Imagine a time when a woman’s place was believed to be only in the home, and less than 20 percent of women were in the work force. When most colleges and universities were closed to women. When women didn’t even have the right to vote. That time was just 100 years ago.

Now women are increasingly taking leadership roles in many fields, including government, science and education. But the change didn’t happen overnight, and it took thousands of pioneering women to pave the way. Today women in the United States have more opportunities than ever, while the struggle continues toward true gender equality.

To celebrate the contributions and accomplishments of American women, March has been designated Women’s History Month. Locally, the celebration includes the annual Celebrate Women’s History Month event on March 20, with live performances by female musical artists, women activist speakers, voter registration and information tables with educational materials on female owned and operated organizations in San Diego.

Local activist record companies Say It Records and Champ Records, in conjunction with The Center, will produce the event. It’s intended to be a fun and lively opportunity for the entire family to learn about the women who have helped transform history, culture and politics.

“How many hundreds of thousands of phenomenal women were instrumental in shaping the world as we know it that we know nothing about? Their names have been buried under the fat of their male counterparts,” said Danielle LoPresti, of Say It Records. “Why is it important to talk about [women’s history], to discover who they are, to dig deeper? Because it’s inspiring.”

The celebration was based on a similar event in Boston staged by Champ Records founder Alicia Champion. During her studies at the male-dominated Berklee College of Music, Champion produced a monthly women’s concert, as well as a yearly event in honor of Women’s History Month. When she approached fellow indie musician and activist LoPresti about Women’s History Month, LoPresti hadn’t heard of it. The women immediately recognized the need for greater visibility of the month-long designation.

“I was really excited to come to San Diego and work with someone like Danielle, who is active in indie music as well as in the community,” Champion said. “It takes everything I was doing in Boston to a whole new level.”

Along with Kelly Bowen – also of Say It Records and bass player for LoPresti’s band The Masses – the three women began the event last year, which drew about 300 people to The Center in Hillcrest.

This year the producers are shooting for 600. The number of community groups wanting to get into the act is encouraging; twice as many organizations applied for participation this year. A percentage of the proceeds will go to The Center’s Women’s Resource Center, which provides events, activities, support and resources to underserved women in the community.

On the performance roster, in addition to Danielle LoPresti and The Masses and Alicia Champion, are Julie Wolf (former band mate to Ani Difranco), Eveoke Dance Theatre, Mary Dolan, Saba, Jane, Drop Joy, Catherine Beeks and spoken word performer Tryce Czyczynska, among others.

“Part of what we’re looking at with the event is honoring heroines, everyday heroines, women who are doing amazing things every day that very few people know about,” Champion said.

It might be your neighbor who made sacrifices to help others, or an inspirational mother, teacher or friend. Each of these “unsung heroes” – whether an historical figure or someone within the community – will be honored with a poster and a brief paragraph of her contribution to society or the community at large. Each performer, before taking the stage, will also take a few minutes to talk about a personal heroine.

The keynote speaker is world-renowned human rights activist and women’s suffragist, Gracia Molina de Pick. Born in Mexico, Molina de Pick has lived in San Diego County for more than 40 years and has spent a lifetime fighting for women’s rights. She helped found Partido Popular, a political party that fought to secure voting rights for Mexican women. She is the regional vice-chair of the Veteran Feminists of America and has been credited as a founder of the second wave of feminism. Molina de Pick founded the first Chicano and Chicana Studies program at Mesa College, and is a lecturer at the University of California, San Diego.

“Gracia Molina de Pick is out of this world, just amazing,” LoPresti said. “She has been involved politically on a local and national scale for her entire life, for minority rights, feminist rights and reproductive rights. But if you ask her what kind of activist she is, she’ll say she fights for human rights. Period.”

Also speaking will be Gina Angelique, founder and choreographer of grassroots activist dance company Eveoke Dance Theatre, who is LoPresti’s sister. Angelique will speak on the relevance of community involvement as key to the goal of national change.

The more we know about history, said LoPresti, the more empowered we are to make change. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by our responsibilities as world citizens, and that our individual voices go unheard, she said.

“But the truth is that every single movement started with a small group of people and then grew,” LoPresti said. “The more that we put attention on what phenomenal things have been done by ‘ordinary’ people, the more today’s girls and women are going to see other options for themselves – powerful options for themselves. And I don’t think there’s anything more important than that.”

The second annual Celebrate Women’s History Month takes place from 3:00 to 10:00 p.m., March 20, at The Center, 3909 Centre St. in Hillcrest. Tickets are $10, $8 for students and seniors, $5 for kids 4-12, and free for children under 3. For more information visit www.gaylesbiantimes.com for a link to The Center’s website.