On 3 March 2024 NewVIc celebrated International Women’s Day with flowers, food and fun. Each female student and member of staff received a daffodil or rose as well as an appreciation card denoting that ‘We appreciate you! We value you! We see you! We celebrate you.’
From book stalls celebrating women authors, free sanitary products, calming colouring walls and free snacks, drinks and more, there was a lot to behold. When one student was asked about the day they expressed that “This is a brilliant event. It’s great that we have come together as a community to celebrate each other! It’s like a sisterhood, where we feel appreciated.”
When we asked NewVIc students and staff What International Women’s Day means to them. They said that it meant:
“Freedom, Equality and Happiness”
“Recognising and celebrating women’s hard work. It’s great that women are empowered, feel confident and are doing what they want.”
This makes you think, do we live in a society in which all people can and do celebrate women in action, as well as in words? Just by looking at global examples we still have a way to go in terms of supporting women, let’s not forget that there great examples of women being supported and even supporting themselves, for example;
Black women are and have been the fastest growing group of entrepreneurs according to JP Morgan and Forbes [1] [2]. Global studies show that we are beginning to understand that gender equality will require men to take action too [3], and these studies show that people are beginning to believe that gender equality can happen in their lifetime [3].
Additionally, more awareness and support is being raised by governing bodies regarding economic gender equality, which will hopefully be a step in the right direction for change. An example of this is the House of Lords Economic Inclusion of Women Strategy [4].
Our NewVIc Exemplars
At NewVIc we saw some great examples of women supporting, succeeding and celebrating one another; including business woman Tanya of the Adeno Gang (pictured above) who frequently holds workshops in NewVIc and across the UK to teach women about reproductive health.
In addition, our mental health team including Fatima, our dedicated mental health advisor who goes above and beyond to promote equality, equity and mental wellbeing amongst all students.
Not to forget our amazing LRC team who continuously promote female authors and made sure to display a wide selection at the event.
To conclude, although there are steps being taken towards celebrating and enhancing the quality of women and girl’s existence, especially here at NewVIc we are, in many ways, still very far away.
So what can you do now? Tell the women in your life that you appreciate them and what you appreciate about them, learn their love language, support them to realise their ambitions — whatever they may be and give them hope that tomorrow will be a better day.
Sources
[1] https://www.jpmorgan.com/insights/business/business-planning/black-women-are-the-fastest-growing-group-of-entrepreneurs-but-the-job-isnt-easy
[4] https://lordslibrary.parliament.uk/international-womens-day-2024-economic-inclusion-of-women/
