International Women’s Day (IWD) is arguably more visible today than at its inception. 8 March is flooded with purple visuals, hashtags and clothing sales. But does this visibility translate into meaningful change for women? Sometimes it is difficult to sift through the endless performative girlbossing to find something worthy of merit, especially when this day is often accompanied by indigent males asking why there isn’t an International Men’s Day (19 November for those still wondering).
In a world where the Barbie movie is perceived as the pinnacle of the ‘radical feminist agenda’ and young women face the rampant manosphere, perhaps celebrating IWD is more important than ever? But I think the question we need to be asking is whether modern feminism is doing enough.
We can teach young men and women to #breakthebias, but do they care? Despite the recent influx of resources aimed at schools to “educate and inspire children and students about gender equality,” statistics by King’s College London, published just three days before IWD, reveal that Gen Z men hold more “traditional” (misogynistic) views on marriage. The study found that 31 per cent of Gen Z men agree that a wife should always obey her husband, compared to 13 per cent of Baby Boomers.
Of course, IWD is not to blame for the increase in misogyny amongst young men, but these statistics perhaps show that excessive sloganeering does not pay off. The 2026 slogan for IWD, “Give to Gain,” diverges from the official United Nations agenda, “Rights. Justice. Action.” The UN sentiment calls for universal action to remove the barriers to justice faced by women and girls worldwide. In contrast, the adopted theme of “Give to Gain” emphasises “reciprocity and support” — a vague statement more suitable for a failing HR department.
The indistinct character of Women’s Day in 2026 opens itself up to appropriation; Reform councillor Laila Cunningham calls for girls to “be ambitious” and “work hard.” A brave sentiment coming from a party which pledges to remove the Equality Act, with Cunningham standing alongside Reform candidate Matt Goodwin, who called for young girls to have a “biological reality check.” She asks women not to believe in a “ceiling to their achievement,” but when women like Cunningham pull up the ladder from underneath them, we can hardly praise the feminist sentiment.
The signalling of IWD is too often “look, we have women at the top of our institutions, feminism is solved!” with even the Labour government posting a cheesy Instagram slideshow highlighting the women in their cabinet. Of course, Labour’s initiative to combat violence against women and girls is admirable if underfunded. But this kind of targeted action is rare to come by on 8 March, where highlighting society’s most privileged women seems to be the goal.
Rarely do the chosen slogans reflect the issues faced by women globally, nor is Women’s Day approached on an intersectional basis. Angela Davis said it best: “If standards for feminism are created by those who already ascended economic hierarchy and are attempting to make the last climb to the top, how is this relevant to women at the very bottom?”
The solution is not to abolish Women’s Day altogether but to do better than sloganeering and virtue signalling. Surely we can do more than flipping the golden arches to make a ‘W’ (groundbreaking stuff, McDonald’s!).
Image by @studiomaryflorence for The Student
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International Women’s Day: Empowerment or Tokenism?
International Women’s Day (IWD) is arguably more visible today than at its inception. 8 March is flooded with purple visuals, hashtags and clothing sales. But does this visibility translate into meaningful change for women? Sometimes it is difficult to sift through the endless performative girlbossing to find something worthy of merit, especially when this day is often accompanied by indigent males asking why there isn’t an International Men’s Day (19 November for those still wondering).
In a world where the Barbie movie is perceived as the pinnacle of the ‘radical feminist agenda’ and young women face the rampant manosphere, perhaps celebrating IWD is more important than ever? But I think the question we need to be asking is whether modern feminism is doing enough.
We can teach young men and women to #breakthebias, but do they care? Despite the recent influx of resources aimed at schools to “educate and inspire children and students about gender equality,” statistics by King’s College London, published just three days before IWD, reveal that Gen Z men hold more “traditional” (misogynistic) views on marriage. The study found that 31 per cent of Gen Z men agree that a wife should always obey her husband, compared to 13 per cent of Baby Boomers.
Of course, IWD is not to blame for the increase in misogyny amongst young men, but these statistics perhaps show that excessive sloganeering does not pay off. The 2026 slogan for IWD, “Give to Gain,” diverges from the official United Nations agenda, “Rights. Justice. Action.” The UN sentiment calls for universal action to remove the barriers to justice faced by women and girls worldwide. In contrast, the adopted theme of “Give to Gain” emphasises “reciprocity and support” — a vague statement more suitable for a failing HR department.
The indistinct character of Women’s Day in 2026 opens itself up to appropriation; Reform councillor Laila Cunningham calls for girls to “be ambitious” and “work hard.” A brave sentiment coming from a party which pledges to remove the Equality Act, with Cunningham standing alongside Reform candidate Matt Goodwin, who called for young girls to have a “biological reality check.” She asks women not to believe in a “ceiling to their achievement,” but when women like Cunningham pull up the ladder from underneath them, we can hardly praise the feminist sentiment.
The signalling of IWD is too often “look, we have women at the top of our institutions, feminism is solved!” with even the Labour government posting a cheesy Instagram slideshow highlighting the women in their cabinet. Of course, Labour’s initiative to combat violence against women and girls is admirable if underfunded. But this kind of targeted action is rare to come by on 8 March, where highlighting society’s most privileged women seems to be the goal.
Rarely do the chosen slogans reflect the issues faced by women globally, nor is Women’s Day approached on an intersectional basis. Angela Davis said it best: “If standards for feminism are created by those who already ascended economic hierarchy and are attempting to make the last climb to the top, how is this relevant to women at the very bottom?”
The solution is not to abolish Women’s Day altogether but to do better than sloganeering and virtue signalling. Surely we can do more than flipping the golden arches to make a ‘W’ (groundbreaking stuff, McDonald’s!).
Image by @studiomaryflorence for The Student
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