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Queues in cosmetics and perfume stores, bunches of flowers and postcards with the wish to remain tender and feminine — today these are mandatory attributes of Women’s Day. How was this holiday conceived and how has its perception changed over the years?
To be an adornment of the team, to bloom and please the eye, to inspire feats — March 8 rarely does without these wishes. In our time, International Women’s Day has become a holiday of spring, harmony and attention to women.
Why is this perception bad? After all, beautiful ladies on this day, as a rule, are exempted from housework, surrounded by care and overwhelmed with compliments. This is good? Not really, and here’s why.
Firstly, one gets the feeling that a woman is thought of only once a year. It is not for nothing that on the Internet, albeit sometimes in a comic form, the expression is popular: «Be quiet, woman, your day is March 8.» Secondly, such a perception negates the original idea of the holiday.
What holiday was before
In 1910, Clara Zetkin, as part of the Eighth Congress of the Second International, proposed the establishment of an International Day of Women’s Solidarity in the Struggle for Economic, Social and Political Equality.
It was assumed that women would organize rallies and marches to attract the public to their problems. But a specific day was never chosen for this, so until 1914 the holiday “moved” to different dates until it was fixed on March 8th.
“Women’s Day” came to Russia back in 1913, but it was the events of March 8, 1917 that became the reason for raising this holiday to the status of a state holiday. Then the workers of factories and factories took to the streets, who protested against hunger and war, and also demanded voting rights.
It is generally accepted that this demonstration marked the beginning of the February Revolution, and in memory of the participation of women in it, it was decided to celebrate the International Day of Women Workers. In the late 1920s, it became known as International Women’s Day.
The modern meaning of the holiday
The UN announces a new theme for International Women’s Day each year. In 2021, it reads: “Women in Leadership: Achieving an Equal Future in a COVID-19 World.”
The choice of this slogan is quite understandable, because women scientists and women doctors played an important role in the fight against the pandemic — they studied the virus on an equal basis with men, developed vaccines and saved patients. This should be remembered.
And in Russia, the day of struggle for emancipation and equality gradually became the day of female beauty and tenderness. And this can be understood: the life of women over the past hundred years has remained difficult. Having gained the right to choose, they also received additional responsibilities: not only to work on an equal footing with men, but also to provide for the daily life of the whole family. Wash, iron, cook, help with homework, serve relatives. In this life, the truth was missing a holiday: a day when a woman could be tender, vulnerable, loved …
Times are changing, but we still have something to fight for. This is probably why young women today are increasingly abandoning traditional colors and perfumes, preferring to mark the date in other ways.
Celebrate in a new way, congratulate with the mind
In fact, in order not to forget about the original meaning of the holiday and not to substitute concepts, it is not necessary to arrange demonstrations.
If you wish, you can take part in thematic events: exhibitions, lectures, fairs, flash mobs or parties. They are organized in order to draw public attention to the topic of domestic violence, objectification and discrimination against women. After all, if something does not happen to us, this does not mean that our friends, relatives, neighbors and “sisters” in other parts of the world do not face difficulties. Together we are strong, and when, if not on this day, should we remind ourselves and others about this?
But you can refuse to substitute concepts even without giving up traditional congratulations — you just need to change the vector of attention. Instead of evaluating external qualities like beauty and tenderness, it is worth emphasizing personal achievements: after all, we really achieve a lot, work hard, help others, and strive for the best every day. So why not praise us for it?
In addition, it is also necessary to shower wishes wisely. For example, even a simple “make dreams come true” sounds much better than “continue to inspire deeds,” since the first is dedicated to the woman herself, and the second is about her functions in front of other people. But should we be congratulated on this day for successfully serving others, physically or emotionally?