Today we celebrate with women from all over the world! As we celebrate the many achievements of women over the years, we also call for action on gender inequality wherever it exists.

In the past year, many countries have seen victories with women taking on leadership roles, gaining equal rights in certain areas, and simply having their voices heard.

Today, we want to bring light to some of these victories that have happened in the past few months!

Ethiopia Elects First Woman President in Country’s History

In October 2018, Ethiopia elected its first woman president! Sahle-Work Zewde is currently the only woman head of state in all of Africa. Sahle-Work plans to make gender equality a top priority during her presidency. To those who say she has been talking about gender issues too much already, she says, “I’m just getting started!”

Two American Indian Women Elected to U.S. Congress

In January 2019 Deb Haaland and Sharice Davids became the first two American Indian women to be sworn into Congress. These two women were part of a group of over 100 women elected to Congress in the past election. Haaland and Davids have shattered the glass ceiling that has previously prevented Native American women from serving in the House of Representatives. They now represent both their constituents, as well as the American Indian community as a whole.

Wall of Women Protest in India

Also in January of this year, women in India joined hands to create a 385 mile long wall, to create awareness of gender inequality in the nation by protesting the religious ban that prevented women of menstruating age from worshipping in a sacred Hindu temple. This demonstration physically brought together millions of women while also instilling hope in the women of India and others around the world that change will come.

Today, we applaud the achievements of these women who are making a difference as well as all the women around the world who are raising their voices to be heard.

To read more about these history-making women, click the links below!