International Women’s Day

International Women’s Day
Compiled by: Asim Deb, 1977 Electronics & Tele-communication Engineering

Women’s Day, its History
International Women’s Day, celebrated now a days in many countries, is a day for recognising their achievements without regard to divisions, whether national, ethnic, linguistic, cultural, economic or political.

Since those early years, Women’s Day has assumed a new global dimension. The international women’s movement, strengthened by four global United Nations women’s conferences, has helped make the commemoration a rallying point to build support for women’s rights and participation in the political and economic arenas.

Movement in the United States, 1908.
The first National Woman’s Day was observed in the United States on 28 February 1908 when the Socialist Party of America designated this day in honour of the 1908 garment workers’ strike in New York, where women protested against bad working conditions.

But the first milestone in US was much earlier – in 1848. Indignant over women being barred from speaking at an anti-slavery convention, two American women Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucretia Mott congregate a few hundred people at their nation’s first women’s rights convention in New York. Together they demanded for civil, social, political and religious rights for women in a Declaration of Sentiments and Resolutions. A movement was born.

Encouraged by German activist Clara Zetkin, the International Socialist Congress agreed in 1910 to create an international version of the U.S. holiday, and on March 19, 1911, the first IWD was held in Austria, Denmark, Germany, and Switzerland. More than one million people rallied on the day. In the ensuing years the IWD was celebrated in many other countries but on different dates. On March 8 (February 23, Old Style), 1917, women in Petrograd (St. Petersburg), went on strike to protest poor living conditions, food shortage, poor living conditions, and also against World War I. This strike for “bread and peace” helped in the acceleration of Russian Revolution of 1917. Then in 1921 the date of the IWD was officially changed to March 8.

The first public indication that change was imminent came with women’s reaction to the 1963 publication of Betty Friedan’s book “The Feminine Mystique”. She described the problem that “lay buried, unspoken” in the mind of the suburban housewife: utter boredom and lack of fulfillment.

Initially, women encouraged by Friedan’s book joined with government leaders and union representatives who had been lobbying the federal government for equal pay and for protection against discriminations in employment. By June 1966 they had concluded that polite requests were insufficient. They would need their own national pressure group. With this, the National Organisation for Women (NOW) was founded.

UN Charter: “Fundamental Freedoms for All”
Going back to the history, we find that established on 24th October 1945 to promote international co-operation following the devastation of World War II, the UN has since its inception enshrined the equal rights of men and women at the heart of its raison d’être. Its founding charter outlines its purpose to promote and encourage “fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion.” Less than a year later during the inaugural session of the UN General Assembly in London, U.K., Frieda Dalen of Norway became the first woman delegate to address it and Elenaor Roosevelt from U.S.A. famously read an “open letter to the women of the world” urging for their progressing participation in national and international affairs.

Tracking Progress: Commission on the Status of Women
June 21, 1946. A functional commission of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), and the Commission on the Status of Wome (CSW) were founded as the first global intergovernmental body exclusively dedicated to the establishing of gender equality and women empowerment. The Commission brings together Member States, civil society organizations and UN entities to assess gaps and evaluate progress on an annual basis. In the Commission, Member States agreed on actions to accelerate the women’s rights and empowerment.

One Giant Leap for Humanity: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights
December 10, 1948. Adopted by the UN General Assembly, the landmark Universal Declaration of Human Rights was the first global recognition that there are basic rights and fundamental freedoms that apply to every human being. Drafted as “a common standard of achievement for all peoples and nations,” the Declaration for the first time in human history spells out basic civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights that all human beings: men or women should enjoy. The cornerstone for modern human rights: Declaration in International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (1966) made the International Bill of Human Rights.

A Time to Celebrate: International Women’s Day, Year & Decade
From March 8, 1975 to December 31, 1985
In 1975, during International Women’s Year, the UN begins commemorating 8th March as International Women’s Day. Two years later, the UN General Assembly officially formalizes the Day, although the first observance dates back to 28 February 1909, when the Socialist Party of America designated the day to honour a garment workers’ strike the year prior in New York. Coinciding with International Women’s Year, the first World Conference on Women was held in Mexico, 19 June-2 July 1975. World Plan of Action for the next ten years was adopted for the Advancement of Women, following which the UN General Assembly proclaims the timeline of 1976-1985 as the Decade of United Nations for Women: Equality, Development and Peace.

The Celebration Spreads
After World War II, 8 March now being celebrated in a number of countries. In 1975, during the International Women’s Year, the United Nations began celebrating 8 March as International Women’s Day. Two years later, in December 1977, the UN General Assembly adopted the resolution proclaiming a United Nations Day for Women’s Rights and International Peace to be observed on any day of the year by Member States, in accordance with their historical and national traditions. Since then, the United Nations and their agencies have worked tirelessly to secure gender equality worldwide with great outcomes achieved: in 1995 the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, a historic roadmap signed by 189 governments, focused on 12 critical areas of concern; and the inclusion of Goal 5 “Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls” in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Why 8th March?
19 March, the last Sunday of February, 15 April, and 23 February are among the key dates for the International Women’s Day movement. But where, then, did the 8th of March come from? Ask Julius Cesar and Gregory XIII! Before the Revolution, Russia had not yet adopted the Gregorian calendar, introduced by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582 to mitigate the errors of the Julian calendar, which owes its name to the Roman emperor, who had chosen it 46 years before the birth of Jesus Christ. The Gregorian calendar is used today in the large majority of countries. In 1917, 23 February in Russia thus corresponded to 8 March in the other European countries. It’s as simple as that!

Acknowledgement:
https://www.un.org/en/observances/womens-day;
https://www.unesco.org/en/days/women;
https://www.britannica.com/topic/International-Womens-Day;