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Women: According to some, they ‘hold up half of the sky.’ Women make up slightly more than half of the world’s population at 51%. They are also valuable contributors to society as many lawyers, doctors, and other professionals are women. Though they have long been overlooked, this has changed with the introduction of international women’s day.
What is International Women’s Day?
International Women’s Day celebrates and recognizes women as being equals in terms of contributors and members of society. People recognize women’s equality on this day. They also recognize and celebrate the many contributions women have made in a global society. Some of the more notable women in this regard are Clara Barton and Rani Laxmi Bai of Jhansi. International Women’s Day is celebrated on March 8 this year. Its theme is #EachforEqual.
What does the Women’s Day theme do?
Theme #EachforEqual delivers a powerful message to society to recognize women as necessary contributors to society who enjoy the same social status that men have traditionally. Many women-centric events and activities take place on this day. Their goal is to take on and change the stereotype that still exists in many parts of the world (especially in developing and third world ones) of women being helpless dependents in society. The events also work hard to change the idea of women being nothing but baby-making machines.
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International Women’s Day events also seek to fight the sexism that still exists in society. This includes everything from ‘breaking through the glass ceiling’ to ensuring that equally qualified and educated women are paid the same as men for the same jobs. These events also try to give people in developing nations a wider image and perception of women. They are designed to stop people from thinking of women as homemakers and moms. The events try to get people to see that women are special and are capable of making extraordinary contributions to society.
Support for Women’s Day
This special and unique day already gets lots of support from the International Women’s Day foundation. This foundation seeks to build an alliance of both men and women who want to work towards ensuring that all women are treated fairly and equally. One of the missions of this organization is to get more women involved in the creative fields. This includes singing, dancing, literature, etc. It pushes to have women being promoted to roles of professor and deans of Universities. The organization also tries to push women towards many of the topmost positions in organizations that support the liberal arts. Women also get support from this organization to sell their art and other creative work to corporations and individuals for lots of big money.
The Women in Tech mission
The technical and science fields have traditionally been dominated by men. Until about 20 years ago, many girls who wanted to study these fields were told, “girls don’t do science and tech stuff!” The International Women’s Day organization tries to support women in these fields by encouraging them to enter the fields. It also provides support to these women and to women who are already in the field.
The International Women’s Day organization also recognises and celebrates the achievments of women who have already ‘made it big’ in these fields. For example, it recently publicized HCL’s recent recognition of women who are doing great things in technology with the Wave Makers Awards ceremony.
International Women’s Day is more than just another day
International Women’s Day is not like the friendship day that Facebook makes up randomly. It strives to recognize women who have already succeeded and promote and support those who want to be successful. In this regards, it is as important a day as Mother’s Day and Thanksgiving are!
