Eve Was Not Born of Any Rib and Didn't Offer Anyone Apples
Every day on March 8th the world commemorates Women’s Day. This point was established on the calendar to remember more than 100 women were killed in a fire in a factory in New York in 1908.
These women were in the Sirtwoot Cotton factory when the fire began, which was caused by the same owner of the company. Causing the fire was his response to a worker strike demanding equal pay, reducing the workday to 10 hours and time to breastfeed their children.
In 1910, Denmark hosted the Second International Conference of Working Women, and established March 8th as the International Day of Working Women. Today the “celebration” of this day has been extended as Women’s Day, a moment that helps us remember all the goodness of this gender that brings life to the world. However, this day should serve as a recognition, not as a categorization of females as admirers of pink, makeup or other stereotypes and microsexisms that corporate marketing takes advantage of.
Why is it necessary to empower women?
The empowerment of every woman is both necessary and urgent in our society. Women need power and strength without subjugation or submission.
Even in this century a woman can be mistreated by the simple fact of being a woman. Women every day lock away their wishes and desires because of the long-held belief that a woman should sacrifice herself for others. They are still expected to get up and clean up the dishes. It can still be surprising to see a female executive. Car brands still use the female body to attract buyers.
Like it or not, we live in a world of inequality. Our expectations for each gender are unequal. This is reflected in our behavior and thoughts and, when we become aware of it, we struggle against them day after day.
What do we want for women on this day and for the rest of the year?
We want a woman to have the same opportunities as a man; no more and no less. We don’t want there to be a need for international tributes every March 8th. We want balance and equality to be natural.
We do not want to be paid less, or work for free. We do not want potential jobs to ask for our size or judge us by our appearance. Nor do we want to have to wear a uniform skirt by decree.
We do not want a woman to be raised to be a martyr and socially obliged to sacrifice her desires “for the sake of others.” We do not want to be recognized by using the color pink.
We do not want the media to treat us like objects. We do not want breastfeeding to be frowned upon or to be looked at strangely for not doing it. We want to decide. We want to be seen as another being on this earth without the fear of being broken.
Because fragile is not synonymous with feminine and housework or childrearing are not just for women. Because, as rightly emphasized by the great Eduardo Galeano:
“If Eve had written Genesis, how would the first night of love of mankind be? Eve would have begun to clarify that she was not born of any rib, nor met any snakes or offered apples to anyone, and that God never told her to give birth in pain and your husband will rule over you. All these stories are all lies that Adam told the press.”
Happy life for all women
Happy life, woman. We say “happy life” because today we will not congratulate you for being loving, hardworking, a good mother or the best daughter. We are simply calling for you to feel proud of who you are as a person, and to recognize the issues and inequalities.
However, remember that although every March 8th is a day dedicated to all the great females of the world and throughout history, we must not forget that we must shout it with the same intensity for the remainder of the year.
That said and once again: HAPPY LIFE, WOMEN. Because although for centuries society has insisted that the woman is nothing, a woman can be everything without limitations or distinctions and we are becoming more and more aware of it.