Why International Women’s Day and Day without a Woman Is Important

Oddly enough, there seems to be some controversy over a Day without a Woman, or the Women’s Strike.  There is historical precedence for women strikes in the past, across the globe, but the argument for women striking in America today is that only privileged women have the ability to strike.  I acknowledge that there are many women out there who, if they did not go to their jobs today, find themselves without the much needed income from today’s wages, or worse, might find themselves without a job.  But as explained by Stephanie Kollgaard from the National Women's Liberation (http://gothamist.com/2017/03/07/national_womens_liberation.php), women can engage in this strike in many ways, including striking from the traditional women’s roles and activities, such as childcare, household chores, wearing make-up, and even always smiling or appearing happy.  To me, the goal of the day is to show the massive impact women have in our society, both in the workplace and in the home.

Another way to strike, is to limit shopping to only local women-owned businesses.  Women (in America, at least) control the majority of wealth (51%, according to Business Insider: http://www.businessinsider.com/women-now-control-more-than-half-of-us-personal-wealth-2015-4), and thus can make a huge impact economically in the U.S. simply by not shopping today.

For women who are striking in some way, you can log in your strike hours (paid/unpaid/formal/informal) so that the measure of our impact on the U.S. economy can be determined! Link: http://bit.ly/iwscalc. 

Another way to strike is to wear red, which is being described as “signifying revolutionary love and sacrifice” (http://www.scarymommy.com/ways-to-support-day-without-a-woman-strike-without-taking-off-from-work/).  Women and their allies can show their solidarity visually by the simple act of wearing something red (shirt, barrette, earrings, socks, arm band, etc.).

Finally, and how I’ve been spending my strike day, women can reach out to their representatives and voice their concerns over current issues, such as the proposal to cut funding for Planned Parenthood, which will impact so many people who depend on it for their basic health needs.  As found on IndivisibleGuide.com, which outlines practical steps for enacting political change at the local level:

“Begin with these five steps to gather intel. Before anything else, take the following five steps to arm yourself with information necessary for all future advocacy activities.
1. Find your three MoCs, their official websites, and their office contact info at www.callmycongress.com.
2. Sign up on your MoCs’ websites to receive regular email updates, invites to local events, and propaganda to understand what they’re saying. Every MoC has an e-newsletter.
3. Find out where your MoCs stand on the issues of the day — appointment of white supremacists, tax cuts for the rich, etc. Review their voting history at VoteSmart.org. Research their biggest campaign contributors at OpenSecrets.org.
4. Set up a Google News Alert (http://www.google.com/alerts) — for example for “Rep. Bob Smith” — to receive an email whenever your MoCs are in the news.
5. Research on Google News (https://news.google.com/news) what local reporters have written about your MoCs. Find and follow those reporters on Twitter, and build relationships. Before you attend or plan an event, reach out and explain why your group is protesting, and provide them with background materials and a quote. Journalists on deadline — even those who might not agree with you — appreciate when you provide easy material for a story.”  (Chapter 4: FOUR LOCAL ADVOCACY TACTICS THAT ACTUALLY WORK from INDIVISIBLE: A PRACTICAL GUIDE FOR RESISTING THE TRUMP AGENDA, HTTPS://WWW.INDIVISIBLEGUIDE.COM/WEB)

If you are unsure of a topic to reach out to your representative about, just look at the reasons for today’s strike, as outlined by womenstrike.org:

“WE STRIKE FOR:An end to racist and sexual assaults, and all forms of bigotryReproductive freedom, full access, and no coercionNational Health Care for allA $15 minimum wage for all workers, no exceptionsProtection and expansion of Social SecurityChildcare, free like the public schools, and paid family leaveR-E-S-P-E-C-T”

Happy International Women’s Day!

#daywithoutawoman  #internationalwomensday  #resist  #wearetheresistance