Restoring my soul.

Thursday March 8th is earmarked as International Women’s Day.  Check out all the fun here. This is the day to celebrate the women in your life and in your community. An opportunity to thank those women in your world for their contribution to you and to the society they live in.

Who are YOU celebrating on this day? What about them inspires you? What about them impresses you?  How has their presence in your life impacted the way you live or think or dream?

Some people are asking Why? Why do we need a special day to celebrate women?  Why is it needed, why is it important?  The simple answer without being flippant is that men have had it their way for eternity and it is time that women’s contribution to the workforce, to society is celebrated as equal to that of men.  Women contribute to society on a different level to men and in some cases a deeper level than men do.

Women are naturally nurturers, they care for children, the elderly, their partners on a daily basis. Some men can take this for granted and it has become the expectation of society that women will just take up these roles.   That women do not have the fortitude or guts to make it in business or in the Armed Forces or as a tradie.  The traditional industries created by men and set apart as “men’s domain”.  It is time to recognise the ground breaking women who have succeeded in these male dominated industries, who have paved the way for the younger generation of women to enter these fields with less resistance.

International Women’s Day is an opportunity for those young women and girls to look up to their older more mature counterparts and say Thank you.  Thank you for paving the way; Thank you for fighting for our rights and thank you for being on the frontlines opening doors for us.  Thank you for easing the way so to speak.  This International Women’s Day let’s acknowledge the barrier breakers, those who came before and those who are still in the fight.  Let’s celebrate the women who took the blows literally, who suffered the severe sexual harassment in a time where there were no laws against it.  Those who went to court and fought for a woman’s right to vote, to be educated, to work in a job after they were married, to go to clubs and drink in public (yes there was a law against that).  Time to celebrate those women who stood up to the ‘Man” and gave him what for.

Yes it’s 2018 and it seems the fight for equality is still ongoing, I don’t believe we will see it in my lifetime or even my daughters lifetime.  The culture is too ingrained through business and politics that women are an annoyance, give them a bone and they may shut up and leave the real work to the men.

If equality were a thing already there would be no need for a #metoo movement, there would be no need for Equal Employment Opportunity Laws that force companies to hire women.  If Equality were a thing already there would be equal numbers of women in men in the Armed Forces, in the trades, in other male dominated industries.  If equality were a thing already women would be paid the same as men for the same work and wouldn’t be penalised for going on Maternity leave or carers leave.  Our Superannuation would reflect our contribution to society in our child raising and care for the elderly.  There would be tax compensation for these contributions for both men and women.

No people we have a long way to go before Equality is a thing, until it is we need International Women’s Day to shine a light on Women’s contribution to society.

Let me know what you or your organisation is doing on Thursday down below in the comments box.

Namaste