International Women's Day: Why it is still so important.
Every year on the 8th of March, millions around the world mark International Women’s Day. It celebrates the achievements of women in all fields and is there to educate and spread awareness for equality for women in all countries. This year’s campaign theme was Inspire Inclusion, with the aim of raising money for female focused charities.
Photo Credit: The Independent/Getty Images
However, many ask is International Woman’s Day really that important in the 21st century?
Equality is not as simple just getting the vote or closing the gender pay gap. It also includes women getting equal opportunities for executive positions or the fact that women all over the world face acts of domestic and sexual violence disproportionately. There is also the problem of feminism taking a very western-centric view, saying that if it is okay in places such as the United States it must be okay everywhere. However, this is a very smallminded way to think about feminism and what it stands for. Feminism is also for all the women in developing countries who spend all day working to earn very little money and then have to go home to look after their children and complete all the housework. The theme this year, ‘Inspire Inclusion’, highlights the need for the diversity of women to be a point that is used to empower people and to ensure that no one, regardless of race, religion, sexuality or any other reason, should be excluded.
Consider how many women you have seen take a role as Head of State; not many I would bet. Women still do not have the facilities to support them going into positions of power. Whether it is barriers to accessing education from a young age or having to look after children and not being able to pursue a career. In many countries across the world women and girls are denied access to education and even if they have dreams of becoming a doctor or a lawyer, they are denied this dream. International Women’s Day campaigns for these girls to be given their basic rights.
Many aspects of gender inequality are more hidden than you may think. Many women are left with the burden of care even when they are sick and most unpaid labour (for instance cleaning, cooking, caring for the children) is completed by women.
Another major aspect of the inequality between men and women is in medical research. This is something many people do not even realise is a problem. The gender gap in medical research can lead to the higher likelihood of misdiagnosis and leads to women having to wait longer for pain relief. Historically, medical research has excluded women from it, meaning much of what we understand in medicine today is based on male biology, which has a plethora of differences to female biology. Research on women’s medical issues has also seen far less funding, as conditions such as endometriosis still have relatively little known about them, meaning that millions of women all over the world suffer on a daily basis with minimal hope of relief. A study by the University of California, Berkley and the University of Chicago also found that women are more likely than men to suffer the side effects of medication due to the fact that historically drug dosages have been decided based on trials conducted on men. The gender gap in medicine can often be overlooked, leading to women across the world suffering the side effects.
Recent events in the media have highlighted why International Women’s Day is still needed in 2024. A Red Bull F1 employee was recently suspended after an investigation into “inappropriate behaviour” towards her by the Team Principal Christian Horner. Horner was cleared of wrongdoing but the suspension of the employee has raised questions about the grounds for the suspension and many have expressed disappointment in F1 as they seek to get more women involved in such a male-dominated sport.
The UN has also received credible allegations that women and girls in Gaza have faced serious violations of their human rights. As many conflicts continue to rage across the world, questions on the treatment of women and girls in these countries worry many activists.
International Women’s Day is both a celebration of what women have achieved but it also highlights the importance of fighting for the equality between men and women. It is a day for elevating the women in your life and recognising everything they do all year round. Hopefully in the future International Women’s Day will be a day just to celebrate women, and not for campaigning for the basic rights of women all over the world.
Written by Holly Bartlett. Edited by Alice Wesley.
Holly Bartlett is a second year International Relations and Conflict Student.