Women’s History Month is an annual declared month that highlights the contributions of women to events in history and contemporary society. Artist John Mavroudis, who recently celebrated Black History Month in a creative way, is now treating his followers on Facebook with inspiring illustrations of Historic Women throughout the month of March.

Our curiosity for this amazing body of work (and wonderful idea) prompted us to reach out to John who graciously shared some insights about his project.

“The emotional, sexual, and psychological stereotyping of females begins when the doctor says: “It’s a Girl.” – Shirley Chisholm

When I came to the end of Black History Month, I thought I had run the course, and then discovered that dovetailed into Women’s History Month. I posted an image and quote… one of my favorites, from Susan B. Anthony: “Men, their rights, and nothing more; Women, their rights, and nothing less.” I was going to post that and be done… I mentioned on a Facebook post that I would post a few more but might not be able to post every day. I then heard back from more than a few women who encouraged me to post every day. It got me thinking about how easy, as a male, it is to take women’s struggles for granted. How they’re slighted almost every day… and how that’s occurred throughout the history of the human race. It made me think of what kind of world I wanted for my wife and my 5-year old daughter. It wasn’t the first time I had thought about that, but for it did make me start digging into the women’s movement and reading up on some of the leaders of the Women’s Rights Movement. The Civil Rights poster I did included a lot of women who really made an impact, and I noticed that most if not all of them worked a lot on women’s rights, as well. The two movements were parallel in so many ways.

I had posted quotes during Black History Month of women synonymous with the Civil Rights movement that were aimed squarely at the rights of women. Sojourner Truth, Ida B. Wells, Mary White Ovington and many more. I then thought about how so many men would engage for the rights of others while ignoring what happens within their own homes.

I read a speech by Abigail Kelly Foster delivered in 1851 at a Women’s Rights Convention in Worcester, MA. It was powerful and moving and contained this:

“I put this before men. If we could look under and within the broadcloth and the velvet, we should find as many breaking hearts, and as many sighs and groans, and as much of mental anguish, as we find in the parlor, as we find in the nursery of any house in Worcester.”

This was not a speech that simply laid the blame on men, either. It was a sober analysis of where men and women each fell short in creating an equal and righteous society.

I started posting regularly on Facebook and Twitter. Helped by some retweets and shares (from Martina Navratilova, the great folks at Moonalice and others) it’s found a slightly wider audience.

One doesn’t need to go any farther than Twitter to see the sexism and misogyny are still rampant in our society and around the world. We’ve still got a lot of work to do. – John Mavroudis

March 1st, 2016

“Oh, if I could but live another century and see the fruition of all the work for women! There is so much yet to be done.” – Susan B. Anthony

March 2nd, 2016

“It isn’t enough to talk about peace. One must believe in it. And it isn’t enough to believe in it. One must work at it.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

March 3rd, 2016

“”We the People” – it is a very eloquent beginning. But when the constitution of the United States was completed… In 1787, I was not included in that “We The People.”” – Barbara Jordan

March 4th, 2016

“…You also find the woman revolutionist telling her enslaved sisters of the effort among women to attain their freedom, to gain the right to live, no according to man’s but according to their own, conception of happiness and right.” – Mary White Ovington

March 5th, 2016

“The world has never yet seen a truly great and virtuous nation, because in the degradation of women, the very fountains of life are poisoned at their source.” – Lucretia Mott

March 6th, 2016

“I have no idea of submitting tamely to injustice… I am no advocate of passivity” – Lucretia Mott

March 7th, 2016

“One can never consent to creep when one feels an impulse to soar.” – Helen Keller

“Although the world is full of suffering, it is full also of the overcoming of it.” – Helen Keller

March 8th, 2016

“The greatest evil in our country today is…ignorance…we need to be taught to study rather than to believe.” – Septima Poinsette Clark

March 9th, 2016

https://twitter.com/ZenPopArt/status/707629352498794497 “Every child saved with my help and the help of all the wonderful secret messengers, who today are no longer living, is the justification of my existence on this earth, and not a title to glory.” – Irena Sendlerowa

March 10th, 2016

“The bitterest tears shed over graves are for words left unsaid and deeds left undone.” – Harriet Beecher Stowe

March 11th, 2016

“Sexism, like racism, goes with us into the next century. I see class warfare as overshadowing both.” – Constance Baker Motley

March 12th, 2016

“Have no fear of perfection; you’ll never reach it.” – Marie Curie

March 13th, 2016

“If the first woman god ever made was strong enough to turn the world upside down all alone, these women together ought to be able to turn it back, and get it right side up again! And now they is asking to do it, the men better let them.” – Sojourner Truth

March 14th, 2016

“I said I could and I would. And I did.” – Nellie Bly

March 15th, 2016

“The most difficult thing is the decision to act. The rest is merely tenacity.” – Amelia Earhart

March 16th, 2016

“I cannot guarantee to endure all times the confinements of even an attractive cage.” – Amelia Earhart

March 17th, 2016

“Every moment is an organizing opportunity, every person a potential activist, every minute a chance to change the world.” – Dolores Huerta

March 18th, 2016

“To fly we have to have resistance.” – Maya Lin

March 19th, 2016

“For our daughters and our granddaughters, the sky is the limit. Anything is possible for them.” – Nancy Pelosi

March 20th, 2016

“The way to right wrongs is to turn the light of truth upon them.” – Ida B. Wells

March 21st, 2016

“A bird cannot fly with one wing only. Human space flight cannot develop any further without the active participation of women.” – Valentina Tereshkova

March 22nd, 2016

“The only real prison is fear, and the only real freedom is freedom from fear.” – Aung San Suu Kyi

March 23rd, 2016

“I might have been born in a hovel but I am determined to travel with the wind and the stars.” – Jacqueline Cochran

March 24th, 2016

“Then I said I would make a machine that would fly. Hoots and derision – which did not worry me at all.” – Lilian Bland

“Fortunately ours is an age of emancipation; old fashioned conventions are slowly giving way to common sense.” – Lilian Bland

March 25th, 2016

“To the wrongs that need resistance, to the right that needs assistance, to the future in the distance, give yourselves.” – Carrie Chapman Catt

March 26th, 2016

“There are whole precincts of voters in this country whose united intelligence does not equal that of one representative american woman.” – Carrie Chapman Catt

March 27th, 2016

“I have lived too long and observed too much, to be disturbed by the world’s mockery.” – Lydia Maria Child

March 28th, 2016

“We first crush people to the earth, and then claim the right of trampling on them forever, because they are prostrate.” – Lydia Maria Child

March 29th, 2016

“The more clearly we can focus our attention on the wonders and realities of the universe about us, the less taste we shall have for destruction.” – Rachel Carson

March 30th, 2016

“Any religion which sacrifices women to the brutality of men is no religion.” – Julia Ward Howe

March 31st, 2016

#blackhistorymonth #Malcolm X

A photo posted by John Mavroudis (@zenpop) on Feb 2, 2016 at 5:14pm PST

You can’t separate peace from freedom because no one can be at peace unless he has his freedom. –Malcolm X

In case you haven’t noticed, Artist John Mavroudis, whose work includes 24 Moonalice posters, is celebrating Black History Month by posting his original illustrations with key Civil Rights figures every day for the month of February. The drawings are from his “For The Ages” Obama poster based on his cover for The Nation 2009, Obama Inauguration issue pictured below.

We had a chance to speak with John whose motivation to repost the images came after re-reading some of the stories from the Civil Rights figures. In an ideal world, John would like to publish a book with a page each for the figures with an illustration and a short bio to show why they are significant in history. Mr. Mavroudis believes it would make a great teaching tool for so many (like me) who had only heard of the most well-know figures, like Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, Rosa Parks, etc. while there are so many great people who contributed to the cause of freedom and justice but somehow get lost in the education system.

February 2th, 2016

#blackhistorymonth #FrederickDouglass #CivilRights

A photo posted by John Mavroudis (@zenpop) on Feb 2, 2016 at 5:17pm PST

Power concedes nothings without a demand. It never did and it never will. –Frederick Douglass

The book is still in the planning stages (John still needs to find a publisher), but in the meantime he was struck by some of the quotes from these people and thought Black History Month would be a perfect time to highlight 29 figures (one a day) with a particular quote that struck him. You can follow John’s work each day in February on twitter, instagram, or facebook.

February 3th, 2016

29 Days of #BlackHistoryMonth . Today: BAYARD RUSTIN #CivilRights

A photo posted by John Mavroudis (@zenpop) on Feb 3, 2016 at 8:16am PST

To be afraid is to behave as it the truth were not true. –Bayard Rustin

For fans who would like to own a physical copy of this art, John is selling the poster (pictured below) through his website www.zenpop.com for only $20 each. It also comes with a key of all the figures in the illustration too.

February 4th, 2016

29 Days of #BlackHistoryMonth . Today: IDA B. WELLS #CivilRights @TheBpDShow @donnabrazile @ninaturner @JoyAnnReid pic.twitter.com/VNP0jxg94E

— ZenPop (@ZenPopArt) February 4, 2016

I am only a mouthpiece through which to tell the story of lynching and I have told it so often that I know it by heart. I do not have to embellish. It makes its own way. –Ida B. Wells

February 5th, 2016

29 Days of #BlackHistoryMonth . Today: THURGOOD MARSHALL #CivilRights @ZerlinaMaxwell @TheBpDShow @donnabrazile pic.twitter.com/0WPF9IcDm3

— ZenPop (@ZenPopArt) February 5, 2016

A child born to a black mother is a state like Mississippi… has exactly the same rights as a white baby born to the wealthiest person in the United States. It’s not true, but I challenge anyone to say it is not a goal worth working for –Thurgood Marshall

February 6th, 2016

View this post on Instagram

Celebrate the greatness of an #American #Hero, Martin Luther King, Jr. #NowMoreThanEver #MLK #mlkweekend #mlkparade #mlkrideout #mlkday ##mlkquotes #mlkmarch #mlk2017 #civilrights #art #illustration #standagainstracism #StandAgainstTrump #nevertrump #womensmarchonwashington #womensmarch

A post shared by John Mavroudis (@zenpop) on Jan 15, 2017 at 8:52pm PST

“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” – Martin Luther King Jr.

February 7th, 2016

“Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to
change the world.” – Harriet Tubman

February 8th, 2016

29 Days of #BlackHistoryMonth . Today: C.T. VIVIAN @TheBpDShow @JoyAnnReid @MoADsf @ninaturner @chrislhayes pic.twitter.com/q32QWWE6Az

— ZenPop (@ZenPopArt) February 8, 2016

“People do not choose rebellion; it is forced upon them. Revolution is always an act of self-defense.” – C.T. Vivian

February 9th, 2016

View this post on Instagram

#Black #History #Month A. PHILIP RANDOLPH #BlackHistoryMonth

A post shared by John Mavroudis (@zenpop) on Feb 10, 2016 at 1:37pm PST

“Justice is never given; it is exacted and the struggle must be continuous for freedom is never a final fact, but a continuing evolving process…” – A. Philip Randolph

February 10th, 2016

“If the first woman god ever made was strong enough to turn the world upside down all alone, these women together ought to be able to turn it back, and get it right side up again! And now they is asking to do it, the men better let them.” – Sojourner Truth

February 11th, 2016

“Either America will destroy ignorance or ignorance will destroy America.” –W.E.B. Du Bois

“Now is the accepted time, not tomorrow, not some more convenient season. It is today that our best work can be done and not some future day or future year…” –W.E.B. Du Bois

February 12th, 2016

“Confrontation is not bad. Goodness is supposed to confront evil.” – Fred Shuttlesworth

February 13th, 2016

“Bring on your tear gas, bring on your grenades, your new supplies of mace, your state troopers and even your national guards. But let the record show we ain’t going to be turned around.” – Ralph Abernathy

February 14th, 2016

“The emotional, sexual, and psychological stereotyping of females begins when the doctor says: “It’s a Girl.” – Shirley Chisholm

February 15th, 2016

“Egotism is the anesthetic that dulls the pain of stupidity” – Booker T. Washington

February 16th, 2016

“I have fought too hard and too long against discrimination based on race and color not to stand up against discrimination based on sexual orientation.” – John Lewis

February 17th, 2016

“Liberate the minds of men and ultimately you will liberate the bodies of men.” – Marcus Garvey

February 18th, 2016

“The horrors of the block, as looked upon through the light of the daily heart-breaking separations it was causing to the oppressed, no pen could describe or mind imagine…” – William Still

February 19th, 2016

Samuel Burris His connections with the underground railroad. Cost him not only imprisonment and the most barbarous treatment but likewise the loss of his freedom. He was sold on the auction block.

February 20th, 2016

“Not everything that is face can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.” – James Baldwin

February 21st, 2016

“We ask for nothing that is not right, and herein lies the great power of our demand.” – Paul Robeson

February 22nd, 2016

“I made up my mind that if I got through this war I would study law and use my time fighting for men who could not strike back.” – Charles Hamilton Houston

February 23rd, 2016

“Our elevation must be the result of self-efforts and work of our own hands. No other human power can accomplish it. If we but determine it shall be so, it will be so.” – Martin Delany

February 24th, 2016

“Nobody’s Free Until Everybody’s Free.” – Fannie Lou Hamer

February 25th, 2016

“What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun?… or does it explode?” – Langston Hughes

“I swear to the lord, I still can’t see, why democracy means everybody but me.” – Langston Hughes

February 26th, 2016

“Our grandfathers had to run, tun , run. My generation’s out of breath. We ain’t running no more.” – Kwame Ture (Stokely Carmichael)

February 27th, 2016

“Oh, I was threatened before, during and after. You know, I think I was threatened the day I was born. But yet and still, you can’t stop your life and stop trying to make it a better life for all people for merely having threats put upon your life.” – Tommie Smith & John Carlos

February 28th, 2016

“Slavery is dead, but the spirit which animated it still lives.” – Frances Harper

February 29th, 2016

“And I knew that it was better to live out one’s absurdity than to die for that of others.” – Ralph Ellison

“Poor conceited humanity! Interpreters of God indeed.” – Paul Laurence Dunbar

All Americans should honor the sacrifices made by so many in the struggle to achieve equality. Restore the Voting Rights Act