International Women’s Day 2020: REALIZING WOMEN’S RIGHTS

by Anisere Temitope and Ifokwe Gift

International Women’s Day (IWD) is a day set aside to reflect on progress made towards achieving gender equality, to call for change and to celebrate acts of courage and exceptional determination by women, who have played extraordinary roles in the history of their countries and communities. It’s an annual event that occurs every 8th day of March, which alternatively holds varying levels of significance as civil awareness day, Women and Girl day, Anti-sexism day and Anti-discrimination day.

Historically speaking, women have over time played active roles in making the world a better place. In 1955, Rosa Parks, an African-American living in Montgomery, Alabama, challenged the race segregation that existed in parts of the US by refusing to give up her seat on a bus for a white person. Her protest was supported by many other African-Americans and sparked the civil rights movement which, in the 1960s, eventually won equal rights. Four years after her death in 2005, Barack Obama became the first African-American US president.

Examples of such strides abound beyond mere feeble compares. An equal world is an enabled and balanced world, as individuals, we are responsible for our own thoughts and actions at every given time.

The theme of International Women’s Day 2020 is, “I am Generation Equality: Realizing Women’s Rights.” The theme is aligned with UN Women’s new multi-generational campaign, Generation Equality, which marks the 25th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the most progressive road-map for the empowerment of women and girls, everywhere.

What is Gender Equality?

Gender equality is the state of equal ease of access to resources and opportunities regardless of gender, including economic participation and decision making; and the state of valuing different behaviors, aspirations and needs equally regardless of gender.

Importance of Gender Equality

Gender equality is exponentially linked to sustainable development and vital to the realization of holistic human rights for all. The overall objective of gender equality is a society in which men and women enjoy the same opportunities, rights and obligations in all spheres of life.

Realizing Women’s Rights

The world has made unprecedented advances, but no country has achieved gender equality, In the meantime, legal restrictions have kept 2.7 billion women from accessing the same choice of jobs as men. As of 2019, less than 25 per cent of parliamentarians were women. One in three women experience gender-based violence, still.

In realizing women rights, we must accept this quest as a collective one rather than just one for a restricted status quo or modus pro. Women;s rights abound from; a right to proper school, saying no to genital mutilation, a right to vote, avoiding child marriage or forced marriages , equal pay at work ,also equal opportunities career wise amongst many others.

The goal is for the gender equal boardroom, a gender equal government, gender equal media coverage, gender equal workplaces, gender equal sports coverage, more gender equality in health and wealth. We are all parts of a whole. Our individual actions, conversations, behaviors and mindsets can have an impact on our larger society. Collectively, we can make change happen. Collectively, we can each help to create a gender equal world.

In her book Half of a Yellow Sun, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie wrote; “‘you must never behave as if your life belongs to a man. Do you hear me?’ Aunty Ifeka said. ‘Your life belongs to you and you alone.’”
We must therefore embrace the idea of the ideals of a free world, a truly free one where everyone’s destiny is truly in their hands regardless of their gender, this we believe is very possible

We can make this happen, as a people, as a united front we must endeavor to aid this women rights push, it is very valid indeed for a sustainable society and a just one at that. And so today we celebrate all the great women in our lives.

Women of all ages today, We celebrate you!!! “Equality for women is the progress of all!!!”