Women have been putting up with our crap since the dawn of time, but we only started celebrating them in 1975. Let that sink in; there are grown men older than our appreciation of women.
It took hundreds of years of abusing women to realize they deserve better than what we have given them. Sometime in the 19th century, a group of women died fighting for their rights in a textile company. Some fifty years later, the date of their riot, March 8, was first celebrated as Women’s Day in the United States.
In other words, women had to literally die so that half a century later we could say: “hey, they’re kind of pretty cool, actually.” Soon, countries started adopting the idea of a National Women’s Day. It wasn’t until 1975 when the United Nations (of mostly men) sat together in a room and officially named March 8 as International Women’s Day, a day to celebrate women; and what exactly are we celebrating?
The definition of a woman is quite the controversial topic in this era of social justice and alpha male podcasts. Furthermore, the very much bearded man writing this column has no business attempting such a delicate endeavor, for I know that no witty remark of mine could do it justice.
Regardless, for fourth-year UFV student Hannah Chernoff, this is a day worth remembering. “It’s important […] because it is something I think can get lost in all of the issues and injustices in the world — and there’s so much,” she told me. “It’s a day when you’re provoked to think.”
Growing up in a family of strong female figures, Hannah often engages in discussions and reflections on gender, inside and outside of class. As we discussed the good and the bad of womanhood, she revealed to me the fair share of sexism she and her family have dealt with.
In her experience, the double-standards are easy to spot. When asked about the worst, she promptly replied: “being written off, not taken as seriously.” She then recalled her high school debates, and how her passion would be mistaken for hysteria. “[Guys] can be emotional and reasonable at the same time,” she argued, “whereas I feel like sometimes with girls, it’s written off.”
This, however, is not restricted to social circles; the healthcare system, too, tends to write off women’s pain as an inconvenience rather than something to be treated. In one instance, when facing the excruciating symptoms of endometriosis, a doctor allegedly told Hannah’s mom: “sucks to be you — you’ll be in pain for the rest of your life.”
That said, women might have suffered under sexism, but they have also found strength through solidarity. “I feel a kind of kindredness and a lot of safety even with a woman who is a stranger,” Hannah revealed. To her, most women connect to one another through their shared experiences, building a sort of sisterhood with “unwritten rules of support,” as she called it.
Despite the growing discussions on gender and feminism, Hannah agreed we still have a long way to go, especially as individuals. In her perspective, we have accepted misogyny as a part of society too easily, and we have gotten too comfortable with it — we must question these things. In her words: “thinking about why is the most important thing.” Undoubtedly, when we named an International Women’s Day to celebrate women, that’s all we did — celebrate. Fifty years later, women still face the atrocities of sexism in all aspects of their lives.
Femicide is still a regular occurrence, fair pay is still a controversial topic, and women’s bodies are still treated as federal property. Meanwhile, involuntary celibates go on record to talk smack about women and call it being a “high-value man” — all while reeking of their five-in-one body wash.
The truth is that we might not be able to define the concept of a woman, but we sure know how to take advantage of one. Either way, we shouldn’t need a dictionary entry to treat women as the human beings they are. Thousands of years of history, and we had to come up with a date to do the bare minimum and treat women right for a day. Perhaps, on the next March 8, instead of chocolates and flowers, we could also give a crap. It’s a great gift: easy, cheap, and actually worth something.
