International Women’s Day 2017
International Women’s Day (March 8) is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating gender parity. International Women’s Day Organization
This year’s theme is #BeBoldForChange
Call on the masses or call on yourself to help forge a better working world – a more gender inclusive world.
I touched on the theme of a better working world for women for International Women’s Day 2016. My question then is the same as it is now. In the more than three decades since I took the oath and went off to boot camp, have women serving in the US Navy made any great strides? The statistics I cited last year from the US Navy Personnel Command gave me some hope and would seem to indicate women have more opportunities now to serve in “non-traditional” roles and to serve onboard ships. Whether or not they are filling these billets, I’ve not found the statistics to say, but according to the article Navy Celebrates 2017 Women’s History Month from the Chief of Naval Personnel Public Affairs, “Women have served in the Navy as nurses dating back to the 1800s.” They “gained permanent status in the Navy with the passage of the Women’s Armed Services Integration Act” in 1948. And yet, according to the same article, in the 69 years since women gained permanent status, they still only make up 19% of the Navy’s enlisted force, 18% of the officer force and only 8% are senior or master chiefs.
I’m not sure I would qualify these numbers as progress.
As I said last year, the subject depressed me and I was struggling to see the headway we’ve made in the decades since my women’s libber mother ditched her domestic duties, “burned her bra” and set out into a man’s world. With everything going on in the world right now, I should be less optimistic.
And yet, I have a renewed sense of hope. I see the forces that seek to divide and discourage us having the opposite effect – think the Women’s March in January that started as a march on Washington DC and ended as a worldwide protest. Estimates say some 5 million marched that day. I see the young women of today who are strong in mind, body and spirit, women who are athletes, pilots, doctors, lawyers, CEOs, CFOs, musicians, writers, artists and so much more. I keep ever present in my mind all of the amazing women I have met just in the last few years, not to mention all of the women that have touched me, guided me and inspired me in my lifetime.
And while I know that progress is slow, way too slow, we ARE moving forward and we will continue to do so, as long as we remain diligent, keep our voices heard and #BeBoldForChange.
With that, here are a few things celebrating women around Napoli town this year:
In Italy – there is FREE ADMISSION to all state-owned museums and cultural heritage sites and the social media campaign #8marzoalmuseo “celebrates the world of women with a collection of images of women who made history.”
According to MiBAC, “You will see exceptional women whose fame across the centuries is known owing to art and culture. Also for this initiative, the visitors are invited to go on a digital treasure hunt in the Italian Museums. Using a smartphone or camera, everyone can find women in paintings, sculptures and the decorative arts from various periods and collections. Share your images using the hashtag #8marzoalmuseo, thereby disseminating the beauty of Italian art.”
International Women’s Day 2017 was first published on NapoliUnplugged.com on Mar 7, 2017.