Women making history in the 2022
Winter Olympics_

March is Women's History Month! Historically, March has been a milestone month for women, including the first Major women's suffrage event, Title IX and the Equal Rights Amendment. Women's History month originally started as one day of celebration—International Women's Day on March 8. In 1987, President Carter declared March Women's History Month.

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2022 has already been a year of many achievements for women, including groundbreaking participation and wins for women at the Winter Olympics. This year, 45% of Olympians competing in Beijing were women. 50 years ago in 1972, the United States legislation passed Title IX, requiring gender equity in school-supported sport programs. That year at the Olympics, only 14.6% of competitors were women. 

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Though many women went gold, like Chloe Kim and Mikaela Shiffrin, one athlete broke true barriers this year: Erin Jackson. 

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Erin Jackson will forever be known as the first Black woman to win a speedskating medal at the Winter Olympics. Jackson's win was the first individual medal the American speedskating team has seen in the last 12 years. 

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What some may not know is Jackson nearly didn't compete in Beijing. During the U.S. Olympic trial in early January, Jackson slipped and didn't qualify to compete. Teammate Brittany Bowe gave her spot to Jackson because she believed that she deserved to compete in the 2022 games. 

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During an interview before the opening ceremony, Jackson remarked, "You don't get to see a whole lot of diversity, so I just hope I can be someone who they can see and say, 'Oh maybe I'll get out and try one of these sports.'"

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Jackson and Bowe's relationship exemplifies how important it is to be supportive of the people in our circle. Teamwork truly makes the dream work—we go further together.