Nowadays, more and more people are standing up for women rights as the society is gradually reaching a state of gender equality. So, have you ever heard of or celebrated International Women’s Day? First of all, what is International Women’s Day? This is a day where people celebrate the achievements of women rights and power. Throughout history, gender equality was always a topic that had been discussed over and over. Unfortunately, the issue of gender equality is still unsolved up until today. However, there has also been remarkable progress in improving and balancing gender rights. What were the situations like in the past and what progress have we made?
The fight for women’s rights has been happening throughout history. The achievements we have reached today did not just happen in a blink of an eye; instead, it happened through gradual and slow progression. One major change that showed an improvement in gender equality was voting rights. In order to discuss this, we date back to the 19th century in the United States. In 1807, women across the U.S lost the right to vote. Around the start of the 19th century, men dominated the political and governmental powers. They restricted women from voting, owning property, and earning income. Women were banned from making any political decisions, even those that related to the female themselves.
In the mid-19th century (around 1840), the fight for women’s suffrage began. Suffrage is the right to vote. Elizabeth Cady Stanton, an American writer and activist, started to take action. She wrote the Declaration of Sentiments, which was shared to many others at that time. The Declaration of Sentiments is a paper that calls for women’s equality and right to vote. In 1869, just several years after the Civil War, the National Woman Suffrage Association was founded by Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony. Susan B. Anthony was also an American social reformer and women’s rights activist. As time went by, more and more people were participating in the fight for women’s rights. In the beginning of the 20th, protests and hunger strikes held by the Suffrage Association began to spread in America. On November 4th, 1917, 33 women were beaten, arrested, and terrorized due to the protest. Gladly, all the effort put in for the fight of gender equality was not wasted. On August 26,1920, the 19th Amendment passed, giving female citizens in the U.S the right to vote. However, not all women were applicable to this amendment. Many black and indigious women were excluded from this. It was not until 1965 that black and indigious women were allowed to vote.
Voting was not the only thing that women were banned from in the past. They were not allowed to work, to get educated, and many more. Through similar steps, women slowly gain rights for work, education, property rights, etc. There were so many women who fought for women’s rights and proved that women were just as capable to work and succeed as men. Here are some female figures that proved the ability of the women:
Emmeline Pankhurst, an English political activist. Known for organizing the UK suffragette movement and helping women win the right to vote. She formed the Women’s Social Political Union in 1903
Mae Jamison, a former NASA astronaut who was the first black woman to travel into space.
Rosalin Franklin, an English chemist and X-ray crystallographer whose work was central to the understanding of the molecular structures of DNA, RNA, viruses, coal, and graphite.
Marie Curie, a Polish and naturalized-French physicist and chemist who pioneered in the research on radioactivity.
Aung San Suu Kyi, a politician, a 1991 Nobel Peace Prize laureate who served as State Counselor of Myanmar and Minister of Foreign Affairs.
The fight for women’s rights has not ended just yet. Gender equality has not been reached yet as more people join to fight for this issue. International Women’s Day is a day for people to show that they recognize and support women’s rights. It is never too late to make a difference, so why not start today?
