15/03/2026
International Women’s Day has just passed, and as the conversations settle, it is worth reflecting on what the day truly represents.
International Women’s Day was never intended to be a single moment of recognition. It emerged from early 20th-century labour movements and suffrage campaigns, where women organised to demand safer working conditions, fair wages, and the right to vote. The first National Woman’s Day was observed in the United States in 1909, following protests by women garment workers. In 1910, activist Clara Zetkin proposed an international observance at the International Socialist Women’s Conference in Copenhagen. By 1911, more than one million people participated in demonstrations across Europe advocating women’s rights. The date of 8 March became globally recognised after the 1917 women workers’ strike in Petrograd, which helped trigger political change in Russia. The United Nations formally recognised International Women’s Day in 1975. (United Nations; Encyclopaedia Britannica; International Women’s Day historical archives)
When viewed through that historical lens, equality was never going to be achieved in a single generation.
Social systems that developed over centuries rarely rebalance quickly. Progress in voting rights, legal protections, education, employment participation, and leadership representation has occurred gradually across the past century. Each generation has moved the dial slightly further.
That is why the idea of equality is better understood not as a day, but as a century-long evolution.
A single day raises awareness.
A decade builds momentum.
A century changes structures.
The real celebration of International Women’s Day should therefore be broader than one week of recognition. It should acknowledge the 100-year journey of women reshaping systems, economies, and institutions, often quietly and often without credit.
We are equal; however, we do not have the same equity (respect & value) as our male counterparts, but we need each other. Let's STOP the BS.
the road ahead
True equality is not achieved through symbolism alone. It emerges through sustained cultural, legal, and economic change across generations.
Perhaps the most meaningful way to honour International Women’s Day is to recognise that we are still in the middle of that century-long shift — and that the responsibility now lies with all of us to continue building systems that reflect genuine equality rather than simply celebrating the idea of it.
