On Thursday the world celebrated International Women’s Day. Past celebrations have generally focussed on the promotion and encouragement of women to be who they want to be and achieve what they want to achieve. But this year was different, the usual encouragement of women was promoted however, this year there was a sense of anger, of injustice, and I can’t blame them.
2017 really provided clarity on how women are treated in the workplace, in their private lives and in public which has led to a surge in feminist activity, protests and women in general not accepting the status quo any longer.
The two major aspects that have risen to the forefront of conversation have been equal pay (the BBC are still trying to dig themselves out of that hole) and sexual bullying/harassment (Harvey Weinstein is still nowhere to be seen). Both topics are very emotionally charged and, according to numerous surveys, rife in the workplace and in public spaces.
Stand up, be Counted
Credit must be given where credit is due and the whistle-blowers that have come forward to lift the lid on these issues have had to endure horrific online abuse everyday since they came forward. These women have remained strong and kept their heads held high in the face of such adversity and that strength, in and of itself, has been enough to galvanise the sisterhood into standing up for what they believe in… correction, what they deserve.
What do they deserve?
The same as everyone else. To be respected for their mind and ability, not their body. To be allowed to walk the streets without fear of being wolf whistled or harassed by some lothario who thinks he’s god’s gift to women. To be paid equally for doing the same job as a man. To be considered for promotion irrespective of whether she has, or plans to have, a family. To be considered for work because she is competent, not to be a bit of eye candy for the office.
I could go on, but the message is quite clear. They do not want to be put on a pedestal or treated with kid gloves, they just want to be treated the same as men. They want equality, parity and respect for what they do.
Do they deserve it?
Of course they do. Women have achieved many things over the last few decades for which their acknowledgement has been minimal. It’s been a hundred years since women were allowed the vote, it’s not unfair for women to expect equality to have been dealt with by now. It’s been one hundred years so there really isn’t any excuses for antiquated views and beliefs to still be perpetuated throughout society.
Have we learned anything?
Only that equality takes time. The real question is how much time and what are the knock-on effects? Homosexuality only became legal 50 years ago, does this mean the LGBT community have to wait at least another 50 years before they achieve parity? And what about all the other minorities who are now only finding their voice, only just finding the strength to stand up and say, “this is who I am!”?
With the advent of the internet and social media, it has now become easier than ever to expose discrimination and abuse. People who feel alone in their pursuit of happiness can now find groups of like minded people from all over the world who share their views.
The speed at which awareness of these subjects can spread mean governments need to start acting more swiftly to alleviate the injustices the public sees. My only hope is that the power of public scrutiny will speed up the process of helping not only women, but anyone who’s discriminated against achieve that golden ticket of equality.
