International Women’s Day – past, present and future

When only spring comes, women all over the world celebrate International Women’s Day. Today no one knows for sure when and how this day appeared in the world history and why it gained its worldwide recognition. Wikipedia and some other internet sources explain how and due to what or whom we started celebrating this holiday. I thought it might be interesting to know a bit more about this holiday.

In the past. Humanity got to know this holiday in 1909. The first Women’s Day was observed on 28 February 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 amid rapid world industrialization and economic expansion that led to protests over working conditions. According to one of the legends, connected with this holiday, women from clothing and textile factories staged one such protest on 8 March 1857 in City. The garment workers were protesting against very poor working conditions and low wages. The protesters were attacked and dispersed by police. These women established their first labor union in the same month two years later.

More protests followed on 8 March 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 in Copenhagen by the Second International and an 'International Women's Day' was established, which was submitted by the important German Socialist Clara Zetkin. The following year, IWD was marked by over a million people in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland. However, soon thereafter, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in New York City killed over 140 garment workers. A lack of safety measures was blamed for the high death toll. Furthermore, on the eve of World War I, women across Europe held peace rallies on 8 March 1913. In the West, International Women's Day was commemorated during the 1910s and 1920s, but dwindled. It was revived by the rise of feminism in the 1960s.

Demonstrations marking International Women's Day in Russia proved to be the first stage of the Russian Revolution of 1917. Following the October Revolution, the Bolshevik feminist Alexandra Kollontai persuaded Lenin to make it an official holiday in Russia, and it was established, but was a working day until 1965. On May 8, 1965 by the decree of the USSR Presidium of the Supreme Soviet International Women's Day was declared as a non working day in the USSR "in commemoration of outstanding merits of the Soviet women in communistic construction, in the defense of their Motherland during the Great Patriotic War, their heroism and selflessness at the front and in rear, and also marking the big contribution of women to strengthening friendship between peoples and struggle for the peace" (Wikipedia).
Since that day International Women’s Day has got its popularity all over the world.

At the Present moment. The day remains an official holiday in Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Cameroon, China, Cuba, Italy, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Russia, Serbia, Tajikistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam, and is observed by men giving the women in their lives - mothers, wives, girlfriends, colleagues, etc., flowers and small gifts. In some countries it is also observed as an equivalent of Mother's Day, where children also give small presents to their mothers and grandmothers. Each country has its own customs and traditions of celebrating this holiday. In Italy, to celebrate the day, men give yellow mimosas to women. Yellow mimosas and chocolate are also one of the most common March 8 presents in Russia. In Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Croatia, Hungary, Montenegro, Poland, Bulgaria, Romania, Slovenia, Serbia and Macedonia, the custom of giving women flowers still prevails. Women sometimes get gifts from their employers too. School children often bring gifts for their teachers as well.

What about future? I’m not much of a seer, but something prompts me we shall not lose this nice spring holiday. Our women are the most valuable treasure, and we should always remember that. For those who may overwork and somehow forget about it, we have this holiday. We are nothing without our women, mothers, grandmothers, sisters, wives etc. we should be grateful to them for everything we have in our life. And I believe the celebration of this holiday at the beginning of spring is rather symbolic. In spring everyone has new hopes, new expectations, new relations… We want to be better, brighter, happier! And that’s why at this very time we celebrate the holiday of everlasting beauty, love, tenderness. Frankly speaking, we don’t need another holiday to say “I love you”. We can do it every day, every hour, every minute of our life, because a Woman really deserves it!