International Women's Day is probably not on the calendar you have hanging up in the kitchen, or over your desk in your office (unless you put it there yourself). But whether it is a yearly celebration for you or this is the first time you're ever hearing there was such a thing, today, March 8, is the 100th International Women's Day in history.
Whether a single day -- when it can be argued men get the other 364 -- to commemorate the contributions of more than half the planet's population makes a difference can be debated. But today, women in the Middle East have noted its worth, using the occasion to highlight their key roles in the recent uprisings in the region:
Twitter and Facebook were filled with messages of support for the women of Egypt and Tunisia, as well as protesters in Yemen, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Libya and Iran. Some posted video tributes to the female protesters, while others, perhaps bolstered by the energy of the protest movements, published their own demands for equal rights and a greater say in their countries' politics...
Others took a more direct approach. A Million Woman March was planned for Cairo's Tahrir Square on Tuesday, and activists in Beirut planned their own march against sexual harassment.
Fulbright Fellow Lauren Bohn reports from Tahrir Square that anti-feminist men turned out to heckle and intimidate the women. "Encircled by men, yelling 'out.' Told me I'm 'spreading lies.' Cam almost taken," she tweets.
Gender equality, of course, is not hindered only by outspoken opposition. It's held back by paychecks, too. None other than James Bond and his boss, M, spoke out today in the video you see above, courtesy of the Guardian in the UK:
He's bedded, rescued, loved and lost his fair share of women over more than half a century, but has James Bond ever paused to consider the rates of sexual assault of young girls going to school in the developing world?
That's one of a number of startling questions posed by a new short film by the artist and director Sam Taylor-Wood, released to coincide with International Women's Day and starring Bond actors Daniel Craig and Judi Dench.
"We're equals, aren't we 007?" asks Dench as M, opening the film in voiceover, as Craig walks towards the camera. "Yet it is 2011 and a man is still likely to earn more money than a woman, even one doing the same job."
"We're equals, aren't we?" asks M. She is 007's superior. Below, Lauren Bohn's photo from Tahrir Square, where for many the answer is clearly still "no."
Lauren Bohn
In Tahrir Square, men opposed the women's march with signs that read "Not Now."
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Feminism: the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes. 2. : organized activity on behalf of women's rights and interests.
Rush Limbaugh: Feminism was established to allow unattractive women easier access to the mainstream. Feminism is what I oppose. Feminism has led women astray".
I'd wager that about 85% of everything each of us knows about morality,ethics and being about the right thing was learned at mothers knee before the age of ten!
This is where Equality begins!
Where did opression begin?
When Adam kicked Lilith to the curb because she wanted to be "On top" and of equal standing...Typical "man think"!
I find it appalling that women in many Muslim countries are equivalent to living property.
Iran provides the best example of why equal rights must apply to gender. The idea of freedom appeals to teenage women in Muslim countries.
Most who run away in the middle east become victim to human-trafficking. A lucky few find shelters. The high runaway rate reduces the number of women available for stable marriage, which leaves many single Muslim men available for solicitation by terrorist organizations.
The gender equality gap in western countries differs by degree but not intent or outcome.
altho 'when' tends to never come, at least the sign doesn't outright say "not ever."
on a off-but-maybe-slightly-related topic, would anybody else be interested in seeing Mr. Moneypenny - Moneypenny cast as a gay man - in future Bond movies?
Meh. I quit watching the Bond movies years ago.
The ad deserves a big BRAVO. It needs to be seen as a public service announcement in this country - often.