The history of March 8, International Women's Day, which is celebrated with enthusiasm around the world, dates back to the 1800s. International Women's Day, as defined by the United Nations, is an international day celebrated on 8 March each year. It is devoted to the development of political and social awareness of women on the basis of human rights, and the celebration of their economic, political and social achievements. International Women's Day is a focal point in the women's rights movement. As the research on the meaning of today and how it emerged gained momentum, we shared the details on the subject in our news. Here are the curious information about the history and meaning of March 8 International Women's Day…
After the Socialist Party of America held a "Women's Day" in New York on February 28, 1909, the 1910 International Socialist Women's Conference proposed an annual "Women's Day". After women gained the right to vote in Soviet Russia in 1917, March 8 became a national holiday. Women's Day was predominantly celebrated by socialist movements and communist countries until it was adopted by the feminist movement in 1967. It was started to be celebrated by the United Nations in 1975. With the decision taken by the United Nations General Assembly on December 16, 1977, member states were invited to declare a day in accordance with their traditions and history as the International Day of Women's Rights and International Peace.
Today, International Women's Day is a public holiday in some countries, while in others it is largely ignored. In some countries it is a day of protest, in others it is a day celebrating womanhood.
History
At the International Socialist Women's Conference affiliated to the 26nd (Socialist) International held in Copenhagen, Denmark on 27-1910 August 2, German Social Democratic Party delegates Clara Zetkin, Kate Duncker and their friends proposed to organize an "Women's Day" every year from now on. and the proposal was unanimously accepted. In the first years, a specific date was not determined.
The name "International Working Women's Day" was adopted with the effect of the "class against class" policies that gained weight at the International Communist Women's Conference affiliated to the 1921rd Congress of the 3rd (Communist) International held in Moscow in 3. However, in the 1930s, during the transition to the "united front against fascism" policies, the original name of "International Women's Day" was returned. This change was also reflected in the field of women's organization, and the International Democratic Women's Federation was founded in 1945 by abandoning an organizational understanding aimed at socialism or communism and limited to only “worker/working women” or “socialist/communist women”.
There are various controversial claims about the event that led to the determination of March 8 as "International Women's Day". One of them is the fact that the 1917 February Revolution, which led to the overthrow of tsarism in Russia, started with the women's march and strikes on March 8, the other is that on March 8, 1908, in New York, USA, under the leadership of women workers, most of them socialist, union rights and women's rights. The rally held with the demands for voting rights, another one is the attack of the striking workers in a textile factory in New York City, USA by the police on March 8, 1857, the workers being locked up in the factory, the death of 120 female workers as a result of the workers not being able to escape due to the barricades set up in the fire that followed, and again another is the Triangle, which took place in New York on March 1910, 19, which is very parallel to this, but which was not mentioned at all after 1911, when the International Women's Day was first decided, and March 25, 1911, when the first international celebrations were held. Shirt Factory fire. On the relevant page of the official website of the United Nations, it is pointed out that the 8 February Revolution, which put an end to Tsarism in Russia, started with women's protest actions and strikes on March 1917 according to the Gregorian calendar, as the event that led to the election of March 8.
International Women's Day, which was banned from being commemorated in some countries that were afraid of the spread of socialism between the First and Second World War, came to the fore more strongly in Western Bloc countries when it was commemorated in various demonstrations in the United States at the end of the 1960s. The United Nations General Assembly adopted the commemoration of 16 March as “International Women's Day” on 1977 December 8.
March 8 in Turkey
March 8, International Women's Day was first celebrated in Turkey in 1921 with the initiative of two communist sisters Rahime Selimova and Cemile Nuşirvanova. After this date, March 8 International Women's Day celebrations were not allowed for years. In 1975, the “United Nations Decade for Women” was declared. Since Turkey was also included in this context, the “Women Year Congress” was held in Turkey in 1975.
The activities of the Progressive Women's Association were also influential in the beginning of the celebration of March 8, International Women's Day in 1975. Thus, March 8, International Women's Day, took to the streets and squares from closed environments. The Progressive Women's Association was a non-governmental organization that brought together the working class and women to seek their rights. Since its establishment, it has had nearly 33 thousand members through 35 branches and 15 representative offices across the country in a short time. With the publication called "Women's Voice", it could reach 35 thousand people.
After the September 12 Coup, no celebrations were allowed by the military junta administration for four years.
It has been celebrated by various women's organizations every year since 1984. The main difference of this new era is that this day, which used to be embraced only by the socialist sector, is now celebrated by almost all women's organizations as well as state officials and institutions like an official holiday, and even companies are participating in it with advertising and marketing activities. On the other hand, in today's Turkey, it is seen that there are those who celebrate March 8 as "International Working Women's Day", as it was called as a reflection of the "class against class" policies of the 1920s of the Comintern.
The Feminist Night Parade, which started in Taksim in 2003 among various International Women's Day celebrations across the country and was repeated every year on 8 March, began to be held in other cities in the following years.
After the Istanbul Governor's Office removed Taksim Square and Istiklal Street from the list of places for marches and rallies in 2014, the Feminist Night March on Istiklal Street continued for a few years on March 8, but in 2019, the police prevented thousands of people gathered in Istiklal Street from marching. The crowd, who insisted on marching as in previous years, was dispersed using tear gas and rubber bullets. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, government officials and the head of the Nationalist Movement Party Devlet Bahçeli said that slogans and whistles were continued during the Isha call to prayer, which was read from the Taksim mosque at the entrance of Istiklal Street, to protest the call to prayer and to disrespect the call to prayer. Women's organizations denied the allegations. On the evening of March 10, a group wanted to hold a demonstration in Taksim with the slogans "Break the hands reaching for prayer", but the police intervened and dispersed the demonstrators.