As always Soroptimists have been busy around International Women’s Day – a really important day in the calendar for women’s rights campaigners all over the world. The two themes for IWD this year are #InspireInclusion, and the United Nations theme: #InvestInWomen – see below for more information.
Jane Slatter was interviewed for MIX 92.6 – you can click here and listen to the 10 minute recording that was played during shows in the week of International Women’s Day https://mix926.com/highlight/soroptimists-iwd/
On Friday 8 Mar three Members of Soroptimist International St Albans & District, Debbie Tankard, Linda Middleton and Jane Slatter were at St Albans Girls’ School for their International Women’s Day Inspiring Women Careers Event for Year 8 and Year 12 Students. The photos of the event were taken by the school. The students are told that the purpose of the careers networking event is to provide them with the opportunity to meet with and learn about a variety of different careers, hearing about the journey that different people have made into their chosen profession, the qualifications that they have gained and the various different routes into careers today. They are encouraged to ask lots of questions to the women they meet with. These girls all have a great future – we hope we helped to inspire them! Soroptimists have been participating in this annual event since it’s inception.
At the Club Meeting on 11 March, Members focused on remarkable and inspiring women to mark International Women’s Day. The photo is of everyone (except Jane who took the photo) making the shape of a heart with their hands and wearing purple of Soroptimist blue for the #InspireInclusion campaign – please see below for more information about the campaign.
Jean introduced Canadian artist Emily Carr (applauded in Canada, but hardly known in the UK – you can read more here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emily_Carr, Helen introduced local St Albans artist Rana Begum https://www.ranabegum.com/ who currently has an exhibition on at the St Albans Museum and Gallery (several people had been to the exhibition and encouraged others to go while it is on until 14 Apr. Janet A-C had wanted to talk about her too – and is going to ask if she can speak to the Club on Zoom sometime. Debbie spoke about the swiss artist Angelica Kauffman who was one of two female painters among the founding members of the Royal Academy in London in 1768, where she was permitted to exhibit her work, mainly as a “History” painter https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angelica_Kauffman. Gill then introduced Laura Knight who was the third female full member of the Royal Academy https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laura_Knight. Jane spoke about Millicent Fawcett – an icon for International Women’s Day in the UK, who drove the suffragist movement so that women got the vote. She was the first woman honoured by a statue in Parliament Square https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millicent_Fawcett. It was fitting that Janet T had recently attended the unveiling of the blue plaque in St Albans to remember Betty Entwistle, the first female Town Clerk in the country https://www.hertsad.co.uk/news/24114867.st-albans-blue-plaque-remember-first-female-town-clerk/. Sarah then introduced us to the Italian artist Artemisia Gentileschi https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artemisia_Gentileschi Gentileschi was the first woman to become a member of the Accademia di Arte del Disegno in Florence and she had an international clientele. Coincidentally Sarah had considered talking about Angelika Kauffman who Debbie spoke about! Last but not least Denise talked about Elizabeth Garrett Anderson – the sister of fellow suffragist Millicent Fawcett who Jane had spoken about earlier. Elizabeth is known for being the first woman to qualify in Britain as a physician and surgeon and as a co-founder and dean of the London School of Medicine for Women, which was the first medical school in Britain to train women as doctors. She was the first female dean of a British medical school, the first woman in Britain to be elected to a school board and, as mayor of Aldeburgh, the first female mayor in Britain https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elizabeth_Garrett_Anderson
They are indeed all remarkable and inspiring women! It was interesting that so many members chose artists – this was purely coincidental and a nice surprise for everyone!
Helen drew our attention to an exhibition at Verulamium Museum, about the female archaeologists of the 1930s who brought Verulamium to life, called Women doing everything, everywhere, all at once. It runs from 8 March to 4 July 2024 and the Club plans to visit on Sat 27 April when Members of our Soroptimist friendship link Club in Muenster will be visiting.
What an inspiring Club meeting!
13 of the 60 attendees at the SI London Chilterns Region Special International Women’s Day event at Knebworth House on Sat 16 Mar were SI St Albans and District Club Members – click here to read all about it! sigbi.org/london-chilterns/iwd24 The event was wonderful! It included a visit to the mausoleum where suffragette Lady Constance Lytton ashes are held, a tour of the gardens, a tour of the house, afternoon tea and a talk about the life of the inspirational Lady Constance Lytton. The photo below was taken in the barn where afternoon tea was served, with everyone making the shape of a heart with their hands and many wearing the violet, white and green colours for women’s suffrage.
International Women’s Day 2024 campaign theme: #InspireInclusion
www.internationalwomensday.com/Theme The aim of the IWD 2024 #InspireInclusion campaign is to collectively forge a more inclusive world for women.
This year we are asked to make a shape of a heart with our hands in photos.
United Nations International Women’s Day 2024 – #InvestInWomen : Accelerate progress
www.un.org/en/observances/womens-day
Achieving gender equality and women’s well-being in all aspects of life is more crucial than ever if we want to create prosperous economies and a healthy planet. However, we are facing a key challenge: the alarming $360 billion annual deficit in gender-equality measures by 2030.
Join us on March 8, 2024, for International Women’s Day under the theme ‘Invest in women: Accelerate progress”, and take a stand with us using the hashtag #InvestInWomen.
Here are five key areas needing joint action:
- Investing in women, a human rights issue: Time is running out. Gender equality is the greatest human rights challenge, benefiting everyone.
- Ending poverty: Due to the COVID pandemic and conflicts, 75 million more people have fallen into severe poverty since 2020. Immediate action is crucial to prevent over 342 million women and girls living in poverty by 2030.
- Implementing gender-responsive financing: Conflicts and rising prices may lead 75% of countries to cut public spending by 2025, negatively impacting women and their essential services.
- Shifting to a green economy and care society: The current economic system disproportionately affects women. Advocates propose a shift to a green economy and care society to amplify women’s voices.
- Supporting feminist change-makers: Despite leading efforts, feminist organizations receive only 0.13% of official development assistance.
This International Women’s Day, let’s unite to transform challenges into opportunities and shape a better future for all!