International Women’s Day is coming up on March 8, giving all people a chance to show their support for women.

According to www.internationalwomensday.com, International Women’s Day is celebrated every year on March 8. Beginning in the early 20th century, IWD began at a time of great expansion and turbulence in the industrialized world that saw booming population growth and the rise of radical ideologies. International Women’s Day is a global celebration and a call for gender parity. No one government, NGO, charity, corporation, academic institution, women’s network or media hub is solely responsible for International Women’s Day. Many organizations declare an annual IWD theme that supports their specific agenda or cause.

The United Nations website at www.un.org states the first National Woman’s Day was observed in the United States on Feb. 28, 1909, when The Socialist Party of America designated this day in honor of the 1908 garment workers’ strike in New York, where women protested against working conditions. The Charter of the United Nations, signed in 1945, was the first international agreement to affirm the principle of equality between women and men. Since then, the UN has helped create a historic legacy of internationally-agreed strategies, standards, programs and goals to advance the status of women worldwide. Over the years, the UN and its technical agencies have promoted the participation of women as equal partners with men in achieving sustainable development, peace, security, and full respect for human rights. The empowerment of women continues to be a central feature of the UN’s efforts to address social, economic and political challenges across the globe.

While there seem to be no public events scheduled in Harlan to recognize International Women’s Day, there are actions people can take to help support IWD. www.internationalwomensday.com suggests taking the following actions:

• Supportively call out inappropriate behavior;

• Campaign for equality in meaningful ways;

• Lead by example via inclusive actions;

• Be a role model for equality;

• Actively contribute to changing the status quo.

To learn more about International Women’s Day, go to www.un.org or www.internationalwomensday.com for more information.