The DEIA Communications team sends out monthly emails about upcoming diversity awareness events recognized either nationally or internationally due to their cultural, historical, or religious significance. See below for several diversity dates to be aware of in the month of March.
Upcoming Observances
Note that International Women’s Day, Irish American Heritage Month, St. Patrick’s Day, Nowruz, and Transgender Day of Visibility are covered under the "Additional Awareness Events this Month" section below.
Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month
Wednesday, March 1 – Friday, March 31
President Ronald Reagan proclaimed the month of March as National Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month in 1987. The term developmental disabilities covers a wide range of disabilities, including autism, cerebral palsy, and Down syndrome. The campaign seeks to raise awareness about including people with developmental disabilities in all facets of community life. It also creates awareness of the stigmas and barriers that the disability community still faces.
Greek-American Heritage Month
Wednesday, March 1 – Friday, March 31
March is Greek-American Heritage Month, a time to celebrate the core components of Greek culture and ideals. Also known as Hellenic History Month, the celebration coincides with National Greek Independence Day on March 25. For generations of Greek-Americans, preserving the culture, religion, and language of Greece are focal points in their lives. Each year throughout the month of March, organizations across the U.S. celebrate Greek-Americans’ rich heritage and positive contributions to society, highlighting their deep commitment to philanthropy, their pursuit of excellence and innovation, and their strong family bonds and attachment to the Greek Orthodox church.
Women's History Month
Wednesday, March 1 - Friday, March 31
Women’s History Month began as a local celebration in Santa Rosa, California. The Education Task Force of the Sonoma County (California) Commission on the Status of Women planned and executed a “Women’s History Week” celebration in 1978. The organizers selected the week of March 8 to correspond with International Women’s Day. The movement spread across the country as other communities initiated their own Women’s History Week celebrations the following year. In 1987, Congress passed Public Law 100-9, designating March as “Women’s History Month.” Between 1988 and 1994, Congress passed additional resolutions requesting and authorizing the President proclaim March of each year as Women’s History Month. Since 1995, each president has issued an annual proclamation designating the month of March as “Women’s History Month.”
Māgha Pūjā (Buddhism)
Monday, March 6
Māgha Pūjā (also written as Makha Bucha Day) is the second most important Buddhist festival after Vesak, celebrated on the full moon day of the third lunar month in Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Sri Lanka and on the full moon day of Tabaung in Myanmar. It celebrates a gathering that was held between the Buddha and 1,250 of his first disciples, which, according to tradition, preceded the custom of periodic recitation of discipline by monks. On the day, Buddhists celebrate the creation of an ideal and exemplary community.
Purim (Jewish)
Monday, March 6 – Tuesday, March 7
Purim is the Jewish holiday in which Jews commemorate being saved from persecution in the ancient Persian empire. Purim is celebrated by dressing up in costume, giving gifts and charity, drinking, and eating. Purim does not fall on the same date each year as it's based on the Hebrew calendar.
Holi (Hindu)
Wednesday, March 8
Originally known as ‘Holika,’ Holi is an ancient Hindu festival of India that is one of the most loved and celebrated in the country. Sometimes referred to as the ‘festival of love’ with its vibrancy and positivity, Holi is used as a day to welcome in spring, unite people, and forget all resentments and negative feelings towards each other.
Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Week
Sunday, March 12 – Saturday, March 18
Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Week is dedicated to raising awareness, sharing stories, and inspiring motivation to make change for people living with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). More than 2.3 million people, worldwide, have been diagnosed with MS. MS damages the central nervous system and interferes with nerve signals between the brain and the spinal cord as well as other parts of the body. Individuals living with MS experience physical, emotional, cognitive, and psychological challenges. Research is continuing in search of a cure for MS and awareness is making a difference in changing the lives of so many individuals impacted by the disease. For more information, resources, and ways to get involved, visit the National Multiple Sclerosis Society website.
Shunbun No Hi (Vernal Equinox Day)
Tuesday, March 21
Shunbun No Hi or Vernal Equinox Day is a public holiday celebrating the first day of spring in Japan. It is part of a seven-day period of festivals called Haru no Higan. Due to needing the most recent astronomical measurements, the date of the holiday is officially declared in February of the previous year. In 1948, Shunbun No Hi became a secular holiday to comply with Japan’s postwar constitution call of the separation of religion and state. As a part of Haru no Higan, Shunbun No Hi pays tribute to ancestors with rituals that include visiting family grave sites and eating popular foods like botamochi, a traditional Japanese sweet. Learn more about Shunbun No Hi by visiting the Coto Academy.
Ramadan (Muslim)
Wednesday, March 22 – Friday, April 21
Ramadan is a holy month of fasting, introspection, and prayer for Muslims. It celebrates the month during which Muhammad received the initial revelations of the Quran, the holy book for Muslims. Fasting is one of the five fundamental principles of Islam. Each day during Ramadan, Muslims do not eat or drink from dawn to sunset. Fasting is seen as a way to cleanse the soul and have empathy for those in the world who are hungry and less fortunate. Muslims break their daily fasts by sharing meals with family and friends, and the end of Ramadan is celebrated with a three-day festival known as Eid al-Fitr, one of Islam’s major holidays. International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade.
International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and Transatlantic Slave Trade
Saturday, March 25
In 2007, the UN designated March 25th as International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and Transatlantic Slave Trade. This annual observance offers the opportunity to honor and remember those who suffered and died at the hands of the brutal slavery system. It is also a time to raise awareness about the dangers of racism, prejudice, and slavery that have happened and continue all over the world. The transatlantic slave trade was the largest forced migration in history, and undeniably one of the most inhumane. The extensive exodus of Africans spread to many areas of the world over a 400-year period and had never occurred before in recorded human history. To learn more, visit the United Nations’ Remember Slavery page.
Additional Awareness Events this Month
The DEIA Communications team will send out individual communications around the following awareness events this month:
- International Women’s Day - March 8
- Irish American Heritage Month and St. Patrick’s Day - March 17
- Nowruz - March 20
- Transgender Day of Visibility - March 31