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.
International Women’s Day has been observed since the early 1900s. In some countries like Russia, China, Vietnam and Bulgaria, it is a national holiday. The United Nations has been observing International Women’s Day since 1975.
The day is celebrated on different dates around the world. In the United States, International Women’s Day is celebrated on March 8.
The origins of International Women’s Day are murky. Some say the day was first observed on February 28, 1908, in New York City. The day was organized by the Socialist Party of America to celebrate the women’s strike at the garment factories.
Others say the day was first observed on March 8, 1917, in Russia to commemorate the women who led the February Revolution.
The first International Women’s Day was observed on March 19, 1911, in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland.
International Women’s Day is a day to reflect on the progress made by women and to call for greater gender parity. The day is also a time to celebrate the accomplishments of women around the world.
The United Nations has set a goal of achieving gender parity by 2030. International Women’s Day is a call to action to speed up the progress towards this goal.
There are countless inspiring women who have changed the world throughout history. Here are just a few examples:
- Rosa Parks: Rosa Parks is best known for her refusal to give up her bus seat to a white person, which sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Her actions helped to ignite the Civil Rights Movement.
- Malala Yousafzai: Malala Yousafzai is a Pakistani activist who became the youngest-ever Nobel Prize laureate when she was just 17 years old. She is a staunch advocate for girls’ education, and has been critical of the Taliban’s treatment of women and girls.
- Hillary Clinton: Hillary Clinton is a politician, diplomat, and lawyer who has been influential in American politics for over 25 years. She was the first woman to be nominated for President by a major political party, and she is the first woman to win a major party’s nomination in the United States.
- Oprah Winfrey: Oprah Winfrey is an American media mogul, actress, talk show host, and philanthropist. She is the richest African American of the 20th century, and one of the most influential women in the world.
- Wangari Maathai: Wangari Maathai was a Kenyan environmentalist and political activist. She was the first African woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, and she was also the founder of the Green Belt Movement, which promotes environmental conservation and women’s empowerment in Africa.
