Tag Archives: equality
International Women’s Day
The world marks International Women’s Day today, an annual celebration that highlights the economic, political and social achievements of women.
“International Women’s Day is the story of ordinary women as makers of history; it is rooted in the centuries-old struggle of women to participate in society on an equal footing with men,” the United Nations says.
The day was marked for the first time in the early 1900s. More than one million women and men attended rallies in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland in 1911. They demanded the right to vote and hold public office, and for an end to job discrimination.
‘It is a time to reflect on progress made, to call for change and to celebrate acts of courage and determination by ordinary women who have played an extraordinary role in the history of women’s rights,” the United Nations says.
Filed under Woman Power, World Politics
Monday, 1/18/10, Public Square
Martin Luther King Jr. Day marks the birthday of Rev. King who was the chief spokesman for nonviolent activism in the civil rights movement, which successfully protested racial discrimination in federal and state law. He is a human-rights icon. “I Have a Dream“ is the popular name given to the public speech in which he called for racial equality and an end to discrimination.
The campaign for a federal holiday in King’s honor began soon after his assassination. Ronald Reagan signed the holiday into law in 1983, and it was first observed in 1986.
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Filed under The Public Square
