Let’s celebrate International Women’s Day

There’s one day every year when men surprise women, girls, close to their hearts, with flowers, thus thanking them for their wholeheartedness, endless care, unconditional love, morning coffees, freshly ironed clothes and delicious dinners after a day of hard work. Let’s celebrate every women on International Women’s Day!

According to mult-kor.hu, the idea of designating one day of the year for women arose in the beginning of the last century as a result of political, feminist and trade union movements. In 1909, the American Socialist Party chose the 28^th of February to celebrate women, and the date remained until 1913. At the II. International Socialist Women’s Congress, held in Copenhagen in 1910, the German Clara Zetkin suggested that women’s day should be held annually all over the world.

The 8^th of March was chosen as International Women’s Day in 1914 in honour of the strike of the textile workwomen of New York, held in 1857 (according to other resources, in honour of 129 workwomen who died in a fire in a New York factory in 1908 on this day). This was the time when women’s demands for the broadening of their social-economic rights and abolishment of their restrictive practice on the labour market strengthened in most countries.

German poster from 1914 (Wikimedia Commons)

International Women’s Day was held for the first time on the 19^th of March, 1911, in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland. Men also attended the demonstrations, processions. In that time, the main focus was women’s right to vote. When the movements started achieving their main goal in more and more countries, the focus drifted to emancipation in the 1960s.

Throughout time and history, the celebration has lost its political aspect in most places and women are mostly celebrated with flowers and chocolate today. This is also the case in Hungary, where the occasion was first celebrated in 1913 with flyers. In the next year, women’s day events were held all over the country. The celebration of International Women’s Day was obligatory in the Rákosi era, when (from 1948) it was designated to be held on the 8^th March following the Soviet pattern (women protested for bread and peace in 1917 on this day).

Photo: MTI

Photo: MTI

The United Nations acknowledged the celebration in 1977 and listed it among the international days ever since.

There’s going to be programmes held all over Hungary in honour of women this year as well. You can enjoy special Women’s Day concerts and unique restaurant menus.

Finally, we would like to wish Happy International Women’s Day to all of our lovely readers and flatter the amazing creatures called women with a heart-stirring excerpt from one of Hungarian writer Sándor Márai’s books.

Sándor Márai: Herbario (Füves könyv) (excerpt) – About women in general

Thanks to the women.

Thank you, who gave birth to me. And you, who were my wife. And you, you third, tenth, thousandth, who gave me a smile, tenderness, a soft-eyed look on the street passing by, who comforted me when I was lonely, and nestled me when I was scared of death. Thank you for being blonde. And you for being white. And you for your nice hands. And you for being foolish and good. And you for being smart and cheerful. And you for being patient and generous. And you for covering my face with your hair when I failed and wanted to hide from the world, and you, because your body warmed up my body when I was cold in the loneliness of life. And you, for giving birth to my child. And you for holding down my eyes with soft fingers. And you for giving me bread and wine when I was hungry and thirsty. And you for beaming beauty from your body. And thank you for being good like animals. And you, whose body smelled like soil in the beginning of life. Thank you to the women, thank you.

ce: bm

Source: Daily News Hungary