History of International Women's Day

Every year on March 8, celebrated as International Women's Day worldwide. The women's movement, which emerged from the labor movement, was initially called International Working Women's Day. However, with the expansion of the women's movement for equal rights with men, it was renamed International Women's Day. International Women's Day is a reminder of the achievements that women have made over the past century to attain equal political, social, and economic positions in society. This day is recognized as a holiday in many countries and is used as an occasion to honor equality-seeking women and activists in various social and political fields. The UN Women’s section has published a brief history of the changes of this day over the past century. 1909 The first International Women's Day was celebrated on February 28 in the United States. The Socialist Party at that time dedicated this day to honor the striking women workers of New York in 1908. 1910 The Socialist International established International Women's Day at a meeting held in Copenhagen, Denmark. The reason for naming this day was declared to be the unity and solidarity of women worldwide in achieving their violated rights. This choice was recognized by all participating countries, but no specific date was announced. 1911 As a result of the Copenhagen Conference, International Women's Day was celebrated in Austria, Denmark, Germany, and Switzerland on March 19, with millions of women and men participating in related demonstrations. In addition to the right to vote and the right to be elected to political positions, participants demanded women's rights to work, vocational training, and the end of gender discrimination in their workplaces. 1913-1914 International Women's Day also became a platform for protesting World War I. During the peace movement, women in Russia celebrated Women's Day on the first Sunday of February. In the rest of Europe, this day was celebrated on March 8 or the days before and after it. Like the previous year, many demonstrations were held in defense of peace and solidarity with activists in that field. 1917 Even though the war had ended, Russian women continued to use International Women's Day demonstrations as a means to express their protests and strikes under the banner of 'Bread and Peace.' Four years later, the Tsar of Russia granted women the right to vote and participate in government. 1975 The United Nations began to celebrate International Women's Day on March 8. 1977 In December of that year, the UN General Assembly announced that member countries could celebrate International Women's Day and International Peace Day on different days according to their cultural and social occasions.