On March 8th, International Women’s Day, women across the world are being asked to participate in “A Day Without A Woman.” According to Women’s March on Washington the originators of the strike, “women and our allies will act together for equity, justice, and the human rights of women and all gender-oppressed people, through a one-day demonstration of economic solidarity.” The goal of this movement is one rooted in good faith: to recognize the value of women in our society, and bring attention to the fact that women are still facing issues in the workplace, such as lower wages, job insecurity, and sexual harassment.
However, it is extremely difficult for me to take the movement seriously.
As an American woman, I can honestly say that I am not worried about my future. I do not believe that, with President Trump in the White House, I will lose all of the rights I have grown up with. I will still be able to vote and make a difference, I will still be able to go to school, and I will still be able to work and support myself. I do not feel as though I have less political rights than any man, and although I do believe there are some men who look down upon women for their gender, I firmly believe that there are women who do exactly the same thing to men.
In the most basic use of the word—the belief that women and men should have equal rights and opportunities—I could be considered a feminist. However, in today’s use of the word, with the connotation, it has gained and the extremity to which it has gone, I am certainly not a feminist. While I do believe that men and women should be equal, I do not believe this should come at the cost of men. There should never be an instance in which one person betters themselves by making another look bad. If a woman wants true equality, it is up to them to rise up, as opposed to dragging someone else down. Prove that they deserve it, as opposed to showing why they believe the other person doesn’t.
And that is why this “Day Without A Woman” bothers me so much.All that will be shown is that women who participate are adept at throwing a tantrum. Nothing will be gained. A Day Without A Woman will simply show society what they already know—that women do a lot in our world.
To participate in this demonstration, women are asked to do the following:
- Take the day off from paid and unpaid labor.
- Avoid shopping for one day (with exceptions for small, women-and-minority-owned businesses.
- Wear red in solidarity with A Day Without A Woman.
I, however, would like to show a negative impact that has already occurred before the day has even come. A school in North Carolina—Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools—has had to cancel class in anticipation of their teachers not coming into work . They believe that as 75 percent of their employees are women, there will not be enough people to successfully and safely run their schools. Instead, it will be an optional teacher’s work day. To me, this means that in anticipation of a strike by women teachers, the education of students is being put aside to accommodate the tantrum being held by women unhappy about the appreciation—or supposed lack-there-of—they get from people.
All I would truly like to know is what the outcry would be like if the white men in our society were to do the same thing. If a pact was to be made for all men to avoid work for the day, or refuse to shop at big name stores, the men who participated would be harassed endlessly. So, to use a phrase that is often thrown around by feminists today—when will the double standards end? Why is it acceptable for women to protest, but not for white men? Why can’t the true minorities in our society—white men—protest against the treatment and defamation of character that they receive at the hands of the women and non-white Americans?
Why is A Day Without A Woman called a strike, as opposed to a tantrum?
And finally, why will the women who participate in this strike look down on us who don’t, as if we are any less a woman or “feminist” than they are?
