International Womens' Day 8th March

[theodorakis]

Next week on Thursday is International Womens' Day. (sorry if apostrophe is wrong). I am doing something with my year 9-13 girls at school, we are having a whole day off and going to a conference room to try and define what it is to be a woman and bond by having a disco and sharing our cultures and ideas. I live in the Middle east and have a mix of Christian, Hindu and Muslim kids and just want to bring them all together. We are going to "hang out" and enjoy each other's company. Anyone else have any plans?

[SardineQueen]

God that sounds absolutely amazing! You're going to have a brilliant time!

No plans here, sorry to say. You have inspired me to think about it though!

[theodorakis]

I have been totally inspired by MN! I work with these kids all the time and am often sad to see how much culture and religion divides these girls. They need to learn how to stick together and support each other. I read my post back and realised it may sound a little smug and naive and promise am not smug. However this is a new time in the Middle East. The 3 big bosses above me are women and I truly believe that by empowering girls now will make them better bosses to both men and women and whatever they choose to do, just having a small amount of self belief and rejecting DV and discrimination. I just want to move away from school discos being the boys dancing and the girls serving them the food!

[SardineQueen]

It doesn't sound smug! It sounds exciting! What a brilliant thing to be doing.

I am well impressed

[theodorakis]

Ah thanks, I promise to come back next week and tell you how it went

[SardineQueen]

I will have to remember to check back in! You are going to have a great time

[lesley33]

Going to a cabaret in the evening at the local women's centre to celebrate it.

[JosephineB]

No plans but on IWD last year I sent this to all the women I know:

Happy IWD!


If you are female and ...

... you can vote, thank a feminist.

... you get paid as much as men doing the same job, thank a feminist.

... you went to college instead of being expected to quit after high school so your brothers could go because "You'll just get married anyway," thank a feminist.

... you can apply for any job, not just "women's work," thank a feminist.

... you can get or give birth control information without going to jail, thank a feminist.

... your doctor, lawyer, pastor, judge or MP is a woman, thank a feminist.

... you play an organised sport, thank a feminist.

... you can wear trousers without being excommunicated from your church or run out of town, thank a feminist.

... your boss isn't allowed to pressure you to sleep with him, thank a feminist.

...your boss is a woman, thank a feminist.

... you get raped and the trial isn't about your hemline or your previous boyfriends, thank a feminist.

... you start a small business and can get a loan using only your name and credit history, thank a feminist.

... you are on trial and are allowed to testify in your own defense, thank a feminist.

... you own property that is solely yours, thank a feminist.

... you have the right to your own salary even if you are married or have a male relative, thank a feminist.

... you get custody of your children following divorce or separation, thank a feminist.

... you get a voice in the raising and care of your children instead of them being completely controlled by the husband/father, thank a feminist.

... your husband beats you and it is illegal and the police stop him instead of lecturing you on better wifely behavior, thank a feminist.

... you are granted a degree after attending college instead of a certificate of completion, thank a feminist.

... you can breast feed your baby discreetly in a public place and not be arrested, thank a feminist.

... you marry and your civil human rights do not disappear into your husband's rights, thank a feminist.

... you have the right to refuse sex with a diseased* husband [or just "husband"], thank a feminist.

... you have the right to keep your medical records confidential from the men in your family, thank a feminist.

... you have the right to read the books you want, thank a feminist.

... you can testify in court about crimes or wrongs your husband has committed, thank a feminist.

... you can choose to be a mother or not a mother in your own time not at the dictates of a husband or rapist, thank a feminist.

... you can look forward to a lifespan of 80 years instead of dying in your 20s from unlimited childbirth, thank a feminist.

... you can see yourself as a full, adult human being instead of a minor who needs to be controlled by a man, thank a feminist.

• This relates to the work of my namesake