center of Women and Gender Equality.
Both came together to get guest speakers to present throughout the month.
Kepler also started a social media challenge called "The Body Positivity Challenge."
Kepler said she notices, as a hall director, that many students are very self conscious.
"There are a lot of students who are very self conscious, or have negative visualizations about their body, or their mental health," Kepler said.
She also said the pandemic did not help anyone's situation with "recognizing their worth or their value."
Below are the list of the events and the dates:
March 11: Jean Kilbourne at 7 pm, “The Naked Truth: Advertising’s Image of Women”
March 16: Aimee Jones at 12:15 pm, “Unrealistic: Societal Expectations of the Female Body”
March 23: Lindsey Guile at 7 pm, “Unapologetic: Altering the Narrative through Art”