Photographer unknown: Vintage Surfer Girls 1930’s Manly Beach, Sidney, Australia

The whole world is celebrating International Women's Day on the 8th March 

For some of us it’d be a great occasion to spend a night in a restaurant, receive flowers, call your sisters, grandmas and mothers to wish them well and tell how much you appreciate them. 

I also want this day to remind us all about the movement which has started more than a hundred years ago for the advocacy of women's rights and equality of the sexes.

I wish it could be over by now (we already use feminism term for 110 years and god knows, how many years before we were trying to justify our equality to the world) but there’s still so much more to do to for women's’ rights to be recognised not just verbally but in real changes in:

• the amount of female leaders in the workplaces and politics, 
• equal sharing of the household and parenting duties with men, 
• gender based toys industry
• ability to grow our girls empowered and independent etc.

Thanks to our sisters for the past 100 year 

We have definitely made a big progress towards the equality. 

We know that women always had a desire for self-expression besides raising kids and taking care of the house and this need couldn’t be ignored by everyone. There are plenty of examples when women were changing their identity and names to do whatever they wanted and be accepted by the male society. 

Other talented women have spent their lives in the shadow of their husbands by performing backstage duties bringing fame to their partners. Career of a woman or it’s absence most of the time was defined by a man (and still is sometimes). Let me bring you several interesting stories from the past:

Rosalind Franklin

Along with famous Nikola Tesla, DNA code hacker - Rosalind Franklin is one of probably hundreds women in science who were underappreciated in their lifetime. She unravelled the structure of DNA, which is still changing the world, and was part of a team that won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1962. But she died in 1958 (at 37) from ovarian cancer, and the Nobel is never awarded posthumously. In fact, her work remained unacknowledged by colleagues until 1968. Franklin's struggles in pursuing science were also related to her father's concern about women in academic professions. Her biography is stating that he refused to pay her fees and that an aunt stepped in for her.

Maria Anna Mozart

Do you know about the destiny of the older sister of the famous composer? Anna Maria played the harpsichord and toured Europe for 7 years. She performed the most complex musical compositions and could pick up any melody by ear. Young girl was recognized as one of the most talented pianists of her time. Her career ended when she was eighteen: her father told Maria Anna to refuse the proposal of the beloved and betrayed for a man who was older than Maria Anna for 15 years. He also prohibited her to play or compose ever again. After the death of her husband, Maria Anna returned to Vienna, where she worked as a piano teacher for 25 years.

Margaret Keane

I’d recommend you to watch the movie “Big Eyes” of Tim Burton where he tells the story of American artist Margaret Keane — famous for drawing portraits and paintings with big eyes. Her husband Walter opens up his own Keane gallery, promoting the art as his own work, and sells reproductions. He is becoming phenomenally successful and popular while Margaret has to work16 hours a day to produce the new ones. If you want to know the end of the story, check it out.

Let me finish on a positive note - the story of a first female novelist.

Murasaki Shikibu

Murasaki Shikibu's (c.978-1030) Tale of Genji is considered to be the first great novel in world literature and written by a woman. Heian women were traditionally excluded from learning Chinese, the written language of government, but Murasaki, raised in her erudite father's household, showed a precocious aptitude for the Chinese classics and managed to acquire fluency. It is uncertain when she began to write The Tale of Genji. But later Murasaki was invited to serve as a lady-in-waiting at the Imperial court, probably because of her reputation as a writer.Little is known about her, but Genji is considered a masterpiece, even among modern literary critics - and a must-read romance novel.

Today we know many amazing women who has changed the world to be a better place. And yes, ladies, we are living in a very good time bringing up the next generation of empowered girls who will do even more and better for the planet and our society!

To achieve full equality we need help and support of our men on the first place like Murasaki's father was supporting her:

• our dads to grow their daughters with strong self-esteem and confidence, 
• our husbands and partners to share the household and parenting duties equally
• our colleagues and bosses to pay same money for woman and man for the same job 
• … *enter your commitment*

This International Women’s Day I want to thank all the women before me

 because today I can choose what and where I want to study, where I want to work and how to spend the money I earned, how I want to look and who I want to date. Today we take lots of things for granted and forget the way “here” was full of pain and struggles for millions of women before us. 

Not only on the 8th of March but everyday I invite all the women to appreciate what we have today and use the enormous amount of opportunities to learn, grow, develop your career; not apologise for being a girl, not underestimate yourself and always always believe that you are capable of so much more and no one can stop you.

Let’s break all remaining stereotypes by our example and bring gender equality to a whole new level. Together it is possible.

Photographer unknown: Young women running over a sand dune on an unidentified beach, ca. 1935, 

Thanks for reading and let’s connect better: who is the most inspiring women for you?

For me it’s my Mom. I also love Michelle Obama - she is the true role model.
Please, share your feedback and thoughts on IWD. I’d be especially curious to hear the men :)  

🙋Happy International Women’s Day, sistas!

 Vika, @vikapuzach