March 8th is International Women's Day, the official day for people all over the world celebrate individual and community progress in women’s rights and the gender equality movement. In the lead up to our very own celebration, we want to hear your thoughts: when it comes to women, who inspires you?
Last year we saw The Matildas soccer team awarded the same pay as their male counterparts. They are the first women football team in the world to be on ‘equal pay’.
Another exciting victory followed closely - on July 26, Kamilaroi woman, Louise Taylor, became the first indigenous female judge in Australia.
These wonderful achievements might prompt some of us to imagine we are ‘almost there’. But according to UN Women Australia, no country in the world has yet achieved anything close to gender equality.
The National Library of Australia provides some insight into the idea that there is still much work to do to secure gender equality here in Australia, “In the twenty-first century, women still experience domestic violence, are paid on average less than men, and are underrepresented in senior roles and positions in society”.
Please join us in celebrating all the wonderful women in our lives and our communities and help us to highlight the path ahead. This year's IWD themes are ‘Inspire Inclusion’ and ‘Invest in Women: Accelerate Progress’. What could be more powerful than having all people, regardless of gender, come together in unity and mutual respect to promote a movement that will benefit all?
Everyone is invited to support International Women’s Day with a picture for social media. Grab a buddy and head to the Main Library service desk to take a photo with our purple backdrop anytime up until March 8. We would also love to learn about who inspires you!
Be sure to check out the displays we have up in both the Main Library and the Law Library. In the Main Library you'll find:
- key texts from feminists writers including Germaine Greer and Simone de Beauvoir
- books by Indigenous women
- books on historical women
- well known classics written by women, such as Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, A Room of One’s Ownby Virginia Woolf, and The Handmaid’s Taleby Margaret Atwood, to name a few.
In the Law Library, there is a collection of books about women in the judiciary including biographies of iconic women judges and lawyers, historical women in law, and feminist theory being used in law decision-making processes.
Altogether, we have a fantastic range to browse through, both on display and online.
Remember to collect your purple ribbon on March 8 from the Main Library service desk!
Interesting fact… Australia’s first International Women’s Day was held in 1928 in Sydney. Organised by the Militant Women’s Movement, women called for equal pay for equal work, an 8-hour working day for shop girls and paid leave. See more Australian women’s achievements on the Victorian Women’s Trust Timeline.