The Yarrawonga Mulwala Community and Learning Centre (YMCLC) is lucky to have many volunteers and staff with many of these being women who were celebrated at a morning tea at the centre last Friday.
National Women's History Month was established by a presidential proclamation to draw attention to and improve the focus on women in historical studies.
YMCLC CEO Julie-Anne Clarke said that International Women’s Day was an opportunity to recognise the invaluable contributions women make to all aspects of life.
“It was our pleasure to celebrate some of the wonderful women of our organisation on Friday at our International Women's Day Morning Tea,” Ms Clarke said.
“Women deserve to be recognised and celebrated. Here at YMCLC they do so much for us so we thought it was the perfect opportunity to take part in the international day.
“A time to sit and have a chat, a cuppa and some biscuits together while recognising how far we have come is great.”
International Women’s Day began in New York City on March 8, 1857, when female textile workers marched in protest of unfair working conditions and unequal rights for women. It was one of the first organized strikes by working women, during which they called for a shorter workday and decent wages.
Also on March 8, 1908, women workers in the needle trades marched through New York City's Lower East Side to protest child labour and sweatshop working conditions, and demand women's suffrage. Beginning in 1910, March 8 became annually observed as International Women's Day.
Women's History Week was instituted in 1978 to begin adding women's history into educational curricula.
In 1987, the National Women's History Project in the USA successfully petitioned Congress to include all of March as a celebration of the economic, political, and social contributions of women and from there the day was recognised internationally.
