For Women’s History Month, try some of these feature films about women of extraordinary courage, intelligence, determination, and achievement.
1. Erin Brockovich Julia Roberts won an Oscar for this story about a clerk in a law firm who helped win the largest toxic tort settlement in U.S. history for the people who had been damaged by inappropriately and illegally disposed chemicals.
3. The Miracle Worker Anne Bancroft and Patty Duke both won Oscars for this story of two extraordinary women, teacher Annie Sullivan and her deaf and blind student Helen Keller.
6. The Rosa Parks Story Angela Bassett stars as the woman whose refusal to give up her seat on the bus began the Civil Rights movement.
And try these documentaries, too:
1. Not for Ourselves Alone: The Story of Stanton & Anthony The lives of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony and their fight for women’s right to vote is much more accurately depicted in this documentary than in the fictionalized “Iron-Jawed Angels.”
2. Life of Sojourner Truth: Ain’t I a Woman? Has there ever been a better name for someone who fought for justice? Sojourner Truth was a slave who became an activist for the rights of African-Americans and women.
3. The Spirit of Sacajawea Native American Sacajawea and her infant son guided Lewis and Clark in their expedition through the western United States.
4. American Experience – Eleanor Roosevelt The niece and wife of Presidents, Eleanor Roosevelt was a shy, bookish girl who became a world-traveling advocate for peace and for human rights.