Celebrating Women – International Women’s Day

On the 8th of March we celebrate International Women’s Day, this year with the theme of “Give to Gain”, which stresses the concepts of generosity, sharing, donation and mentoring. It’s raised some controversy, perhaps unsurprisingly, around the expectation of giving in relation to women. There’s something uncomfortable around the concept of generosity given the continued pay inequality between men and women, the expectations around childcare, and women’s healthcare provision in many parts of the world. Are we really still asking women to “give” and if so – where’s the gain for them? Because it can be challenging to see what women get out of this scenario.

In contrast, the benefit to men is clear – power, influence, a voice, political dominance, financial security, job opportunities… For women progress is slow, and the toxic misogynistic landscape, unrelenting. It’s not possible to think about women’s position in society today, without considering the current climate around violence and abuse. Arguably this has long since been the case (though that offers little solace), but with so much now in the public domain it raises a question about whether the expectation for women to give – to be subservient and generous – has become fuelled with fear and resentment as their presence and voice become a little harder to ignore.

It is maybe for these reasons that the UN has offered an alternative slant to this year’s International Women’s Day theme, around rights, justice and action which feel more in-tune with the current trajectory of women’s rights. Women don’t just deserve equality, they deserve human rights, fair treatment and a call for change. While one theme seems to imply a continuum of the status quo, the other makes a bid for change.

However, there is another way of looking at “Give to Gain” – that it’s about women giving for women’s gains. The sharing of knowledge, experience, expertise means that future generations have better chances at those positions of power and influence; that the generosity, mentoring and donating is aimed at one and other – at ensuring continual advancement, development and indeed justice for women. This angle paints a picture of strength, camaraderie and compassion, all great traits to celebrate. Whichever way you choose to look at this year’s theme, there surely needs to be some acknowledgement of the work left to be done in terms of women’s rights. One way of exploring that is to consider what’s been achieved – where we’ve come from in relation to equality, and where we want to get to.

Once a goal or ambition is agreed it’s about all of us striving for that, as a broad societal movement of course, but also in smaller communities such as schools and classrooms. No environment is too small to establish some basic parameters within which all should have the opportunities to be heard, seen, thrive and succeed.