Must Watch Films: Women's History Month 2025
This Women’s History Month we’re highlighting films on the influential works of women in science, the arts, and politics.
Women in Chemistry (2013)
This 2013 documentary follows the lives and careers of eight women scientists who changed the world with their ambitious achievements in chemistry. From pioneering research to ambitious marvels of engineering, these remarkable women challenged the status quo to drive scientific innovations in a historically male-dominated field.
View the impactful stories of leading women in science here: https://video.alexanderstreet.com/p/pZ6y7GEzN
Mankiller (2017)
Wilma Mankiller (b.1945) was a Native American activist and social worker who served as the Cherokee Nation’s first woman Principal Chief for over 10 years beginning in 1985. Under her steadfast leadership, Mankiller worked alongside the federal government to profoundly improve her community’s access to healthcare, housing, and education.
View this transformational story of a national icon here: https://video.alexanderstreet.com/watch/mankiller-with-audio-description/details
Bessie (2015)
Known as “The Empress of the Blues”, Bessie Smith was the highest-paid Black performing artist of the early 20th century. Dee Rees’ 2015 biopic chronicles the many adversities faced by the vivacious blue legend throughout her meteoric rise to fame. Featuring an electric performance by Queen Latifah, the film follows the trailblazing vaudeville singer who toured the country in her own private railroad car during the 1920s.
View this rousing tribute to a barrier-breaking icon who paved the way for artists of all genres and identities: https://digitalcampus.swankmp.net/tulane338467/watch/E8A8C0898A6DC511?referrer=direct
Storming Caesars Palace (2022)
Winner of the Shine Award at the 2022 BlackStar Film Festival, Storming Caesars Palace celebrates the life and work of the legendary Las Vegas civil rights activist Ruby Duncan. As a founding leader of the National Welfare Rights Organization, Duncan helped fight for the guaranteed income of single mothers living in poverty across the country. Combining previously lost archival material with recent interviews, this stirring film illuminates Duncan’s courageous efforts to bring hope and economic justice to under-privileged families.
View here: https://www.kanopy.com/en/tulane/video/14838209
Chisholm '72: Unbought & Unbossed: The First Black Woman to Run for President (2004)
As the first black women elected to the U.S. Congress in 1968, Shirley Chisholm fought tirelessly for marginalized communities over seven terms and helped end the Vietnam War. Shola Lynch’s award-winning documentary takes a critical look at Chisholm’s ambitious journey to become the first woman and African American to run for the highest office despite facing rampant racial and gender discrimination. Recounting Chisholm’s groundbreaking 1972 campaign in vivid detail, this inspiring portrait celebrates the tenacious civil rights leader who dared to be a catalyst for change.
View here: https://www.kanopy.com/en/tulane/video/5568398
By Joshua Windham
3/5/2025
