March 8: International Women's Day
International Women's Day is when women on all
continents, often divided by national boundaries and by ethnic, linguistic,
cultural, economic and political differences, come together to celebrate a
tradition that represents at least nine decades in the struggle for equality,
justice, peace and development.
The
idea of an International Women's Day first arose at the turn of the last
century, which was marked in the industrialized world by a period of expansion
and turbulence, booming population growth, and radical ideologies.
The official holiday had its
beginnings in 1908. That year in the United States, the Socialist Party
appointed a Women's National Committee to Campaign for the Suffrage. After
meeting, this Committee recommended that the Socialist Party set aside a day
every year to campaign to women's right to vote, a big step for socialists and
one welcomed by the women working for suffrage.
On March 8, 1908, Branch No. 3 of the
New York City Social Democratic Women's Society sponsored a mass meeting on
women's rights. Then, in 1909, American socialist agreed to designate the last
Sunday in February as National Women's Day; that year and the next, socialist
women throughout the U.S.
held mass meetings. International Women’s Day was celebrated as a socialist
holiday honoring working women in the early days if its observance.
The
Charter of the United Nations, signed in San
Francisco in 1945, was the first international
agreement to proclaim gender equality as a fundamental human right. Few causes
promoted by the United Nations have generated more intense and widespread
support than the campaign to promote and protect the equal rights of women.
Since
then, the UN has helped create a historic legacy of internationally agreed
strategies, standards, programs and goals to advance the status of women
worldwide.
Over the years, United
Nations action for the advancement of women has taken four clear directions:
promotion of legal measures; mobilization of public opinion and international
action; training and research, including the compilation of gender desegregated
statistics; and direct assistance to disadvantaged groups. The theme for
International Women's Day 2017 is #BeBoldForChange.
Will
you #BeBoldForChange
on International Women's Day 2017 and beyond by taking groundbreaking action
that truly drives the greatest change for women.
Each
one of us - with women, men and non-binary people joining forces - can be a
leader within our own spheres of influence by taking bold pragmatic action to
accelerate gender parity. Through purposeful collaboration, we can help women
advance and unleash the limitless potential offered to economies the world
over.
A
central organizing principle of the work of the United Nations is that no
enduring solution to society's most threatening social, economic and political
problems can be found without the full participation, and the full empowerment,
of the world's women.
With
the resurgence of feminism in the late 1960s in America came a renewed interest in
the day. Feminists found it ready-made holiday for the celebration of women's
lives and work and began promoting March 8 as such. These efforts resulted in
revitalized holiday in countries where it had been traditionally celebrated and
inspired new interest in a number of countries where the holiday had previously
not been observed.
There
are more working women in the U.S.
today than ever before and that number is expected to grow. Yet women face
inequity when they enter the workforce, as they find themselves paid less than
men for the same or comparable jobs. Women continue to earn only 78 cents on
the dollar to their male counterparts. To match men's earnings for 2016, women
have to work from January 2016 to April 2017—an extra four months.
The more things change, the
more they stay the same – for women. On March 8, 1857 women workers in New York City strike for
higher wages, shorter hours, and better working conditions.
This March 8 women are still
striking. Today is billed as A Day Without Women to show the economic power of women’s work,
wages and efforts.
On International Women's Day, March 8th, women and our allies will act
together for equity, justice and the human rights of women and all
gender-oppressed people, through a one-day demonstration of economic
solidarity.
Not everyone can go on
strike, but there are things you can do:
1.
Women take the
day off, from paid and unpaid labor
2.
Avoid shopping
for one day (with exceptions for small, women- and minority-owned businesses).
3.
Wear RED in
solidarity with A Day Without A Woman
What would the financial impact
of A Day Without Women be? According to the Center for American Progress’
calculations based on the labor share of the gross domestic product, or GDP,
and women’s relative pay and hours of work, women’s labor contributes $7.6
trillion to the nation’s GDP each year. In one year, women working for pay in
the United States earn more
than Japan’s
entire GDP of $5.2
trillion. If all paid working women in the United States took a day off, it
would cost the country almost $21 billion in terms of GDP. Moreover, women
contribute many millions of dollars to their state’s GDP each day, making their
work crucial to the health of their local economies as well.
In New York State,
the value of women’s work (even with unequal pay) is $1717.3 million! That is
not small change. Just imagine if women started using the power of their economic
impact to change public policy!
"In the same spirit of love and liberation that inspired the Women's March, we join together in making March 8th A Day Without a Woman, recognizing the enormous value that women of all backgrounds add to our socio-economic system--while receiving lower wages and experiencing greater inequities, vulnerability to discrimination, sexual harassment, and job insecurity. We recognize that trans and gender nonconforming people face heightened levels of discrimination, social oppression and political targeting. We believe in gender justice."
So say we all.
