March 07, 2009

On the eighth day of March every year, the world celebrates International Women’s Day, to use the opportunity to acknowledge women’s success and contribution to the workplace and to society. Now an official holiday in over 14 countries of the world, it is a day to honour and cherish women and womanhood.

Interestingly, the year 2009 marks the 100th anniversary of the International Women’s Day according to historical facts. Did you know that Women’s Day has been observed since the early 1900s?

Historically, the first International Women’s Day was observed on February 28, 1909 in the United States following a declaration by the Socialist Party of America. The idea of having an international women’s day was first put forward at the turn of the 20th century, in the middle of rapid industrialisation and economic expansion that led to protests over working conditions. By urban legend, women from clothing and textile factories staged one such protest on March 8, 1857, in New York.

More protests followed on March 8 in subsequent years, most notably in 1908 when 15,000 women marched through New York City demanding shorter hours, better pay and voting rights. In 1910, the first International Women’s Conference was held and an ‘International Women’s Day’ was established, which was submitted by the notable German Socialist, Clara Zetkin, although no date was specified. The following year, International Women’s Day was marked by over a million people in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland. A century later, the entire world celebrates women and their rights on the same date.