A number of U.S. universities are referring to March, which has been designated nationally as Women’s History Month, as “Womxn’s History Month” in news releases and event announcements.
San Jose State University, Wooster College, Northwest Missouri State University, and Rider University are just some institutions that have advertised events and programs for the month using the spelling “womxn.”
The term “womxn” has been used since 1975, according to the Womxn’s Center for Success at the University of California, Irvine, and is used to acknowledge “that gender identity exists in a sphere and one word has room for multiple gender expressions without weighing one more important than another.”
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“‘Womxn’ is one of a few lexical and social phenomena, including the adoption of ‘x’ in naming gender non-conforming individuals, genderqueer folxs, two spirit people, femmes, transgender folxs, and non-binary people,” the center says.
While the term has been largely contained within gender activism circles, universities using the term to advertise events for Women’s History Month is not a new occurrence.
San Jose State University, which announced a program for its “2022 Womxn’s Herstory Month,” has been using the term since 2019, according to its website. This year’s programming list includes plans to profile “different womxn, past and present” on the Gender Equity Center’s Instagram and Facebook pages, an open mic night at student union building, and a Zoom poetry workshop titled “Writing Our Wellness through Love, Rage, and Healing.”
Despite using “womxn” for the title of the month, San Jose State still used “women” for several events on the program.
Northwest Missouri State University also mixed both terms into a press release, which initially used the term “womynx” but was later changed to “womxn” after the popular Twitter account Libs of Tik Tok highlighted the term.
https://twitter.com/libsoftiktok/status/1498788257777082369?s=20&t=WY0EgFCgmErrtSypV7xi6A
A university spokesperson told Fox News that the use of the term was “intended to promote inclusivity among students.” The events planned for the month include a “reception and recognition of Influential Womxn” at the end of the month.
Rider University, in an announcement of its events for the month, said it used the term “womxn” to “respect the dynamic and fluid nature of gender identity and expression and to be inclusive of all people who identify as women.”
The New Jersey university planned an event on March 21 titled “RIDER WOMXN OF POWER: Marking a Milestone; Continuing the Momentum,” where the leaders of “Rider womxn” clubs “will discuss topics of leadership, equity and inclusion, and womxn’s ceaseless contributions to hope and healing.”
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California State University, Bernardino maintains a website for “Womxn’s History Month” that includes information about the institution’s annual “Womxn’s Leadership Conference,” which aims “to help all of those who identify as womxn- students, staff, and faculty become stronger leaders in their personal, organizational and community spheres of influence; inspiring them to create a more accepting, equitable environment for themselves and other womxn; and empowering them to embrace their authentic selves.”
The conference is planned for March 24, and the university’s theme for the month is “Meeting at the Intersections: What’s HERstory?”
