The world celebrated International Women’s Day yesterday, and we are still looking for the more profound meaning of this. It should never be just about a loud or very festive celebration. It marks women’s struggle for emancipation, for human dignity, gender equality and equal opportunities for education, career and life.
So, while on the topic, it might feel as though it’s been an inalienable right for as long as we can remember, but it really wasn’t that long ago that women not only didn’t have the right to vote, but also couldn’t own land, travel freely, or work outside the traditional roles prescribed by society.
While the United States was one of the earlier countries to grant the vote, they were by no means the first, with countries such as New Zealand and Australia leading the way in equal rights for women. Other countries fell far behind the rest of the world in granting women equal voting rights, and many are still fighting gender bias and discrimination when it comes to equality for women.
Here’s a list with the years when women received the right to vote in some countries:
🌸 USA (1920)
🌸 Cuba (1934)
🌸 Myanmar (1935)
🌸 Dominican Republic (1942)
🌸 China (1949)
🌸 Nepal (1951)
🌸 Mexico (1953)
🌸 Ghana (1954)
🌸 Kenya (1963)
🌸 Switzerland (1971)
Regardless, women everywhere continue to make strides, make history, and make changes. And while there is still much to be done before all women can experience gender equality, there is no doubt that the women’s rights movement is alive and well today, and progress will march on for those rights.
Given we had the privilege to be raised by women and are surrounded by them in our lives, let’s help that feminine voice tell its truth, be heard with empathy, and be listened to with respect, in our everyday endeavours!
Are you in?
