猫咪社区

This article originally appeared in and is republished here with permission.

After more than 100 years, International Women鈥檚 Day draws millions to commemorate the advancements made in human rights and to discuss the challenges women continue to face in politics, education, employment, and other areas of daily life.

However, International Women鈥檚 Day originally commemorated the working rights protests led by female garment workers. Many seem to forget the holiday鈥檚 ties to the working rights movement in the and the Socialist Party.

The origins of the holiday can be traced back to March 8, 1857, when garment workers in staged a protest against inhumane working conditions and low wages, to the . The police attacked the protesters and dispersed them, but the movement continued and led to the creation of the first women鈥檚 labor union.

Fast forward to March 8, 1908: 15,000 women marched in New York City for shorter work hours, better pay, voting rights, and an end to child labor. The slogan 鈥淏read and Roses鈥� emerged, with bread symbolizing economic security and roses for better living standards.

Many of those who protested for working rights were young immigrants from who came to the United States seeking better opportunities, says Carol Rosenblatt of the Coalition of Labor Union Women.

鈥淲orkers in this country also died in their efforts to advance workers鈥� rights, but they weren鈥檛 fearful in the same way that they were in some of the countries that they came from,鈥� says Ms. Rosenblatt, executive director of the coalition. 鈥淭hey had a much different expectation than when they got here. They were exploited.鈥�

That May 1908, the Socialist Party of America declared that the last Sunday in February would be National Women鈥檚 Day. The first National Women鈥檚 Day was celebrated on Feb. 28, 1909, in the United States.

International Women鈥檚 Day (then International Working Women鈥檚 Day) was introduced during the International Conference of Working Women聽in , . Clara Zetkin, a German socialist, suggested a holiday honoring the strike of garment workers in the U.S. The proposal received unanimous approval from the 100 women from 17 countries.

The proposal did not give a fixed date of observance, but in the first years International Women鈥檚 Day was observed on different days in March. In 1911, , Denmark, , and supported the holiday on March 19, with more than a million men and women rallying.

Shortly after, however, women gathered in light of a tragedy. The Triangle Waist Company building in New York City caught fire in March 25, killing 146 young immigrant workers.

The incident, which drew attention to the inhuman working conditions for industrial workers, prompted the Women鈥檚 Trade Union League and the International Ladies鈥� Garment Workers Union to stage demonstrations. One protest, a silent funeral march, more than 100,000 people.

The incident led to the creation of the Factory Investigating Commission, which included Francis Perkins, who would become the first female secretary of labor, and labor union activists.

The commission’s findings led to several laws in that mandated safety standards, minimum wage, unemployment assistance, and support for workers when they grow old. These laws paved the way for ‘s legislation.

鈥淚t brought to light the way in which people were working and the horrific situations that people were enduring,鈥� Rosenblatt says. 鈥淭hat was just one of many fires.鈥�

While there have been advancements, Rosenblatt says, women continue to fight against poor working conditions and lower wages around the world.

鈥淭here are fires in today in factories that are owned by American countries,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t has not gone resolved.鈥�