International Women’s Day

How important it is for us to recognize and celebrate our heroes and she-roes!

Never were truer words spoken and for today especially this quote rings true. We would like to take this opportunity to wish all of our women blog readers, social media followers, advertisers and staff alike a very happy International Women’s Day.

If you didn’t know that today is International Women’s Day, be assured that by the end of the day you will have been told by plenty women in your life.

International Women’s Day (IWD), is marked on March 8 every year. The focus of the celebrations ranges from general celebration of respect, appreciation and love towards women to a celebration for women’s economic, political and social achievements.

The theme for this year is “Connecting Girl, Inspiring Futures”, if every international woman’s day event held in 2012 includes girls in some way, then thousands of minds will be inspired globally.''

International Women’s Day takes place on 8 March. It’s a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating gender equality. The focus of the day is often shone on working women – women who are employed, either part time or full time. Do you have such a woman in your life? Understand the day and find ways to treat your favorite working woman.

Short history

The earliest Women’s Day observance was held on February 28, 1909, in New York. It was organized by the Socialist Party of America in remembrance of the 1908 strike of the International Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union. This was a time of great expansion and turbulence in the industrialized world that saw booming population growth and the rise of radical ideologies. Women increasingly took a stand for their rights.

In 1977 the United Nations General Assembly invited member states to proclaim March 8 as the UN Day for women’s rights and world peace. While the UN still announces a theme every year for Women’s Day, it has spread much wider than the organization. Today, no single government, NGO, charity, corporation, academic institution, women’s network or media hub is solely responsible for International Women’s Day.

Women’s Day is simply a day to celebrate, appreciate and respect especially working women, but also every other women on the planet. It is especially important for promoting gender equality.

Celebrations for men

If you’re a man and you want to show your appreciation and love for the working women in your life, here are a few ways in which to do so:

At the office: If you have an office job then you’re definitely sharing the office with women. Make an effort to show them your appreciation at work on the day. If you’re the head of a team, see if there’s money available for a small celebration. Buy a cake to share in the office, or buy each woman a flower to wear on her chest on the day. If you’re not in a position to organize events like these in the office, suggest it to your superiors. If this is not possible, then simply be nice to the women sharing the office with you on the day. Perhaps take a task off her workload or buy her a coffee.

At home: Make your wife, partner, girlfriend, spouse, or sister feel special on the day. Give her a bunch of flowers, make her breakfast or take her out to dinner in the evening. Alternatively, make an effort to relieve her of some of her regular responsibilities at home. If she normally cooks dinner, takes the kids to school or takes out the trash, do this for her to show her you appreciate her both as a woman in your life and as a working woman.

Away from home: Send money to your favorite working woman if she doesn’t live in the same country as you do. Tell her to spoil herself and not to spend it on something mundane like groceries or fuel. This way you can make her feel special even if there are oceans or continents separating you from each other.

Celebrations for women

At the office: Being a working woman yourself, you should also make an effort to celebrate the day, especially at the office. Get the other women together and go out for a quick lunch. You’ll definitely have lots of stories to share about being women in the workplace. Dress up especially nice on the day. Make an effort with your appearance. Looking good will also remind you of your worth as a woman in the workplace.

At home: You can’t exactly force your family to treat you at home, but you can most definitely treat yourself. Take the night off from strenuous activities like extra work, cooking, doing the dishes and washing the clothes. You can have takeout for one night and the kids can recycle a school shirt. Run yourself a bath, light some candles and enjoy some much-needed me-time.

Awareness

International Women’s Day is also about equality. There are many countries in the world where women still aren’t allowed to work. This happens despite the fact that research has proven economies to be more successful if their women also work. Many women are still oppressed in their cultures and looked down upon by men. Make International Women’s Day a day where you educate yourself about gender equality. You might event feel like donating money to a women’s cause or organization working towards global gender equality.