Page 66 - Fyne Times Spring 2014

SPRING 2014
66
International Women’s Day 2014
International Women's Day has been observed since in the early 1900's, a
time of great expansion and turbulence in the industrialized world that saw
booming population growth and the rise of radical ideologies.
1908
Great unrest and critical debate was occurring
amongst women. Women's oppression and
inequality was spurring women to become
more vocal and active in campaigning
for change. Then in 1908, 15,000 women
marched through New York City demanding
shorter hours, better pay and voting rights.
1909
In accordance with a declaration by the
Socialist Party of America, the first National
Woman's Day (NWD) was observed across
the United States on 28 February. Women
continued to celebrate NWD on the last
Sunday of February until 1913.
1910
In 1910 a second International Conference of
Working Women was held in Copenhagen.
A woman named a Clara Zetkin (Leader
of the 'Women's Office' for the Social
Democratic Party in Germany) tabled the
idea of an International Women's Day. She
proposed that every year in every country
there should be a celebration on the same
day - a Women's Day - to press for their
demands. The conference
of over 100 women
from 17 countries,
representing
unions,
socialist
parties,
working
women's
clubs, and
including
the first three
women
elected to the Finnish parliament, greeted
Zetkin's suggestion with unanimous approval
and thus International Women's Day was the
result.
1911
Following the decision agreed at Copenhagen
in 1911, International Women's Day (IWD)
was honoured the first time in Austria,
Denmark, Germany and Switzerland on 19
March. More than one million women and
men attended IWD rallies campaigning for
women's rights to work, vote, be trained, to
hold public office and end discrimination.
However less than a week later on 25 March,
the tragic 'Triangle Fire' in New York City
took the lives of more than 140 working
women, most of them Italian and Jewish
immigrants. This disastrous event drew
significant attention to working conditions
and labour legislation in the United
States that became a focus of subsequent
International Women's Day events. 1911 also
saw women's 'Bread and Roses' campaign.
1913-1914
On the eve of World War I campaigning for
peace, Russian women observed
their first International
Women's Day on
the last Sunday
in February
1913. In
1913