Celebrating Women: International Women’s Day

Did you know we have an International Women’s Day?  Are you curious how long it has been in existence and what does it all mean to us?  While it’s an internationally recognized celebration, you still may have some questions about what it means and why we celebrate.  You are not alone if this is the case.

International Women’s Day was founded more than one hundred years ago!  Yes, since the early 1900’s after thousands of women marched in New York to demand better working conditions and for the right to vote.  There were over 15,000 women participating in this march.  International Women’s Day was officially adopted by the United Nations in 1975. Fast forward to today and March 8 is the global celebration of women’s social, economic, and political achievements and to advocate for gender equality. International Women’s Day is all about Unity, Celebration, Reflection, Advocacy and Empowerment.

Why Purple?

Different holidays, events, organizations, and celebrations use color to highlight and bring attention to their existence and significance. Purple is the official color used to symbolize International Women’s Day.    In recent years, women have relied on clothing color as a symbol of celebrating the empowerment of women.  Historically, purple signifies justice and dignity. Internationally, it has become a color symbolizing the celebration of International Women’s Day.

The use of color can be what is called an Anchor.  Anchoring is an empowerment technique that uses a stimulus; it may be a color, a sound, an image, a touch, smell or a taste to trigger a consistent response in you. We will discuss Anchors in more detail in another blog because they can be a very powerful self-empowerment tool you can use strategically.

We don’t have to wait to celebrate ourselves one day a year, celebrate yourself every day, and continue to elevate yourself as you practice skills of self-empowerment.