0Today at EZ Hampers, we’re proudly supporting International Women’s Day 2023. International Women’s Day is an annual holiday celebrated on the 8th of March across the globe. It brings attention to gender inequality and to celebrate women all over the world. The day is commemorated differently by individual countries and organisations. Many protests and marches are held on International Women’s Day to seek governmental reform. Whilst other organisations educate and celebrate the achievements of women throughout history. The first Women’s Day was held in 1909 by the Socialist Party of America, by activist Theresa Malkiel.
Each year, the United Nations sets a theme for International Women’s Day. Previous themes have focused on topics such as: ‘Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow’ and ‘World Free of Violence Against Women’. International Women’s Day 2023 is: DigitALL- Innovation and technology for gender equality. This theme has been chosen in order to address the disparity between men and women in their access to the internet and as a result, jobs in technology. The theme also seeks to address gender based violence online. A study across 51 countries found that 85% of women report having been the victim of online violence, or have witnessed online violence to another woman.
Did you know?: By 2050, 75% of jobs will be in STEM fields. However, jobs in STEM areas show a great contrast between the number of male and female employees. For example, women hold just 22% of jobs in the artificial intelligence field.
Trailblazing Women – Women we want to celebrate!
This International Women’s Day, we wanted to share with our readers some of the women who inspire us! We could write an endless list of women who deserve to be celebrated, we decided to discuss five truly inspiring women.
Michelle Obama
Michelle Obama is an American attorney, author and served as First Lady of the USA from 2009 to 2017. She was the first black woman to serve as First Lady in the USA. She has been a vocal supporter of LGBTQIA+ rights, and is a role model for young black women across the world. In 2010, she also set up the ‘Let’s Move!’ initiative to promote healthy lifestyles in children across the country.
Emma Thompson
Emma Thompson is a British actress who has been involved in a number of human rights projects. Thompson is involved with the Helen Bamber Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture, and the Refugee Council. She is also a patron of the Elton John AIDS Foundation, which provides support to people with HIV and AIDS across 55 countries. Emma Thompson is also a member of Greenpeace, and very involved with environmental activism. She has campaigned against the Climate Crisis, and is also an ambassador of the Galapagos Conservation Trust.
Aretha Franklin
Aretha Franklin was an American singer, songwriter and pianist, who was an activist for civil rights, Native American rights and women’s rights. She often supported civil rights protests through monetary support and by performing at the events. She also supported charitable organisations such as the American Grammy Foundation, The Rainforest Foundation, Robert F Kennedy Memorial, The Special Olympics, and the NAACP.
Audrey Hepburn
Audrey Hepburn was a British actress and humanitarian. Despite being well-known for her acting and fashion sense, she was also deeply committed to her humanitarian efforts. In 1989, Hepburn became a Goodwill Ambassador of UNICEF. She toured areas such as Central America, Asia and Turkey to aid in immunisation projects and to provide people with necessary supplies.
Laverne Cox
Laverne Cox is an American actress and activist for LGBTQIA+ and POC rights. She has made history as the first transgender person to be nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award in an acting category and the first transgender person to play a transgender series regular on U.S. broadcast TV. She has also been the first trans woman to appear on countless magazine covers. Laverne Cox supports a number of charities, including: American Foundation for AIDS Research, GLAAD, Los Angeles LGBT Center, and the NCAVP.
