International Women's Day 2021

International Women’s Day, March 8, is little noted in the U.S. but is celebrated by more than 100 nations around the globe. It began in the early 1900s with demonstrations by suffragists and labor leaders, caught on with social reformers in Europe, and until 1975 was mostly observed in socialist countries. In 1975 the U.N. General Assembly declared March 8 as International Women’s Day and has celebrated it every year with a theme promoting women’s rights. This year’s theme is #EachforEqual—a statement that each of us is responsible for helping to create a gender-equal world. 

Our “WMST 2020: Women in Global Perspective” Spring class honors IWD by researching nongovernmental organizations that contribute to women’s wellbeing and preparing information about them to share with the public. Some of these NGOs are small grassroots groups that operate in a limited geographic area (for instance, Friendship Bridge), while some are large transnational organizations (like WEDO) with extensive staff and connections with the United Nations. Among them, these NGOs serve to advance women’s health, safety, legal rights, and economic progress. Click on the links below to learn about each one.