March was proclaimed Women’s History Month in America by Barack Obama in 2011, coinciding with International Women’s Day on March 8th. The original aim of the day was to empower women to celebrate their achievements and reach full gender equality by drawing attention to the current inequalities. The day is thought to have begun in 1908 when thousands of women marched on New York to demand suffrage and labor rights. A year later, the Socialist Party of America celebrated the day on February 28th. Slowly, International Women’s Day spread worldwide and was finally recognized by the United Nations in 1975 as taking place on March 8. The theme of this year’s campaign was represented in the hashtag ‘#beboldforchange.’ That goal was met as women daringly stood up for their rights all over the globe. The world erupted in support of women, the Irish wore black to demand abortion rights. Filipino women marched for employment and discrimination reforms, while women in India performed the ‘Giddha’ dance to celebrate the important day. Australia, Poland, China, Iceland, and Italy also held rallies and marches along with several other nations.

Here in America, some women did not attend work or purchase any goods in the goal to display women’s influence on the economy by creating ‘a day without a woman.’ Others wore red to silently support the event. Using momentum from the Women’s March on January 21st, many protests were aimed at the newly inaugurated president, Donald Trump. “With someone who glorifies and brags about sexual assault towards women sitting in the White House at this moment,” said junior Katie Evans, “the significance of International Women’s Day should be blatantly clear.”

Despite many allegations of inappropriate actions towards women, Trump took to Twitter to announce his respect for women and their vital role in the American economy. Some Americans, however, were opposed to the nature of the women’s marches and rallies this year, many calling the actions disruptive in the workplace. With around 75% of teachers being women, several schools across the nation were forced to shut down due to instructor shortages. Despite the critics of the campaign, chaos and disruptiveness was the point that the ‘a day without a woman’ campaign was attempting to make, showing that without women, society cannot function.

Here at Shorecrest, support was also shown for International Women’s Day. “I think Women’s Day is a fabulous international event that unites women across the globe in a common movement.” said sophomore Delaney McCormack. Many students backed the campaign online, posting about women whom they admire on Instagram, Facebook, and other social media outlets. With a recent surge of youth progressivism, social media has actively included women of color, LGBTQ+ women, disabled women, etc. in this important day. Google created a doodle, and Snapchat produced a geofilter to draw awareness towards women’s rights, and inequalities that need to be mended online. High school students have proven time and time again that the internet has several positive influences on creating change by connecting people all over the world concerning a similar issue. While International Women’s Day has its critics, girls and women all over America and the world have proven the movement to be inspirational and necessary. “(This day) reminds me how possible gaining equality is due to the passionate, intelligent, inspiring, strong, and beautiful women around me who will never stop fighting.” says Evans.