International Women's Day 2021

Monday March 8th, 2021 is International Women’s Day. International Women’s day is held every year to celebrate women’s rights and help inspire people to join the fight for gender equality. This United Nations global holiday celebrates contributions made by women all throughout our society, helps raise awareness, and inspires organizations to support women in every country across the globe.

During this global pandemic, women have been on the front lines as caregivers, health care workers, innovators, and effective national leaders in the fight against COVID-19. Majority of the countries that have been the most successful in slowing the spread of the pandemic and have addressed many socio-economic impacts, are all headed by women. This crisis has highlighted not only how integral women are in society but also how disproportionately burdened they are with being a woman. In December 2020, in the U.S alone, the economy lost 140,000 jobs and all of them were held by women. At the same time, men gained 16,000 jobs.

The IWD theme for 2021 is #ChooseToChallenge.This theme highlights that we should be challenging all of the different misconceptions and biases that our society holds in regards to women in order to create a gender-equal world. We should have equal pay for equal work. It is up to every individual to call out gender bias or inequality when we see it.

International Women’s Day has been going on for over a century, with the first official gathering occurring in 1911. This event was supported by over a million people. Now, International Women’s Day occurs worldwide with a variety of groups, institutions, and individuals taking part of the festivities. It is going to take everyone to make a difference in the world and allow women and girls the space and opportunity to live up to their truest potential.

Resources:

https://www.unwomen.org/en/news/stories/2020/11/announcer-international-womens-day-2021#:~:text=UN%20Women%20announces%20the%20theme,from%20the%20COVID%2D19%20pandemic.

https://www.internationalwomensday.com/About