The State Historical Society of Iowa’s popular “History for Lunch” lecture series continues this month with Janet Weaver, assistant curator of the Iowa Women’s Archives at the University of Iowa.

History for Lunch will be at noon Wednesday, March 25, 2009, at SHSI’s Centennial Building, 402 Iowa Avenue (Iowa and Gilbert streets) in Iowa City. The lecture is free and the public is encouraged to bring a brown bag lunch. Call 319-335-3911 for more information.

Weaver’s discussion, “Of Buttons and Barrios: Iowa Women Activists for Labor and Civil Rights, 1910-1960,” focuses on the agency of Eastern Iowa women in the long struggle for social and economic justice that preceded landmark legislative gains of the 20th century.

“Whether button workers in Muscatine or factory workers who lived in Mexican barrios in the Quad Cities, the activism of working-class Iowa women of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds challenges us to reconsider our understanding of early to mid-century Iowa history,” Weaver said.

Weaver earned a master’s degree in modern history at St. Andrews University in Scotland and is the author of a forthcoming article in the Summer 2009 issue of “Annals of Iowa” entitled, “From Barrio to ‘¡Boicoteo!’: The Emergence of Mexican American Activism in Davenport, Iowa, 1917-1970.”

The State Historical Society of Iowa is a division of the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs, and is a trustee of Iowa’s historical legacy and an advocate for understanding Iowa’s past. It identifies, records, collects, preserves, manages and provides access to Iowa’s historical resources. Its dual mission of preservation and education serves Iowans of all ages, conducts and stimulates research, disseminates information, and encourages and supports historical preservation and education efforts of others throughout the state. Visit www.iowahistory.org or call 515-281-5111 for more information.