International Women’s Day, 2017

Women around the globe took to the streets today to participate in International Women’s Day. The day recognizes the struggle for women’s rights and commemorates their contributions to society. This year, organizers in the US planned additional socio-economic themed demonstrations for “A Day Without A Woman.”--By Leanne Burden Seidel
1
Founder of Nanana Winbridge Education Center, Priscilla Nangurai (C) stands with 58 rescued girls at the school in Kajiado, Kenya. Nangurai established the Nanana Winbridge Education Center in 2007 with her retirement money where she hosts rescued girls who’ve run away from home to escape Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). She has rescued 825 girls since 1986. (DANIEL IRUNGU/EPA)
2
People are seen around a sculpture titled ‘The Fearless Girl’ by artist Kristen Visbal which was installed overnight facing the famous sculpture of the charging bull in Lower Manhattan. A big investment firm, State Street Global Advisors, put the statue there to highlight International Women’s Day. (JUSTIN LANE/EPA)
3
A woman shouts slogans in a rally to commemorate the International Women’s Day in Sao Paulo, Brazil. (Fernando Bizerra/EPA)
4
Jennifer Jones holds her daughter Meredith,6, as she takes part in “A Day Without a Woman” rally in Downtown Crossing in Boston, Mass. (Keith Bedford/Globe Staff)
5
Hillary Harper stands in front of a wall decorated with artificial flowers during “A Day Without a Woman” protest in Los Angeles. Many American women stayed home from work, joined rallies or wore red Wednesday to demonstrate how vital they are to the U.S. economy. (Jae C. Hong/Associated Press)
6
Women flash victory signs during a demonstration as part of International Women’s Day in Diyarbakir,Turkey. (ILYAS AKENGIN/AFP/Getty Images)
7
A resist button is seen on the back of a “pussy hat” as women gather to sing in Harvard Square, Cambridge, as part of “A Day Without a Woman.” (Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff)
8
Female workers from a Spanish trade union stand outside their main headquarters after a call for women to stop working for half an hour at noon to commemorate International Women’s Day, in Pamplona, northern Spain. (Alvaro Barrientos/Associated Press)
9
Alice Rossiter, left, CEO of Alice’s Table, thanks Techstars director Eveline Buchatskiy for a bouquet of tulips in Boston. Buchatskiy canceled work for her female employees and delivered flowers to other businesswomen as a gesture to acknowledge “A Day Without a Woman.” (Pat Greenhouse/Globe Staff)
10
Activists protest the Trump administration and rally for women’s rights during a march to honor International Woman’s Day in Washington, DC. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images)
11
Participants listen to remarks from a speaker at the International Women’s Day rally in the shadow of New York’s Trump Tower, in New York. Many of the participants had taken a day off from work to show the impact women have on the American economy. (Bebeto Matthews/Associated Press)
12
The first Egyptian female pilot to fly EgyptAir’s biggest jetliner, the Boeing 777-333, Magda Malek sits on a couch near an Egyptian magazine from Sept. 1948 that addresses the issue of female pilots, at her home on International Women’s Day, in Cairo, Egypt. (Nariman El-Mofty/Associated Press)
13
Two young women attend a rally to mark International Women’s Day in Tbilisi, Georgia. Women around the globe are taking to the streets to mark the day. (Shakh Aivazov/Associated Press)
14
Indian Border Security Force (BSF) women’s wing perform hand-to-hand combat skills on the occasion of International Women’s Day in New Delhi, India. (RAJAT GUPTA/EPA)
15
Syrian nurse, Ghoussoun, treats a newborn with a massage at the neonatal intensive care unit at Damascus Countryside Specialized Hospital. Ghoussoun, 40, has been working at neonatal intensive care unit for five years, where she had to deal with premature newborn infants during war time and under siege imposed by government on rebel-held areas. Ghoussoun is trying to help premature newborn infants and stressed mothers by sticking lovely pictures and smiling faces on the walls of the unit saying she is honored to be able to help mothers and infants getting safe and sound. (MOHAMMED BADRA/EPA)
16
Police block women during a rally at the U.S. Embassy to mark International Women’s Day in Manila, Philippines. (Bullit Marquez/Associated Press)
17
Monica Barnard, a part-time nanny, holds 8 -months-old girl Amya Tsolo at her house in Johannesburg, South Africa. Barnard, a 65-year-old mother of four, takes care of two babies for her neighbors. She says Women’s Day “is a special day for women to be honored for their contribution in the society.” (Themba Hadebe/Assciated Press)
18
A Salvadoran woman carries a basket during her work day on the eve of the International Women’s Day in a Nahuizalco, El Salvador. (OSCAR RIVERA/EPA)
19
Hungarian female soldiers pose for a picture by the temporary border fence on the Hungarian-Serbian border near Roszke, 180 kms southeast of Budapest, Hungary. (BEA KALLOS/EPA)
20
Women attend a protest rally marking the International Women’s Day in Rome, Italy. Many people in Italy joined an international strike called to protest against discrimination and gender violence on Women’s Day. The strike has affected public transport, schools and the health sector. (MASSIMO PERCOSSI/EPA)
21
Ye Haiyan, one of China’s most prominent women’s rights activists poses for a photo with her painting titled ‘Fighting Chicken’ in her studio in Songzhuang on the outskirts of Beijing, China. ‘Hooligan Sparrow’, is a self-taught Chinese artist and women’s advocate whose unique form of activism has led to her working in a low-budget brothel to raise awareness of sex-worker rights. (HOW HWEE YOUNG/EPA)
22
Tulips and personal messages by women are placed in front of the Justice Ministry in Bucharest during a protest on Women’s Day. (DANIEL MIHAILESCU/AFP/Getty Images)
23
The happening ‘Polish Flowers’ in front of the building the Sejm of Poland during the International Women’s Strike in Warsaw, Poland. The event was organized by the National Women’s Strike - informal, nonpartisan initiative of women belonging to different women’s organizations. (Jacek Turczyk/EPA)
24
Huda, the director of the non-governmental organization Nesaa al-Ghouta (Women of Ghouta) in the rebel-held Douma, Damascus, Syria. Huda, 39, has been an activist for social and women affairs. Before the beginning of the Syrian war she had training on social protection and psychological support. When the war was sparked in the country, Huda focused on increasing awareness on women issues, in addition to some of the environmental projects. She says she is trying to deal with war trauma through helping other woman do something useful, and later those women can help others as well. (MOHAMMED BADRA/EPA)
25
Participants hold candles and placards against during a vigil to mark International Women’s Day (IWD) in Hong Kong. (ANTHONY WALLACE/AFP/Getty Images)
26
An Indian woman laborer carries bricks at a factory in Radhapur, on the outskirts of Dharmanagar in the north eastern state of Tripura. (AFP/Getty Images)
27
Hospitality staff tries to form the word for “LOVE” during Women’s Day on Tiananmen Square near the Great Hall of the People where a plenary session for the National People’s Congress is held in Beijing, China. (Ng Han Guan/Associated Press)
28
Mylene Kamara is an advocate for the women’s rights group West Africa Network for Peace Building. She has been campaigning against rape previlance across several regions of Ivory Coast as well as working with empowerment programs for women in rural areas. (LEGNAN KOULA/EPA)
29
Female police officers from Istanbul’s Motorcycled Police Unit are seen reflected in a police car window as they wait to go on patrol in Istanbul, Turkey. The rapid response unit nicknamed Dolphins is used primarily in crime prevention operations and has 25 female officers. 6% of Turkey’s 250,000 strong police force are women. (Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
30
Indian entrepreneur Rajni Devi, 23, prepares a screen to print the raw material for Jute bags at her home-turned-workshop at Toph Manhasa village about 35 KM from Jammu, the winter capital of Kashmir, India. Rajni fought against all the odds including her poverty, on her way to becoming a fairly successful entrepreneur by making a creative variety of Jute bags and other products. She has set up a small manufacturing unit at her home from where she makes bags that has impressed buyers across the globe. She has also been an inspiration for many like her as she trains as well as provides employment to dozens of women from her village and neighbouring communities. (JAIPAL SINGH/EPA)
31
Women hold signs during the rally for International Women’s Day in Melbourne, Australia. Marchers were calling for de-colonization of Australia, an end to racism, economic justice for all women and reproductive justice, as well as supporting the struggle for the liberation of all women around the world, inclusive of trans women and sex workers. (Daniel Pockett/Getty Images)
32
Raechel Van Der Burg, holds her dog as she sits on a street corner in Germiston, east of Johannesburg, South Africa. Van Der Burg, a 42-year-old mother of two girls, makes a living from begging on the street. Van Der Burg said she makes about $30 a day to care for her kids and a sick husband. She said Women’s Day is an important day for recognizing women’s role in the world. (Themba Hadebe/Associated Press)
33
A protestor holds a sign during a demonstration for International Women’s Day outside EU headquarters in Brussels. (Virginia Mayo/Associated Press)
34
Belgian professor of Oncology at the University Libre de Bruxelles (ULB) and Head of the Department of Medicine at the Institut Bordet, Martine Piccart checks on one of her patients with cancer during a chemotherapy session at Jules Bordet Institut in Brussels, Belgium. Piccart co-founded the Breast International Group (BIG), after being frustrated by the fragmented quality of international research programs. BIG is now a dynamic organization that forms a central communication point for global research into breast cancer. Her work has had a profound effect on millions of women affected by the disease. (STEPHANIE LECOCQ/EPA)
35
A woman holds a poster by US artist Shepard Fairey and reading “We the people, defend dignity” as Kosovo feminist supporters take part in a rally for gender equality and against violence towards women to mark the International Women’s Day in Pristina. (ARMEND NIMANI/AFP/Getty Images)
In this blog: Big Picture