International Women’s Day is celebrated on March 8 every year to mark the contribution of women to society across the globe. According to the United Nations website, the first International Women’s Day was marked in 1909 in America, marked as the National Woman’s Day on February 28 that year. The Socialist Party of America marked this day in honor of the 1908 garment workers’ strike in New York, in which women had protested against bad working conditions and work hours. Since then, this day celebrates women’s contribution and also talks about their development.
The first International Women’s Day was celebrated on March 19, 1911. The first Women’s Day on March 8 was marked in 1914, in Germany. A Women's Day demonstration on March 8, 1917 in Petrograd sparked the Russian Revolution. Declared a national holiday in the Soviet Russia in 1917, it was predominantly celebrated by the socialist movement and communist countries until it was adopted in 1975 by the United Nations. In a handful of countries, including Cuba, Madagascar and Uzbekistan, it's an official holiday.
This day marked the demand of strong rights for women, including the right to vote, to hold public office, and a voice against employment and sex discrimination. International Women’s Day has helped to build a strong support system and courage for all women.
The United Nations, 2017 theme for International Women’s Day, focuses on Women in the Changing World of Work: Planet 50-50 by 2030. In a message released for International Women’s Day, the UN Secretary-General emphasises that Women’s rights are human rights. But in these troubled times, as our world becomes more unpredictable and chaotic, the rights of women and girls are being reduced, restricted and reversed.
International Women’s Day 2017 will be celebrated on Wednesday March 8th under the theme “Be Bold for Change”. January saw the largest women-led marches take place in history, held in cities around the world from Washington DC and London to Seoul and Sydney. This year, the IWD organizers are urging everyone to be a driving force for equality.
