Today, March 8th, 2017 is International women's Day and it is also a day without a woman. Women around the globe are walking out on their jobs to show everyone what a day without a woman would be like. They are doing it to show that women's contributions to society do make a difference. They participate because they feel that they are treated as "less than" in our world and they want to make a demonstration of how much they really do in our world.
Why I'm not participating in a day without a woman
While I am a feminist and I love International Women's Day, I'm not sure how I feel about this whole day without a woman movement.
I appreciate what it is they are trying to do. But, if it were not my day off, would I be participating? No. I'll tell you why.
Taking the day off from work is something that only well-off, privileged women can afford to participate in. Women who live in poverty and women who have lower incomes can't afford to miss a day of work and lose a day's worth of wages. Many women simply can't afford to lose that income. That income helps support their families. It puts food in the mouths of their children. It means something. They also can't risk losing their jobs. For women who work minimum wage jobs, this is a real possibility.
Also, women with children, whether they are single parents or parents that make the most money in their family or just parents that need to have two incomes, would have to consider the costs of daycare.
Whether they are participating or not, other women are participating and that affects them. As Red State points out, some school districts and day care centers are closing for the day because the women that work there are not going to do their job for the day. So, who is going to care for these children? Other women, who can't afford to take the day off, will have to find someone else and pay them to care for their children and private babysitters can cost a lot more than sending them to school or to daycare.
No shopping on day without a woman
Sassy Plum reminds people that aside from taking the day off work and wearing red to show your support on International Women's Day, participants are also encouraged not to shop (unless it is at a woman-owned business of course). I don't know about you, but for a lot of moms, this is a lot to ask.
Most days, there is something we need to get from the store for our children, whether it is food or something for a last minute school project. And if you live in a small town, there simply may not be many women-owned businesses. I could get my hair cut. But I couldn't buy groceries.
So, while I fully support International Women's Day, I'm not sure how I feel about a day without a woman. I like the general idea behind it; however, I don't think it was completely thought out. I couldn't participate if I wanted to and a lot of the women I know would not be able to take part either. How much good will it do then? Will it help anyone in the long run?
