March 8, 2014 marks 104 years of celebrating International Women’s Day (IWD) which was first celebrated in 1908. The day has evolved to become a time to reflect on the progress made by women and a day to celebrate acts of courage accomplished by ordinary women who have played extraordinary roles in the history of their countries. As we celebrate this important day throughout the UAE at conferences and award ceremonies, it is a good time to reflect and remember the history of this day.
It origins date back to the start of the women’s right movement in the US and Europe. On March 8, 1857, a group of women workers in New York City staged a protest to insist they get improved working conditions and better pay. This protest set the stage and led to the formation of the first women’s labour union in March 1859. Fifty years after this first union formed, women had still not received many of the same basic rights as men. Once again, on the 8th day of March, 15,000 women marched the streets of New York City demanding better hours, increased wages and the right to vote in 1908. One year later, on February 28, 1909 the first official observance of a Women’s Day took place.
In Europe the women’s movement was also gaining momentum. At the 1910 Second International Conference of Socialist Women in Copenhagen, Denmark, over 100 women from 17 countries unanimously agreed to have an International Women’s Day. This led to the event being celebrated on March 19, 1911 in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland. More than one million people attended rallies where women demanded the rights to vote, hold public office, work, receive vocational training and end discriminatory practices in the work place.
In 1917, after the loss of some two million Russian soldiers, Russian women gathered on the last Sunday in February (February 23 according to the Julian calendar and March 8 according to the Gregorian) to protest for peace. This historical strike proved to be the initial stage of the Russian Revolution as four days later the Czar was overthrown and women were granted the right to vote. Soon thereafter the day was made an official holiday in Russia.
International Women’s Day has since grown to become a global day of recognition and celebration throughout the world where events are held to honour the accomplishments and advancements of women in the economic, social and political arenas. In 1975 the United Nations began celebrating IWD on March 8th. Two years later in 1977, the General Assembly adopted a resolution proclaiming a United Nations Day for Women’s Rights and International Peace be observed by Member states in accordance with their historical and national traditions. The UN’s 2014 theme for International Women’s Day is “Equality for women is progress for all” and will be commemorated at the UN headquarters in New York on March 7 on the eve of the 58th session of the Commission on the Status of Women.
In keeping with this historical day, various events are planned in the UAE. In Dubai, Datamix will release the “Top 100 GCC Women Leaders of Tomorrow” at the 17th WOIBEX Global Leaders Conference. www.woibex.com. In Abu Dhabi, international business groups are organizing events including the International Business Women’s Group Abu Dhabi www.ibwg.org, and American Chamber of Commerce’s Women in Business Committee www.AmChamAbuDhabi.org
The message to us today is to do all that we can to ensure that the future of girls and women is bright. Take a moment in March to honour the accomplishments of women from your country.
By Theresa F Weber
