International Women’s Day - Embracing Equity

International Women’s Day this year is special for me personally. My American university is celebrating 50 years since first admitting women to what was previously an all-male bastion of learning. I was in the second class of women to be accepted – one woman for every 12 men.

It was a major milestone in the university’s history and a ‘win’ for the feminist movement. But whilst my friends from those days and I have always been proud to have been on the vanguard, we always felt that something was not quite right. This year’s International Woman’s Day has helped me put my finger on that disquiet.

This year’s theme is #EmbracingEquity. It challenges us to think about how ‘equality’ simply is not enough. We must all think and act to make our world fair and equitable for women. In my university days, little or no accommodation had been made for the fact that we were all young women. We got exactly what the men got. Urinals instead of toilet cubicles, and only 3 private shower cubicles for 60 women (We were NEVER going to use the group showers provided!). Trying to get to class on time was a challenge requiring cooperation and planning which our male counterparts never had to face. We were given the same number of hours access to the sports facilities but late at night after the men were done. Was all of this equal? Yes, to a point, but it certainly wasn’t equitable.

And that is what #EmbracingEquity is all about. It is about thinking what changes need to be made to our schools, clubs, and workplaces to allow everyone to thrive. The usual way equity is visualised is shown here below. It is a recognition that we all start from a different place and will need a different level of support to allow us all to achieve success.

So, this March 8, my university girlfriends and I will gather on Zoom, toast International Women’s Day, and talk about what would have made our university days more equitable and how much more comfortably we would have been able to achieve our goals. We will challenge ourselves in each of our individual spheres of influence – education, policing, social work, the creative arts and, yes, the local council – to always consider equity. And always remember to #EmbraceEquity.

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