International Women Day-March 8

International Women Day (IWD), originally called International Working Women’s Day, is celebrated on March 8 every year. International Women’s Day (IWD) is a major day of global celebration for the economic, political, and social achievements of women past, present, and future.

Acknowledging the contributions of local women is essential to realize true equality and respect in our homes, our workplaces, and in society as a whole. IWD was first declared in 1910 with the first event held in 1911.  Established in 1911, International Women’s Day is a major day of global celebration for the economic, political, and social achievements of women past, present, and future.

It is a day in which women from around the world unite in thoughts, prayers, struggles, hopes, and dreams. Women’s accomplishments in education, business, science, art, medicine, public service, athletics, and every other field have made our world better and stronger. Today, we celebrate the women in our lives. They are the cornerstones of our communities working tirelessly and making countless differences in the lives of those around them. We acknowledge the importance women have in our lives.

• those in small remote villages, mountains, deserts, and refugee camps;
• those living in mud and straw-thatched homes, large urban cities, and rural countryside;
• those in the workplace, the poor, the rich, and the unemployed;
• those in our schools, colleges, and universities,
• those who are mothers, working women, and those who do both;
• those who are single, married, divorced, or widowed;
• those who are young, older, or physically disabled; and
• those whom we know and those who are strangers;

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When it is celebrated

The first International Women’s Day occurred on March 19 in 1911. The inaugural event, which included rallies and organized meetings, was a big success in countries such as Austria, Denmark, Germany, and Switzerland. The March 19 date was chosen because it commemorated the day that the Prussian king promised to introduce votes for women in 1848. The promise gave hope for equality but it was a promise that he failed to keep. The International Women’s Day date was moved to March 8 in 1913.

How is International Women’s Day celebrated?

It is a special event that is celebrated worldwide on the 8th of March by the people including women leaders from the business, political, community, educational institutions, inventors, TV personalities and etc. It is celebrated by organizing a variety of programs like seminars, women’s parades, conferences, banners, debates, presentations, speeches, competitive activities, luncheons, women’s issues, dinners, breakfasts including other women’s rights promotional activities. It is celebrated to enhance the worldwide awareness about women, their rights, contributions, the importance of education, career opportunities and etc.

In some regions, the day lost its political flavor and became simply an occasion for people to express their love for women in a way somewhat similar to a mixture of Mother’s Day and Valentine’s Day. In other regions, however, the political and human rights theme designated by the United Nations runs strong political and social awareness of the struggles of women worldwide are brought out and examined in a hopeful manner. Some people celebrate the day by wearing purple ribbons.

Suggested Read: The Changing Status Of Indian Women

How its Celebration has helped women

It turned out above all to be an excellent method of agitation among the less political of our proletarian women. They could not help but turn their attention to the meetings, demonstrations, posters, pamphlets, and newspapers that were devoted to Women’s Day. Even the politically backward working woman thought to herself: “This is our day, the festival for working women,” and she hurried to the meetings and demonstrations. After each Working Women’s Day, more women joined the socialist parties and the trade unions grew. Organizations improved and political consciousness developed. Women’s Day served yet another function; it strengthened the international solidarity of the workers.

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International Women’s Day Themes

The Theme for 2010 was Equal Rights, Equal Opportunities: Progress for All
The Theme for 2011 was Equal Access to Education, Training, and Science and Technology: Pathway to Decent Work for Women
The Theme for 2012 was Empower Rural Women, End Poverty, and Hunger
The Theme for 2013 was A Promise is a Promise: Time for Action to End Violence Against Women
The Theme for 2014 was Equality for Women is Progress for All
The Theme for 2015 was Empowering Women, Empowering Humanity: Picture it!
The Theme for 2016 was Planet 50-50 by 2030: Step It Up for Gender Equality
The Theme for 2017 was Be Bold For Change
The Theme for 2018 was “Time is Now: Rural and urban activists transforming women’s lives,”
The Theme for 2019 was “Think Equal, Build Smart, Innovate for Change”
The Theme for 2020 was “I am Generation Equality: Realizing Women’s Rights”
The Theme for 2021 was “Women in Leadership: Achieving an Equal Future in a COVID-19 World”.
The Theme for 2022 was “Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow”.
The Theme for 2023 was #EmbraceEquity.

International Women’s Day Quotes

♀ A woman is like a teabag – you can’t tell how strong she is until you put her in hot water.  – Eleanor Roosevelt

♀ Think like a queen. A queen is not afraid to fail. Failure is another steppingstone to greatness. – Oprah Winfrey

♀ There are only three things women need in life: food, water, and compliments. – Chris Rock

♀ Women, if the soul of the nation is to be saved, I believe that you must become its soul. – Coretta Scott King

♀ After women, flowers are the most lovely thing God has given the world. – Christian Dior

♀ Women are made to be loved, not understood. – Oscar Wilde

♀ I am an example of what is possible when girls from the very beginning of their lives are loved and nurtured by people around them. I was surrounded by extraordinary women in my life who taught me about quiet strength and dignity. – Michelle Obama

♀ I want to tell women that they need to love themselves and make themselves a priority. It’s only when you are happy yourself, can you make everyone else around you happy. I am still a dreamer and still believe in fairy tales, but there is only that much one should give another person. You need to keep something for yourself. – Bipasha Basu

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