On March 8th many people around the world celebrate International Women’s Day. This is extremely important for people fighting for women’s right and for total equality. In some countries International Women’s day is a public holiday however in other counties it is completely ignored. Many men and women have strong beliefs about this topic and for some it is a day of protest and for others it celebrates womanhood. International women’s day is mostly to celebrate the economic, social, cultural and political achievements of women. Moreover, people often use this day to be vocal about there thoughts on gender equality and gender discrimination. The colour purple is very significant as it represents women internationally. Purple is a mark of justice and dignity.
Gender equality can be defined as men and women having the same rights and opportunities as each other. However, in modern life there are still issues such as gender prejudice, stereotyping and gender discrimination. Gender discrimination was made illegal in 1975 in the UK, however problems still occur today such as women being paid significantly less than men for completing the same job. Fortunately, most people in the UK are against gender prejudice and discrimination and the roles of men have become more flexible and childcare is usually distributed evenly between parents.
I interviewed some students at Surbiton High School who shared their thoughts on gender equality and discrimination. Firstly I asked my friend about her thoughts on gender equality. She said that ‘I think that men and women deserve to be equal and have the same rights’ and also she thought that ‘as people are so focused on women’s rights, men may felt left out and as it could be seen as unfair.’ Then I asked her if men and women are equal and she said ‘No, because men are given better opportunities than women.’ Another student I interviewed said it was important to celebrate International Women’s day because ‘women fought for it so women should celebrate how far they have come in comparison to how they were treated in the past’.
I believe that men and women should be treated equally in society. However, I do understand that men are suited better to some jobs and women are matched better to other jobs but, this doesn’t mean that they can’t do whatever job they desire. Currently, there are many campaigns such as the #METOO movement, which fights for women to be seen as equal to men. Equality is shared between religious and non religious ways of thinking. Women’s International day (March 8) is to celebrate the achievements of woman and originated more than 100 years ago.
