As we prepare to celebrate International Women’s Day (IWD) on World Wednesday, let’s take a look at what the global event means, this year’s theme and what activists are focusing on.
What is International Women’s Day?
IWD is an annual event to celebrate women’s achievements and advance rights. It has its roots in the US socialist and labor movements of the early 20th century, where women in particular fought for better working conditions and suffrage.
The first recorded celebration was in 1911 when more than a million people rallied in support of women’s rights in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland. Since then, the event has grown not only in size but also in scope. Her focus has expanded to issues ranging from violence against women to equality in the workplace.
While no single group owns the event, the United Nations is often at the forefront of the celebrations after it officially recognized the IWD in 1977. However, although some countries, including China, consider IWD a public holiday, celebrations around the world are often decentralized. . , Russia and Uganda.
What is the theme of International Women’s Day this year?
The UN theme this year is DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender equality. The topic highlights how important technology is for advancing rights, but the growing digital gender gap is affecting everything from women’s job opportunities to online safety.
According to the UN, 259 million fewer women than men have internet access, and women are grossly underrepresented in science, technology, engineering and math careers.
“Engaging women in technology results in more creative solutions and has greater potential for innovations that meet women’s needs and promote gender equality,” the UN’s website says. “Not including them, by contrast, comes at great costs.”
Previous UN themes have included climate change, rural women and HIV/AIDS.
Why is International Women’s Day important?
This year’s theme for the UN highlights how the struggle for gender equality has evolved in the 21st century, while celebrations around the world focus on long-standing issues such as poverty and violence.
A World Health Organization report in 2021 revealed that approximately one in three women worldwide have experienced physical or s*xual violence in their lifetime; this is an issue linked to women’s economic opportunities, access to s*x education and reproductive rights.
In recent years, as the initial movement largely focused on cisgender white women fighting for voting rights, there has also been a push to make IWD more inclusive of racialized women as well as transgender, non-binary and gender non-conforming people.
While IWD is an opportunity to raise awareness of rights gaps, organizers also use the day to celebrate progress and women’s individual achievements.