MARCH 8 INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY

 

International Women's Day

 

International Women's Day is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating gender parity. Significant activity is witnessed worldwide as groups come together to celebrate women's achievements or rally for women's equality. 

Marked annually on March 8th, International Women's Day (IWD) is one of the most important days of the year to:

• celebrate women's achievements
• raise awareness about women's equality
• lobby for accelerated gender parity
• fundraise for female-focused charities

What's the theme for International Women's Day?

The campaign theme for International Women's Day 2021 is 'Choose To Challenge'. A challenged world is an alert world. And from challenge comes change. So let's all #ChooseToChallenge.

What colors symbolize International Women's Day?

Purple, green and white are the colors of International Women's Day. Purple signifies justice and dignity. Green symbolizes hope. White represents purity, albeit a controversial concept. The colors originated from the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU) in the UK in 1908.

How did International Women’s Day start?

The impetus for establishing an International Women’s Day can be traced back to New York City in February 1908, when thousands of women who were garment workers went on strike and marched through the city to protest against their working conditions. “Like today, these women were in less organized workplaces [than their male counterparts], were in the lower echelons of the garment industry, and were working at low wages and experiencing sexual harassment,” says Eileen Boris, Professor of Feminist Studies at the University of California Santa Barbara.

In honor of the anniversary of those strikes, which were ongoing for more than a year, a National Women’s Day was celebrated for the first time in the U.S. on Feb. 28, 1909, spearheaded by the Socialist Party of America.

Led by German campaigner and socialist Clara Zetkin, the idea to turn the day into an international movement advocating universal suffrage was established at the International Conference of Working Women in 1910. Zetkin was renowned as a passionate orator and advocate for working women’s rights, and her efforts were crucial to the day’s recognition throughout much of Europe in the early 1910s.

International women's day quotes

“A charming woman doesn’t follow the crowd; she is herself.” –Loretta Young

“The best protection any woman can have is courage.” –Elizabeth Cady Stanton

“Where there is a woman, there is magic.” –Ntozake Shange

“You were given this life because you are strong enough to live it.” –Unknown

“Women are the largest untapped reservoir of talent in the world.” –Hillary Clinton

“A girl should be two things: Who and what she wants.” –Coco Chanel

“She wasn’t looking for a knight. She was looking for a sword.” –Atticus 

“There’s nothing a man can do that I can’t do better and in heels.” –Ginger