Equality for All

Yesterday was International Womens Day, which got me thinking, being a woman in the western world we have alot to be grateful for when it comes to womens rights. Despite having come a long way, there is still a long way to go when it comes to equality between men and women, but moreover when it comes to changing attitudes and minds.

Throughout history certain groups among society have been prevented from enjoying the same equality, whether based upon race, class or gender, that has been taken for granted by middle-upper class white men for centuries.

We still live very much in what one would class as 'A man's world'. However, never let us forget, as venerated in those infamous lyrics of the same named song by James Brown, "This is a man's world, but it would be nothing, without a woman or a girl".

For centuries, we witnessed racial segregation, and the struggle for equal and civil rights, nowhere more evident than in South Africa and the United States of America, whereby black Africans were deemed for so long as second class citizens by their white, middle and upper class brethern and were denied equal status , denied the right to vote , denied the right to be educated, or enjoy the same opportunities as white people.

In America Black African American men were given the right to vote before women, this has often been debated. Black African American men over 21 were allowed to vote in 1870 in many states , however this was not entirely true in reality, as poll taxes and other stipulations made it next to impossible for this to be fair or plausible. It was not until a hundred years later that African Americans got the right to vote throughout the U.S after the long struggle of the civil rights movement led by Martin Luther King.

Women gained the right to vote in the U.S in 1920, but like African Americans, in actuality there was still little difference when it came to them being viewed by men differently, they were still treated as second class citizens in so many respects, viewed as  less capable than men, less intelligent, with less opportunities available to them, and on the whole enjoyed less equal opportunities and individual freedom.

According to the UN womens executive director, Michelle Bachelet : " A hundred years ago today, women across the world took an historic step on the long road to equality. The first ever International Women’s Day was called to draw attention to the unacceptable and often dangerous working conditions that so many women faced worldwide. Although the occasion was celebrated in only a handful of countries, it brought over one million women out onto the streets, demanding not just better conditions at work but also the right to vote, to hold office and to be equal partners with men.

I suspect those courageous pioneers would look at our world today with a mixture of pride and disappointment. There has been remarkable progress as the last century has seen an unprecedented expansion of women’s legal rights and entitlements. Indeed, the advancement of women’s rights can lay claim to being one of the most profound social revolutions the world has seen.
One hundred years ago, only two countries allowed women to vote. Today, that right is virtually universal, and women have now been elected to lead Governments in every continent. Women, too, hold leading positions in professions from which they were once banned. Far more recently than a century ago, the police, courts and neighbors still saw violence in the home as a purely private matter. Today two-thirds of countries have specific laws that penalize domestic violence, and the United Nations Security Council now recognizes sexual violence as a deliberate tactic of war."

I would agree with this information, however the fact that we are still debating women's equality here in the western world, where it is claimed to have made more radical leaps and bounds, and changes when it comes to equal opportunities and legal rights, than in the developing world, is evidence enough to suggest that we still inhabit a "Man's World".

In Ireland in 1884, all men got the right to vote, yet this right was denied to wives, mothers, sisters and daughters because they were women.

In 1922 Irish women had many responsibilities but they had very few rights, they had no say in what laws were passed, they had no voice in what concerned their country or the government. They had no vote. This made them feel like second class citizens.

Hannah Sheehy-Skeffington was a formidable woman, who spent most of her life working for the right of Irish women to vote. Hannah and her friends were harassed by politicians and the police because of their efforts to ensure that women could have a voice in saying how the country should be run.
In 1918 after a long campaign they succeeded in getting the right for women to vote.  But they had to be 30 years of age and own property. In 1922 all Irish women over 21 were given the right to vote.

Despite all the trials and tribulations of these pioneering women around the world who struggled and strived for equal rights then, and for those, who to date continue to strive for equality for women, they should be applauded. We should celebrate the achievements of all of these women. and as women ourselves remember our worth, and never stop the struggle for which our ancestoral sisterhood fought and strove for .

Finally, a poignant short film made to commemorate International Women's Day, which publicises and highlights the need for the Equality of women worldwide is worthwhile mentioning here. Remember that despite all efforts, we still live in a racist, classist and indeed sexist society.

In this short video (despite it appearing at first slightly humourous to see Daniel Craig donning a dress), it  highlights and drives home a more serious message, which has been perhaps so at odds with the acclaimed fictional character of 'James Bond' played by craig, which is a representation of traditional and still ever present chauvinistic attitudes towards women portrayed by this character. For this very reason it delivers both a powerful message. Well done Daniel Craig for being man enough to support the cause, and literally put himself  in womens shoes to make the point ! :)

However, the more serious message within, which is narrated succinctly by Dame Judi Dench is based upon collated factual information and real statistical studies gathered by the UN.

I would like to thank all those courageous and pioneering women who have gone before me, and made this world slightly easier for women today, than it could have been, had they not struggled on all of our behalves. Let us continue what they started, and strive for equality and dignity for all women worldwide . What women deserve for equality is mutual respect and understanding, not to be segregated or mocked for their differences, nor to be treated as lesser beings intellectually, nor be abused or exploited physically or sexually by men.

Thank You for reading, and Happy International Women's Day Ladies !