UK soaps stars from Emmerdale are participating in the celebrations for International Women’s Day on March 8th. The show is airing an episode on the day that includes only female members of the cast and was filmed with an all women crew. The show was also written, produced and directed by women.
But how much do you know about the strange and surprising history of International Women’s Day? Here we give you the inside story of a day that has come to mean so much to so many.
Socialist beginnings
The story of International Women’s starts with a socialist movement. While some believe the story starts in 1911, others track it back to a much earlier date - 1857 in a textile factory in New york.
But both stories are tales of a workers uprising against poor conditions.
In 1857, some 40000 women from a textile factory went on strike demanding better conditions. As the women were seen to be using violence to fight for their rights, the police arrived on the scene to quell the protest. The factory owner believed the best way to resolve the rebellion was to lock some of these women inside his factory. A fire broke out and because of the police barriers, the women could not escape and 120 women were killed. More than 10,000 people showed up for the funeral of these women who chose to fight for their rights.
The incident happened on March 8th and is the reason this date was chosen for International Women’s Day.
The first celebration of the day happened on March 19th in 1911. A million men and women rallied in the support of female rights. It was from this moment that the celebration of an International Women’s Day was born. It was in the year following this day that the Socialist International met in Denmark. The visiting delegates then approved the idea of an International Women’s Day - though it was first called the International Working Women’s Day, marked by gatherings in Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, And Austria.
However, many say that this rally was inspired by America’s National Women’s Day on February 28, 1909, which was declared by the Socialist Party of America. This day was called in memorial of the death of the 120 women in that original disaster.
A theme of fire
Just a week after the first International Women’s Day, another factory caught fire and 146 young immigrant women were killed in New York City. This incident resonated with the earlier death of the women in New York City. It was an incident that reminded people that the rights of women had not progressed much in the 50 plus years between the incidents.
As a result of these early beginnings, International Women’s Day was connected to working rights. Subsequently, the day has become more of a celebration of the achievement of women around the world.
Beyond that first day
In 1977, the United Nations first recognised International Women’s Day on March 8th, though many countries had been commemorating the day since the early 1900s. Russia first observed the day in 1913 and during WW1 rallies were held to show solidarity with the war effort. Indeed, the day was more important in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union for many years. It was also celebrated in Turkey each year from 1921.
In 2017 many women took the day off to celebrate the day. It was called a Day Without Women and resulted in much of the school system shutting down.
A history in brief
So, what is so surprising about all this? Well, first there is the socialist beginnings that turned into an American celebration. For a country that so vehemently acts out against socialism in all its form, it has become the hub for the movement. It is also surprising that an event in New York inspired an uprising of workers in the Eastern Bloc and the Soviet Union.
However, it is the hope that has emerged out of tragedy that is so surprising. So many women died in poor working conditions but this inspired the hope of this day. Now we use International Women’s Day as a way to celebrate female success stories and raise them up.
