According to The Guardian, International Women’s Day is in danger of becoming little more than a corporate Valentine’s Day, with companies jumping on the bandwagon to whitewash their brands rather than promote women’s equality, leading feminists have said.
With International Women’s Day products on offer from red roses to hipster T-shirts with slogans such as “Woman Up”, leading equal rights campaigners have called on companies to do more for causes on International Women’s Day, rather than using it as a promotional opportunity. The day for advocating for International Women’s Day, takes place on Sunday 8 March 2020.
Vivienne Hayes, chief executive of the Women’s Resource Centre, said: “This use of International Women’s Day by companies is part of the co-option of feminism and women’s equality into a much more mainstream position, that has led to the corporatisation of the advancement of women’s rights.
“There’s a risk that it becomes an event a bit like Mother’s Day or Valentine’s Day instead of giving visibility to the work that women are doing around the world.”
McDonald’s were accused of ‘McFeminism’ when it turned the company’s logo upside down. Photograph: Reuters
In recent years McDonald’s was accused of “McFeminism”, when it turned the company’s golden arches upside down to form the letter W, while the brewer Brewdog was accused of insensitive marketing after releasing a pink coloured beer around International Women’s Day, ostensibly to raise awareness about gender pay inequality and sexist advertising.
This year’s theme is #EachforEqual, with participants encouraged to “actively choose to challenge stereotypes, fight bias, broaden perceptions, improve situations and celebrate women’s achievements”. This year marks 10 years since the establishment of UN Women, and the 20th anniversary of the UN security council resolution 1325 on women, peace and security.
On Sunday another march, organised by Care International, will go through London, with the event promising “stars from stage and screen marching shoulder-to-shoulder with grassroots campaigners for gender equality and climate justice”.
Liv Little, founder of gal-dem, a magazine created by women of colour, says: “When you are a woman of colour, it can feel like you are only of interest during that one week in March, and of course people are doing this work all year round. I think it’s really important that people have an understanding of the political roots of the day because that’s easily lost in fancy dinners and slogan T-shirts.”
To search for events near you, you can check the International Women’s Day website; https://www.internationalwomensday.com/Events
Photos: Reuters and International Women’s Day website.
