Ending Women on Women Crime: International Women’s Day March 8th

We’ve all seen it.

This year it was a Jennifer Lopez and Shakira halftime show. In 2019, it was Megan Rapinoe. Remember Christine Blasey Ford testifying before Congress about concerns over a Supreme Court nominee in 2018 just as Anita Hill did in 1991? And who can forget the 2016 election cycle?

We’ve all done it.

Judged a woman by her appearance, her values and ideals, her parenting, her participation or lack there of, and her decisions. We make assumptions based on quip social media posts or an unfortunate interaction at an inopportune moment. We overlook major challenges in her life and rarely consider that the woman is simply doing the best she can at the given moment we choose to see her in. We do this to her and in the process we alienate ourselves as a guardian for women.

But do we take any time to celebrate her?

How different would our world look if we simply suspended judgment for a quick second and began each thought with, “What courage that must take!” How beautiful is it to see women building up other women in our community or watch our daughters accomplish things that were once not even considered a possibility for her? If we took as much time building up another woman as we sometimes do judging her, can you imagine what we could accomplish together?

In 2020, we celebrate the centennial of women’s right to vote in America. Two years from now, we will celebrate 50 years of Title IX, prohibiting discrimination against girls and women in federally-funded education, including in athletics programs. Men and women were on both sides of these issues, but the most hurtful part of this history is the lengths women went to to dismantle one another. This is perplexing because in both cases, opportunities were being created, not eliminated, so if you didn’t want to vote, then don’t; or if you didn’t want to play sports, fine, it isn’t mandating participation. During these social movements extreme advocacy efforts were made to unite and forge through to pass these life changing yet fundamental rights.

Both acts were turning points for women.

As we move forward with debate on women’s issues such as women’s reproductive health, the Equal Rights Amendment, gender pay equality, there is no way we will all agree on what the right course of action is, but the far greater concern for women should be how will we build one another up despite our differences instead of tearing one another down?

On March 8th we celebrate International Women’s Day. “Individually, we’re all responsible for our own thoughts and actions – all day, every day.”

What will you do to celebrate women?

Send a note of encouragement to a struggling colleague? Take a dinner to a new mom? Buy two of backup emergency party items for your child’s classroom? Put tampons in the ladies’ room at work?

Rachel Banning
Originally from the Wichita area, Rachel’s greatest adventure began 20 years ago when she married her husband. Together, they have one living child with Asperger’s (Dylan, ‘03) and one heavenly daughter with cerebral palsy (Mia, 2000-2013). She is a homeschool mom and business owner. Rachel is an unapologetic advocate for children of all abilities, a bookworm, and she will find any excuse to use her Kitchen Aid and wear Junior League red.