The 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day will be observed on March 8 as part of Women’s History Month.
There is a long history of female activism in North Carolina, and Ella Baker, one of the most prominent Civil Rights activists, explored her passion for equality as a student from 1918-22 at Shaw University. Baker went on to help create the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). SNCC’s success in registering voters in the South is accredited to Baker’s ideas about group-centered leadership and participatory democracy and her belief that SNCC should be student-founded and student-run.
Women are continuing to make history throughout the world, from groups of women fighting for the right to vote in the United Arab Emirates to Dilma Rousseff becoming Brazil’s first female president. In fact, in the global community, 18 world leaders are females. Furthermore, among the 10 most populous nations, half of the countries are governed by female presidents or prime ministers.
And of course, Gov. Perdue is North Carolina's first woman governor.
The female presence in shaping history goes beyond heads of state. Women often fight alongside men to demand social and political change. This was notably observed in Egypt, where protests not only effected internal change but inspired similar action elsewhere.
Political involvement of women remains dangerous in many countries, but women willingly take enormous risks to fight for recognition, equal rights, and a better world for their children. Please join the Council for Women in recognizing the achievements and bravery of countless women who tirelessly work to challenge the status quo and fight for equality.
Information about International Women’s Day and global events can be found at http://internationalwomensday.org/ or http://www.ncwu.org/. For local activities, visit the Council’s website at www.councilforwomen.gov.