Video
On the 8th March 2011 millions of people celebrated the 100th anniversary of International Women's Day.
Watch our video to learn more about how CARE took part in the celebrations in London. You can also discover more about our Voices Against Violence campaign while you're watching!
Photos and blog
‘What an inspiring day!’ Michelle, CARE Action Network
Adryon Stuart's experience of International Women's Day 2011 with CARE International UK
Having already worked on build up to International Women’s Day on the web and social media, I was excited to come along on the day and livetweet from all the events. Still, I actually didn’t expect to enjoy it all as much as I did.
The day began with breakfast in London for CARE Action Network campaigners. Dr Helen Pankhurst, the Voices Against Violence Campaign’s brand new ambassador, gave a rousing speech about her grandmother and great grandmother Sylvia and Emmeline, founders of the British Suffragette movement. Their influence and that of growing up in Ethiopia has inspired her to work for a better world for women and people living in poverty. Her positivity about the struggle for equality was inspiring.
“Women living in conflict need women in the UK to stand with them - we are all linked, we help ourselves most when we tune in and take care of others – we need to speak up for each other.” Dr Helen Pankhurst
All out together
We head out and eventually join the Join Me on the Bridge march as it’s leaving Borough Market. The atmosphere is electric. Percussive musicians. It’s amazing to see such a wide variety of women (and an encouraging smattering of men too!) all out together to celebrate women and call for respect and gender equality worldwide. I was surprised by how much it affected me.
I had some interesting chats with the CARE Action Network activists who came along for the day, in many cases taking a day off work. It was fantastic to see their enthusiasm and motivation and hear about their other projects.
After crossing two bridges we approached the area directly outside the Royal Festival Hall on the Southbank. Here a variety of speakers including Annie Lennox, female politicians from Afghanistan, Helen Pankhurst and Lynne Featherstone MP, give some rousing speeches. I was focused on picking up quotes to live tweet – and they all came out with some really good ones!
“It was NGOs, like CARE, who made the government introduce my position. Then the government appointed me, now I want to make something of this.” Lynne Featherstone, UK International Violence Against Women Champion.
Lynne Featherstone talked about the need for the inclusion of women’s voices in peace negotiations. Talking about Afghanistan she said: ”If we don't involve Afghani women there won't be a solution."
This sentiment was echoed by Helen Pankhurst, who bemoaned the lack of women at the negotiating table for peace worldwide: “We need change.”
Personally, perhaps my favourite tweeted soundbite of the day was this, also from Helen Pankhurst “The suffragettes changed women’s belief in what they could change. The struggle for equality is far from over.”
