ABOUT IWD
An international celebration of education and empowerment
Around the world, International Women's Day (IWD) marks a celebration of the economic, social, cultural and political achievements for women.
The first IWD was held on 19 March 1911 in Germany, Austria, Denmark and further European countries. German women selected this date because in 1848 the Prussian king had promised the vote for women. Subsequently over one million leaflets calling for action on the right to vote were distributed throughout Germany before IWD in 1911. Now IWD is always celebrated on 8 March and is an occasion marked by women's groups around the world. This date is also commemorated at the United Nations and is designated in many countries as a national holiday. Women in every country, often divided by ethnic, linguistic, cultural, economic and political differences, come together to celebrate this important date that represents equality, justice, peace and development.
International Women's Day is the story of ordinary women as makers of history; it is rooted in the centuries-old struggle of women seeking to participate equally in society on an equal footing with men. In ancient Greece, Lysistrata initiated a sexual strike against men in order to end war; during the French Revolution, Parisian women calling for "liberty, equality, fraternity" marched on Versailles to demand women's suffrage.
The idea of an International Women's Day first arose at the turn of the century, which in the industrialized world was a period of expansion and turbulence, booming population growth and radical ideologies.
Until women are fully represented at senior leadership levels of public,
professional and economic life, women do not have equal rights nor an
equal voice.
Following is a brief chronology of the most important events:
1909
In accordance with a declaration by the Socialist Party of America, the
first National Woman's Day was observed across the United States on 28
February. Women continued to celebrate it on the last Sunday of that month
through 1913. 1910 The Socialist International, meeting in Copenhagen,
established a Women's Day, international in character, to honour the movement
for women's rights and to assist in achieving universal suffrage for women.
The proposal was greeted with unanimous approval by the conference of
over 100 women from 17 countries, which included the first three women
elected to the Finnish parliament. No fixed date was selected for the
observance.
1911
As a result of the decision taken at Copenhagen the previous year, International
Women's Day was marked for the first time (19 March) in Austria, Denmark,
Germany and Switzerland, where more than one million women and men attended
rallies. In addition to the right to vote and to hold public office, they
demanded the right to work, to vocational training and to an end to discrimination
on the job. Less than a week later, on 25 March, the tragic Triangle Fire
in New York City took the lives of more than 140 working girls, most of
them Italian and Jewish immigrants. This event had a significant impact
on labour legislation in the United States, and the working conditions
leading up to the disaster were invoked during subsequent observances
of International Women's Day.
1913-1914
As part of the peace movement brewing on the eve of World War I, Russian
women observed their first International Women's Day on the last Sunday
in February 1913. Elsewhere in Europe, on or around 8 March of the following
year, women held rallies either to protest the war or to express solidarity
with their sisters.
1917
With 2 million Russian soldiers dead in the war, Russian women again chose
the last Sunday in February to strike for "bread and peace".
Political leaders opposed the timing of the strike, but the women went
on anyway. The rest is history: Four days later the Czar was forced to
abdicate and the provisional Government granted women the right to vote.
That historic Sunday fell on 23 February on the Julian calendar then in
use in Russia, but on 8 March on the Gregorian calendar in use elsewhere.
Since those early years, International Women's Day has assumed a new global
dimension for women in developed and developing countries alike.
The growing international women's movement has helped make IWD a special
day for promoting women's rights and participation in political and economic
processes. Increasingly, International Women's Day is a time to reflect
on the progress made, to call for change and to celebrate acts of courage
and determination by ordinary women who have played an extraordinary role
in the history of women's rights.
Find out about IWD events near you by visiting the IWD website at www.internationalwomensday.com