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Celebrate International Women’s Day

Celebrate International Women’s Day

Posted by Ania Emmett on

The 8th March 2019 is International Women’s Day. To celebrate, we are inviting all our followers and jewellery lovers to share the ways they are marking this special day, no matter where they are in the world. Use the hashtag #HenrykaWithLove to get our attention on social media!

The theme of this year’s International Women’s Day is #BalanceforBetter, so don’t forget to add this hashtag and show your support.

What is International Women’s Day?

For more than 100 years, the 8th March has been singled out as International Women’s Day – a time when people across the world come together and champion women. While the purpose of the day differs from place to place – in some countries it is a day to protest issues affecting women, in others it is a way to celebrate the accomplishments of women and promote gender equality – this special day is more than just a hashtag on Instagram.

History of International Women’s Day

The first ‘National Women’s Day’ was held on 28th February 1909 in New York, United States. Its original goal was to commemorate the movement for women’s rights, while celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements women were making.

In 1917, women in Russia marched for ‘Bread and Peace’ creating a domino-effect that led to them being granted suffrage, or the right to vote. This pivotal event fell on the 8th March and it is now celebrated as a national holiday in Russia and many former Soviet states.

What countries celebrate International Women’s Day?

International Women’s Day is a public holiday in: Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, China (for women only), Cuba, Georgia, Guinea-Bissau, Eritrea, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Madagascar (for women only), Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Nepal (for women only), Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan,Uganda, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Vietnam and Zambia.

In many of these countries, tradition dictates that men honour their mothers, wives, girlfriends, colleagues and friends with flowers or small gifts to show their appreciation and love.

In some countries, such as Cameroon, Croatia, Romania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Poland and Chile, the day is not a public holiday, but is widely observed
nonetheless.

And the influence of International Women’s Day grows year-on-year. As of 2019, for example, International Women’s Day will be celebrated as a public holiday in the city of Berlin, Germany.

International Women’s Day 2019 - #BalanceforBetter

In 1996 it was decided that International Women’s Day would be themed around ‘Celebrating the Past, Planning for the Future’. The tradition of theming each International Women’s Day stuck, and each year has a new focus ever since.

This year the theme is ‘Better the Balance, Better the World’ or #BalanceforBetter.

The theme covers a whole host of issues and ideas, such as finding gender balance in the workplace, striving for equal pay, creating a better balance at home, maternity and paternity leave and many more concerns.

According to the International Women’s Day advert: “From grassroots activism to worldwide action, we are entering an exciting period of history where the world expects balance. We notice its absence and celebrate its presence.”

Shocking Facts about the Lives of Women for International Women’s Day

We would like to make sure as many people are talking about International Women’s Day as possible, which is why we have pulled together some incredible, terrible and unbelievable facts about women. Whether you share them over a cup of coffee or loudly at an IWD event in your city, there is benefit in us all getting involved and speaking out.

1. In nearly every country women work longer hours than men and are paid less
than men. This needs to change.

2. The two highest IQs ever-recorded on a standard test belonged to women.

3. Women produce half the world’s food but only own one percent of its farmland.

We also have some fun facts!

1. The average women owns more than 25 pairs of shoes
2. Women spend nearly ONE year of their lives deciding what to wear
3. Women apply mascara and always have their mouth open – nobody knows why!
4. Women blink 19 times per minute, compared to 11 for men.
5. Women speak around 20,000 words per day on average. Men speak only 7,000 words per day on average in comparison.
6. The average amount of time a woman can keep a secret for is 47-hours and 15 minutes.

 

Businesswomen

How is International Women’s Day celebrated in your country? Share your snippets with us on social media and we will share them!

#HenrykaWithLove

#BalanceforBetter