5 ways to Celebrate International Women's Day

It's International Women's Day, and that means we have gender equality on our minds!

As sociologists, we see this day as an opportunity to spread knowledge on the sociology of gender as a way of understanding what gender inequality is and how it manifests across time and space. Without further ado, here are our five ways to celebrate International Women's Day and #EmbraceEquity!

1. Learn about experiences unique to women around the world by reading, watching, and listening.

We pride ourselves in the diverse experiences represented by our sociological content. For example, take our article from contributor Medhavi Gupta, A Room of One's Own and More. In the brief read, Medhavi details her experiences with gender inequality on public transport and in higher education in India. Another example is our article, The Girl Child and Gender Inequality. In the article, Nigerian contributor Sarah Daniel examines the idea of the girl child from a radical feminist perspective.

2. Read about how gender is a social structure that shapes the lives of people of all genders living in society.

For many sociologists, Barbara J. Risman's introduction to gender as structure was a pivotal moment in the study of gender. Our article on The Sociology of Gender and How it can be Applied outlines the paradigm shift in the sociology of gender that allowed us to not only understand gender as structure, but also address these structural issues with policy solutions.

3. Diversity your understanding of feminism to include feminist movements outside the Western world.

The feminism we learn about is often neatly presented in waves that are mostly specific to the United States. In fact, those waves get even more specific by mostly conforming to the struggles of a specific subset of women in the US—white, cis, and middle- and upper-class women. Diversifying our understanding of feminism can start with reading about Black feminist leaders in the US, such as Audre Lorde. And, it can go as far as learning about the Burgeoning Digital Gender Divide in India. Also worth reading is how Eradicating the Male Gaze in the US Helps Women Everywhere.

4. Take the initiative to learn about gender inequality in your own country and the policies available for fighting it.

Policy changes in favor or gender equality are one of the best weapons available for fighting against structural gender inequality. Whether it is the new legislation in Spain that introduced sick leave for women suffering from incapacitating menstruation, or research showing how Investing in Women's Health Drives Positive ROI, there are plenty of ways to arm ourselves with evidence-based policies in the fight against gender inequality.

5. Remember that gender is socially constructed which means we can choose to embrace equity in the way we collectively understand gender.

When we can see gender for what it is, a set a socially constructed ideas and expectations attached to biological sex, we can demystify the binary-driven ideas of who gets to do what. For example, learning about The Social Construction of Gender and Reproductive Health can help us understand gendered expectations for women, and the stigmatized experiences that occur as a result of those expectations. We can also dissect The Social Construction of Womanhood and Religion for further examples of the link between gendered expectations and inequitable experiences.

Moving Toward Embracing Equity

The theme for this year's International Women's Day is #EmbraceEquity. Sociology provides SO many tools the world needs to move toward a place where we are truly embracing equity. The perspectives sociology provides allow us to understand gender as the complex social structure that it is. And, that understanding is exactly what will catalyze the much needed shift toward equity on a global scale.

Happy International Women's Day!