In a few days, women all over the world will be celebrating the International Women’s day – a symbol of how far women have come and the journey yet to be completed on the quest for gender parity.
A short history – in 1908, 15,000 women marched through New York City demanding shorter hours, better pay and voting right in protest of oppression and inequality cases. By the next year, the National Women’s Day was declared as February 28 in the United States. Since then we have come a long to celebrating these giant strides on the 8th of every March.
One would be tempted to ask though – what’s the fuss? Women have been around since the beginning of time; why should they be recognised now?
These are 3 reasons why:
- The pay discrepancy still exists
Research shows that about 75% of men still earn more than women in the same level playing field at the work place. The result is diminished confidence of women in the work place, imposing a barrier to their progress.
- Victim blaming still exists
Women are still being blamed for unfortunate events, with the bulk of the burden put on their shoulders, even when clearly, they should not be blamed. There have been many controversial discussions around issues such as rape, where women are blamed without proper resolution to those cases.
This of course, contributes to suppressing the collective and individual voices of women, who refuse to speak out in a majority of these cases.
- Cultural stereotypes still prevent more women from hitting the glass ceiling
In many cases, it’s not just that women exhibit less confidence than their male counterparts due to cultural inhibitions where women are made to be seen and not heard.
This also means women are not as vocal as they should be or as celebratory of their achievements as they ought to be.
The International Women’s day is a day set aside to celebrate women’s achievements and remind women to be more confident, less self-critical and stand out more in the work place. For younger women, it is also an inspirational day to reflect on what gender parity means to the world, and how far we call can achieve if women are given equal opportunities and recognition world over.
How are you celebrating women’s day?
Certainly not in HH. Here, women reach the zenith and earn more than men actually. Here, there are no cultural bias against women. Here, there are more women CEOs than men. And the good things are just beginning to come the way of women.