By Emma Wertheimer, Year 9
As many of you might have noticed, this past March 8th, the world came together to celebrate women and their accomplishments. This day is a special day as it celebrates women and their experiences through the ages. This March 8th, students and staff were encouraged to wear purple to show their support for women, but we didn’t get the chance to delve deeper into the history of the celebration. So, when did this all begin?
According to Wikipedia, “the earliest version of Women’s Day was organised by the Socialist Party of America on February 28th, 1909″. The following year, at the 1910 International Socialist Women’s conference, a proposal was made to designate one day a year in order to honour women. However, it was only after the Russian Revolution in 1917, that a date was picked as the official holiday, which was March 8th. This holiday continued to be celebrated mainly throughout Communist countries until 1977, when the United Nations promoted it to a global holiday.
Every year, the United Nations picks a particular theme to highlight, and 2024 was the year to “Invest in Women: Accelerate Progress”. As the UN says, “by investing in women, we can spark change and speed the transition towards a healthier, safer, and more equal world for all”.
In other words, this day is used by the UN to empower women and to focus on specific difficulties and challenges that many women face. The United Nations does this in order to bring the struggles to light. For example, these topics may vary from inequality in workplaces to the extraordinary accomplishments made by women to improve their situations and those of others in various countries.
Throughout the years, many people have decided to honor specific women in History who have done much to help the cause. For example, many choose to celebrate Marie Curie, the woman who discovered radioactivity, which has helped to shape scientific history ever since. Another important woman who is a symbol of resilience and commitment is Rosa Parks. Parks stood up for the black community and defended civil rights, no matter how challenging it was. Finally, another woman who made an immense impact on the world was Florence Nightingale, who invented the concept of modern nursing and reduced deaths by putting in place better hygiene, living standards and raising the awareness of the importance of nurses as well as surgeons.
International Women’s day serves to celebrate not only these amazing women, but all women. It aims to celebrate all women in society and their impact, whether it is big or small. International Women’s Day embraces the fact that all women can make an immense difference and that everyone has the potential to change the world, no matter their gender.
