article by Aimee Kennerley Y12
What is International Women’s Day exactly? You may find that you are asking yourself this question as we approach March 8th. Whilst it is usually just seen as a day to celebrate women all over the world, it is so much more than that, so let’s look into the history of and importance behind this particular day.
The roots of International Women’s Day lie in the early 20th century women’s movement, the rise of socialism and labor movements meant more advocating for women’s rights, with women playing major roles in these movements. This led to German activist Clara Zetkin proposing at the 1910 International Socialist Women’s Conference, that March 8th be celebrated annually as International Women’s Day. Many backed this idea and viewed it as a day of solidarity to encourage women to press their demands, including suffrage, better working conditions, and the right to hold public office. This ultimately led to the first International Women’s Day in 1911, with countries such as Austria, Denmark, Germany, and Switzerland participating. In the latter’s case, it is quite ironic considering it took Switzerland until 1971, 60 more years, to give women the right to vote. This day quickly gained more and more support over the years, becoming closely related to the suffragette movements, and overall advocacy for women and their place in society. All of these events led to the United Nations officially recognizing this day in 1975, cementing its place as a day of global observance. Now International Women’s Day is celebrated in over 100 countries worldwide with millions participating in events and activities.
Despite this day having done so much good, there are still so many ways women are disadvantaged in society. According to the World Economic Forum, it will take around 151 years to close the economic gender gap globally. As of 2021 only 26% of people in parliaments were women. As stated by UNICEF, around 139 million girls are still not at school. Moreover, the WHO has announced that one in three women have experienced physical or sexual violence, along with approximately 800 women dying every day from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth. And lastly, women make up only 39% of the global workforce, but they are disproportionately represented in low-paying and informal sectors, according to the International Labor Organization. International Women’s Day is not only a day of celebration but also a call to action. It encourages individuals, organizations, and governments to take concrete steps towards achieving gender equality and women’s empowerment, both locally and globally. So now that you know what International Women’s Day is all about, instead of asking, “What is International Women’s Day?”, ask yourself: how can I help this cause and get involved?
All resources used for the article can be found below:
Gender Parity – Accelerators Network
Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments (%) | Data
Countries Ranked by Percentage of Workforce Who Are Women.
image from https://nsgeu.ca/home_page/happy-international-womens-day-march-6th/21292/
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