International Women's Day
On 8 March each year, there is an international celebration of women. A day, which highlights the respect and appreciation society has towards women, whether it be their political, social, economic or domestic achievements. The United Nations campaigns for stronger political and human rights for women, while also creating social awareness of the past and present struggles and inequalities.
International Women's Day 2017 is focused around a special theme this year... #beboldforchange
They are asking that people celebrate by being bold in their actions. Some of their suggested actions include:
- Challenge bias and inequality
- Campaign against violence
- Forge women's advancement
- Celebrate women's achievement
- Champion women's education
Here at The Candle Library would couldn't agree more with the entire concept behind International Women's Day, so we decided to celebrate women's achievement by hailing the success of women leaders and applauding the social, economic, cultural and political women role models around the world. Let's have a look at just a few.
Michelle Obama
Michelle Obama was the first African-American First Lady. Obama and Michelle launched the campaign Let Girls Learn during their time in the Whitehouse.
Let Girls Learn was inspired by the numerous challenges adolescent girls face when attempting to get an education. "Let Girls Learn is employing a holistic approach to change the perception of the value of girls at the individual, community and institutional levels; foster an enabling environment for adolescent girls’ education; and engage and equip girls to make life decisions and important contributions to society." - Let Girls Learn
Emma Watson
via UN News Centre
Everyone in the whole world knows her as Hermoine Granger from Harry Potter but not everyone is aware of her powerful feminist actions. Many celebrities use their fame in a way that doesn't better society but Emma Watson is quite the opposite, in fact she is a UN Women Goodwill Ambassador. One of our favourite moments from Emma Watson was when she launched the HeForShe campaign at the United Nation Headquarters on 20 September 2014. The goal of the campaign was to move closer towards gender equality and the empowerment of women. However, our favourite part of the launch was: "Men—I would like to take this opportunity to extend your formal invitation. Gender equality is your issue too."
Emmeline Pankhurst
As she was born in the 19th Century, many of you may not have heard about Emmeline Pankhurst. Despite her frequently criticised radical and militant tactics, her work as leader for the British suffragette movement is widely recognised as a crucial element in achieving women's right to vote. There is a large list of her achievements during her lifetime, however this alone makes her worthy of appreciation on International Women's Day.
Malala Yousafzai
Malala Yousafzai is the youngest person on our list and also the youngest-ever Nobel Prize laureate. She is a Pakistani activist, known best for her work towards eduction and women in northwest Pakistan, where the Taliban had banned girls from attending school. In 2012, Malala was injured when the Taliban attempted to assassinate her. The assassination attempt sparked national and international support for Malala Yousafzai. Since recovering form the attack, she has become a prominent education activist and is now standing up the suppression of young adults in receiving an education.
