SOME CRITICAL REFLECTIONS POST INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY 2024:

"The gross discomfort I experienced about the extensive range of social media content surrounding IWD this year stemmed from how diluted some of these core messages have become….”
Marc Timmerman

International Women’s Day 2024 has passed.

Am I alone in acknowledging the volume of traffic and noise there was this year? To extend this metaphor further, I reflect on an increased quantity of vehicles, all driving at different speeds and, possibly, towards different destinations. The commercial pathways were truly congested, and what a lot of pollutants that invited…

Amidst all the activity, I allowed myself a moment to pause and critically reflect. Some 15 years ago, I ran the first of an annual programme specifically designed for Female leaders across Europe, to inspire leadership inclusion, and support the rising demand for women to be more equitably treated in the workplace.

My focus then, and now, is built on the powerful foundations of IWD, raised historically in the early 1900s when women protested against the inequality between men and women. Inequitable pay and unfair exclusion from voting rights were the seeds for this contention, and its advocacy (whilst not in every community) quickly cascaded, growing in urgency and passion to its current international crescendo.

This year, we have all witnessed an overwhelming amount of content on social media on the topic... Posts included everything from shout-outs to family members, friends, and colleagues; fathers sending flowers to daughters and wives for their contributions at home. One organisation stood out for me as they publicly thanked their ‘only’ female leader for representing women in a predominantly male-dominated environment (which, some may suggest, demanded obligatory reciprocal gratitude from the aforementioned female leader for owning such a ‘privilege’).

On the other end of the spectrum, I read staggering and incredibly moving content on the continued bravery of women across the less peaceful parts of our globe, fighting relentlessly for basic human rights, freedom and against exploitation, all the time under threat of torture and death.

The gross discomfort I experienced about the extensive range of social media content surrounding IWD this year stemmed from how diluted some of these core messages have become. The sombreness of the reason for IWD seemed lighter, too jovial, a false reassurance of outward support from our corporate audience… And then came the demands for, “International Men’s Day”. In my opinion, this served only to belittle the efforts of those men and women who so actively, tirelessly strive to balance the score.

As summarised by the Dean at Vlerick Business School, “It is not about how many women are knocking at the door – it’s about how many men are opening the door from the inside.” This is so relevant across all cultures, faiths, communities, and countries.

So, my reflections? I believe our universal fight against social conditioning and inequity in business, education, religion, and culture is, for me, at the core of IWD and should not be belittled by commercialised celebratory gestures or words without accompanying action.

Yes, the traffic may have eased from the congestion of IWD but the important messages from the noise continue.

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