by: Rachel Evans
photos from: IWD; The Huffington Post
March 8, 2017 : International Women’s Day. A day thousands across the world will celebrate the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women. But as individuals across the world gather to celebrate their accomplishments, they also are gearing up to protest for today’s Day Without Women.
The organizers behind January’s March on Washington are using today as a day of action to spotlight the economic power and value of women and their contributions to society. Organizers hope to call attention to economic injustices women face such as lower wages, gender discrimination, sexual harassment, and job insecurities. Today is also intended to push for gender justice, by recognizing that transgender and nonbinary people face equally compelling issues of discrimination and marginalization.
So as Americans and thousands across the globe gear up to protest or stand in solidarity there are some things we must remember:
First, if you are able to strike, recognize your privilege. For some, not showing up to work, or school could spell disaster—a consequence, many were forced to learn after the Day Without Immigrants strike. Not everybody can afford to protest today, but if you can: do it.
Second, if you strike, spend the day supporting those who can’t. Wear red in solidarity, but don’t just stay at home and do nothing—work. Today isn’t a day for relaxation, it’s a day that has the capacity to change the future of America. Reach out to your Congresswoman, donate to organizations that help women, and make your voice heard. We’ve been silenced long enough.
Here are a list of organizations you can donate to:
1) American Civil Liberties Union: works to defend individual rights and liberties guaranteed by the Constitution. Donate HERE.
2) Anti-Defamation League: was founded in 1913 to “stop the defamation of the Jewish people and to secure justice and fair treatment to all.” Today, it fights against anti-semitism and bigotry as one of the largest civil rights organizations in the country. Donate HERE.
3) Border Angels: is an all-volunteer non-profit that advocates for immigration reform and social justice focusing on the U.S.-Mexico border. It offers educational and awareness programs and migrant outreach programs to San Diego County’s immigrant population. Donate HERE.
4) Boys & Girls Clubs of America: offers enrichment programs and support for children when they’re not in school. Donate HERE.
5) Campaign Zero: advocates for policy solutions to end police violence in America. Get involved HERE.
6) The Center for Reproductive Rights: is the world’s foremost legal advocate for securing women’s access to quality reproductive health care. Donate HERE.
7) The Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles: an advocacy and organizing group focusing on achieving human, civil, and labor rights for immigrants. Donate HERE.
8) The Council on American-Islamic Relations: is the country’s largest Muslim civil liberties organization. Donate HERE.
9) The Disability Rights and Education Fund: is a national civil rights law and policy center devoted to advancing the rights of people with disabilities through advocacy, training, education, and public policy. Donate HERE.
10) Lambda Legal: is a national legal organization dedicated to fighting for the civil rights of the LGBT population and people with HIV through litigation, education, and policy work. Donate HERE.
11) Mazzoni Center: offers healthcare services to LGBTQ population in Philadelphia, including trans clini cal care services, walk-in HIV and STI testing, primary care, and addiction and recovery services. Donate HERE.
12) NARAL Pro-Choice America: is a political advocacy group focused on fighting for women’s reproductive rights and freedom. Donate HERE.
13) NAACP Legal Defense Fund: works to promote the civil rights of people of color and to eliminate race-based discrimination. Donate HERE.
14) National Coalition Against Domestic Violence: advocates for victims and attempts to change policy surrounding domestic violence. Donate HERE.
15) National Immigration Law Center: is dedicated to fighting for the rights of low-income immigrants through litigation, policy analysis and advocacy, and various other methods. Donate HERE.
16) National Immigration Forum: is another leading immigrant advocacy group that offers various programs to integrate immigrants into the workforce and obtain citizenship. Donate HERE.
17) National Organization for Women: is an activist organization, foundation and PAC that advocates for equal rights for women. Donate HERE.
18) National Women’s Law Center: has worked for over 40 years to enact policies and laws on behalf of women and families. Donate HERE.
19) Native American Rights Fund: provides legal assistance to Native American tribes, organizations, and individuals nationwide who may otherwise go without adequate representation. Donate HERE.
20) Planned Parenthood: is the country’s leading sexual and reproductive healthcare provider. Donate HERE.
21) Rape, Abuse, & Incest National Network: is the country’s largest anti-sexual violence organization, which operates the National Sexual Assault Hotline (800-656-HOPE; online.rainn.org; rainn.org/es) and programs to help victims of sexual violence. Donate HERE.
22) Reproductive Health Access Project: is a non-profit that trains clinicians to make quality reproductive healthcare more accessible. Donate HERE.
23) Running Start: is another organization dedicated to educating young women and girls about the importance of politics, through the Young Women’s Political Leadership Program and various other fellowships and internships. Donate HERE.
24) She Should Run: is a non-profit that aims to get more women into elected leadership roles. Donate HERE.
25) Southern Poverty Law Center: fights hate groups and bigotry using education, litigation, and advocacy. Donate HERE.
26) Sylvia Rivera Law Project: provides legal services specifically to low-income people and people of color who are transgender, intersex, or gender non-conforming. Donate HERE.
27) Trevor Project: serves as a national 24-hour, toll free confidential suicide hotline for gay and questioning youth. Donate HERE.
28) Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights: works to protect the best interests of children who come to the U.S. on their own. Donate HERE.
Third, fight for everybody. While each of us will face today with a different policy goal in mind remember: if you fight for one, you should fight for all.
Today we fight for:
Equal pay
Women of color
LGBTQ women
Immigrant women
Reproductive freedom
Equal access to education
Americans with disabilities
Today we fight against:
Workplace sexism
Racism
Sexual assault
Discriminatory policies
Domestic violence
There are a variety of issues that will be unique to each individual participating in A Day Without Women. Listen to their stories, talk to them, learn from them. Everybody is fighting for a different reason and none are more important than the rest.
Today, I applaud the many Americans who are fighting against the patriarchy by protesting; but I also applaud those who can’t afford to leave their jobs/schools today. As I sit in my classes at the University of Texas, I recognize that there are those who deserve to be here more than I do—but they didn’t get the chance. One day, their voices will be heard.
Stay strong, Texas Fight.
http://jezebel.com/a-list-of-pro-women-pro-immigrant-pro-earth-anti-big-1788752078
https://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2017/02/day-without-immigrants-2/517380/
https://www.internationalwomensday.com/About
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2017/03/06/day-without-woman-what-you-need-know/98690692/
The opinions expressed in this article are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Texas Speech team.