In my view, every day is women’s day; we rock in families, in workplaces, as mothers, and partners. I’m fortunate to feel this way because I’ve been raised in the land of opportunity.
Other women have not, do not and do not have.
March 8, 2012 is International Women’s Day.
Some moms have not had the luxuries my parents gave me; they don’t have the ability to provide for their children the way I do mine. They’re among the one in seven people who go to bed hungry every night. And this isn’t because there isn’t enough food to go around. It’s because there are deep imbalances in access to resources like fertile lands and water. In fact, more than 40 percent of the world’s population – 2.5 billion people – live in poverty, and many of them are women.
On International Women’s Day, stop and think a moment about the women in poverty who comprise half the population on earth. Here are some sad but true factoids:
- Sixty-six percent of the world’s work falls on women’s shoulders, yet they earn only 10% of the world’s income
- If women were given the same level of access to resources that men have, they could increase yields on their farms by 20 percent to 30 percent
- Hunger and poverty are about power and inequality, and women and girls face the biggest inequalities of all.
This International Women’s Day, Oxfam America is suggesting several ways to celebrate women while at the same time honoring those we’ve never met:
1. Send an International Women’s Day eCard to women you know around the world. All it takes is their email address to say thanks for her contributions.
2. For bloggers who really want to recognize a woman who is making a difference, Oxfam America has the International Women’s Day 2012 award. It can be shared via social media and/or handed directly to an influential woman.
Programs like this are always a good reminder to stop a moment from our every day grinds and reflect on our standing. When we look at the women in poverty trying to do what we mothers and business women do with their limited resources, we owe it to ourselves and them to share a kindness. Please do.
