International Women’s Day: Legacy of women in the world.

International Women’s Day was established in February of the year1908, in New York City, when thousands of garment workers, who were women, went on strike and marched through the city to protest their working conditions. Here at Seafarers’ House, we wish to recognize the efforts of women who have contributed throughout history and who have left a legacy so that future generations of women can enjoy better living conditions. Through this article, we are going to discuss the women who have marked history with their legacy.

To begin, we will talk about Malala Yousafzai, a Pakistani woman who was born on July 12, 1997. She spoke publicly on women’s rights education after the Taliban took over her town and enforced a ban on all girls going to school. Because of this, a gunman boarded her school bus and shot Yousafzai in the head; she luckily survived. She published an autobiography in 2013 called “I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban”.  She became the youngest person to ever receive the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014, at 17 years old.

Another Pakistani woman named Benazir Bhutto, who was a political activist that founded an underground organization to resist her country’s military dictatorship in 1984. She later became one of the youngest chief executives in the world by becoming the prime minister at only 35 years old. Before her assassination in 2007, she electrified the countryside, built schools all over the country, and, made hunger, housing, and healthcare her top priorities.

Nadia Murad is an activist dedicated to helping women and children affected by the war in Iraq. She was kidnapped by the Islamic State in 2014 and experienced several violent incidents in the span of three months. Later, Murad became the first person to speak on human trafficking at the UN Security Council. She was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2018 for her work to end sexual violence during armed conflict.

Rigoberta Menchú is an indigenous Guatemalan woman that we also wish to distinguish because she dedicated her life to promoting the rights of indigenous peoples, workers’ rights, and women’s rights. She fled to Mexico around 1981 after her family was killed and continued her resistance work against oppression in Guatemala. She became the first indigenous person to receive a Nobel Peace Price in 1992 and in 2006, Rigoberta Menchú became one of the founders of the Nobel Women’s Initiative.

Wangari Muaathai was a Kenyan scientist, professor, and environmental and political activist. She founded the Green Belt Movement and was the first woman in East and Central Africa to earn a doctorate degree. Like Menchú, Muaathai was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004, making her the first African Woman and first environmentalist to receive the prize.

Maya Angelou was a poet, singer, memoirist, and civil rights activist. She made literary history writing the first nonfiction best-seller written by an African American woman. Maya Angelou faced difficult situations regarding racial prejudices and discrimination in her life, which influenced her literary work like “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings”.

Another inspiring black woman, Sojourner Truth, was known for being an abolitionist and a women’s rights activist. In 1851, she delivered a speech at the Ohio Women’s Right’s Convention known as “Ain’t I a Woman?”.

We are grateful to these women and many others for fighting for issues that affect not only women, but the global population and the environment. It is important to recognize the achievements and endeavors of women who have taken it upon themselves to make the world a fairer place for future generations of women and girls. International Women's Day should not only be a day to celebrate women, but to discuss, have dialogue and reflect on how we can make a better world, free of violence against women and girls. A world free of injustice simply because of the condition of being a woman.

ONE 6 March 2020. (2021, March 8). 12 women who changed the world. ONE.https://www.one.org/us/blog/12-women-who-changed-the-world/

Haddrick, M. (2021, March 22). 12 of the most famous women in history. Marie Claire. https://www.marieclaire.com.au/famous-women-in-history

Haynes, S. (2021, April 29). Why international women's day is March 8: A radical reason. Time. https://time.com/5187268/international-womens-day-history/