International Women’s Day: Everything You Need to Know

March 8th of every year is International Women's Day. This day’s celebration is focused on honoring the women in history who have paved the path that we are still marching on. Women's rights have been a significant focus in our recent history, but even throughout early history. Taking a day out of the year to remember those who came before us in the journey for equality while also celebrating those who are among us and inspiring those to come is essential for maintaining the momentum that is present.

The History of HERstory

International Women's Day truly began in 1911 in various European countries, such as Austria and Germany. In 1975, though, it became an official celebratory day for the United Nations. In all technicality, this year will be the 110th celebration, though it has not been that long since the United States began recognizing the “holiday.”

There is an irony to this, though, because this celebration's true rootage is actually from the United States. In 1909 a political party conceptualized National Women's Day, and it was even celebrated in New York that year. In 1910 a German Feminist, Clara Zetkin, took this idea to the next level and by 1911, the day had become accepted throughout various nations surrounding Germany.

These experiences have all led to the moment we are in now, 2021, celebrating the women of history who have presented us with the opportunity to be proud of our identity and feel empowered by it. This day also works as an excellent platform for policy adjustments. There are various events, rallies, and committees that organize awareness and proactivity on gender equality via International Women's Day.

The experience can be found worldwide, and its intensity varies depending on where you are at. Some countries are still conservative to women's rights, allowing the events to function as tools for creating social and political noise on the subject. Other countries are quite loud and proud about equality already, such as the United States of America, and utilize the experience to further the government's involvement with the circumstance. Regardless of which side of the spectrum your locality resides in, though, there is still a place for the impact it creates, and there will always be a purpose for the celebration it provides.

Famous Women in Michigan History

In honor of International Women's Day, I think it is important to note that so many courageous and wave-making women came from the wonderous state of Michigan. This small account does nothing on their behalf, but I will try my best to highlight those that have the more touching legacies.

Rosa Parks

This is a name we can all agree we've heard, though I was not aware until recently of the enormous impact she played in Michigan's equality movement from various angles. Rosa Parks made headlines that have gone down in history for sitting in 1955. Her revolutionary choices paved the road for African American women throughout our nation. Rosa Parks became a Detroit resident in 1957, hoping to evade death threats from her impactful actions on the Bus Boycott. She became a part of the civil rights movement in Michigan at that time, and progressively moved up in her role for change from there. From 1965 to 1988, she served as a secretary to the state Representative Jon Conyers and fought from the sidelines for various equality concerns. She passed in 2005, but not without making history yet again as the first woman to lie in state at the Capitol Rotunda. Rosa Parks is by far one of the most memorable faces and names regarding women in history. Without her, there may not have been the women that follow in this list. She represents a treasured part of our history, both as a state working to gain equality and as a nation aiming to do the same. The famous bus can be viewed at The Henry Ford museum in Dearborn, Michigan.

Dr. Merze Tate

Dr. Merze Tate was a wavemaker for African American women and the education system. She made history in Michigan, in the United States, and then worldwide with her unstoppable attitude regarding education. She was the first African American to graduate from Western Michigan University, the first woman to attend Oxford University in England, and the first woman to earn a Ph.D. in Government from Harvard. Shamefully though, Michigan refused to let her teach in the state due to her ethnic background. She achieved educator status in Indiana, thankfully, and even went on to guest frequently at the Capitol.

Andra Rush

Andra Rush is a wonderful role model for business-minded women, especially of adversity and diversity. She started Rush Trucking with a fragile loan and a handful of vehicles in 1984. The business has outlived her expectations and today is overly thriving with clients from around the country. She is of the few Native American women to own a large-scale business in the state of Michigan. Because of this and her personal drive, she has been an honoree for the 2017 National Women’s History Month and is a proud advisor to the US Secretary of Commerce via the US Manufacturing Council. Her impact took her so far as to be invited to sit with Michele Obama during the President's State of the Union address during 2014. Today she is still going strong, ensuring that women have a voice in the policies and business domain of transportation and logistics.

Serena Williams

Serena is known for being the top female tennis player globally for over 185 weeks straight at one point in history. This is outstanding to consider, but her actual value doesn't end with athletic inspiration to women. She has used her fame and fortune to fund scholarships for those faced with adversity, build schools and other necessities in Africa, and help provide financial assistance to culture-shaping start-ups and organizations. She is a philanthropist at heart, athlete by trade, and a Michigan native, all of which deserve to be celebrated.

Cynthia Yao

Cynthia Yao has made her mark by being the first Asian American woman to create a hands-on science center in the United States. In Ann Arbor, she founded the Hands-On Museum that still stands today. It has been admired and used as a framework for hands-on museums worldwide for the valuable experiences it offers its visitors. She has provided credibility in a field that has not been as considerable to women's value until recently. Her role for the acknowledgment given to women in both innovative science and scientific history is cherished, especially so for those who call Michigan home.

Michigan Women’s Historical Center in Lansing

This was just a small sampling of amazing women who achieved so much in Michigan, and the other 300+ women are on display at the Michigan Women’s Historical Center in Lansing. In fact, this center was the very first in the entire nation to solely focus on the achievements of women!

Celebrate International Women’s Day with Us

Today's women are thanks to the women of yesterday, and with this logic, we should be preparing the road for the women of tomorrow. International Women’s Day is a celebration and a sanction, an experience for the pretense of what is to come. We are all blessed to be born in this time of history where we have the opportunity to share and create with such freedom, but there is still much work to be done regarding women’s rights on a global scale.

If there is anything you can do regarding the approaching of March 8th, make it known to your friends and your family members of the relevancy that women's rights have in our culture. Shine a light on how recent it was that times changed in the United States and how approachable it is in foreign countries that are still oppressed. More importantly, let March 8th be a reminder that every day is a good day to be proud to be a woman or be proud of women. It is not about being superior in any way, but rather about being equal in value to society and recognizing that globally.

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