International Women`s Day in Russia: celebrating 'femininity' and 'beauty' instead of promoting women's rights

For many people March 8 - International Women's day serves as the legitimate pretext to raise the issue of women's rights and to press forward gender parity. For others, on the contrary, this day lost its initial message and they celebrate women's 'femininity' and 'delicacy'.  How come it happened in Russia, one of the countries where feminist movements started? 
 

International Women's Day: a history

8th March is the International Women's Day which was officially recognized by the UN in 1975. This day is celebrated in some countries and is completely unknown or unacknowledged in the others. For example, in Belgium there are two similar days comemorating the battle for women's rights throughout the year – Women’s Day on the 11th November and International Women’s Day on 8th March. However, Women's day should be distinguished from Mother's Day which is celebrated in many countries but on various days. For instance, in the Netherlands and Belgium it is on the second Sunday of May while in Russia this celebration does not exist at all. 

The history of International Women's Day dates back to 1910 when German communist Clara Zetkin offered to establish a special day in honor of fighting for equal rights for women. The date, 8 March, commemorated the Women's strike in New York in 1908. Since then women in different countries conducted meetings and went on strikes on a first week in the spring to fight for their rights – to be treated equally, to vote and to receive equal payment and work benefits.

In Russia it was first celebrated in St. Petersburg in 1913 with street demonstrations and political readings under the slogan of the struggle for economic and political equality of women. From the first years of the Soviet Union 8th March became an official  holiday but it remained a working day until 1965. After the collapse of the Soviet Union the holiday of March 8 remained in the list of public holidays of the Russian Federation and of most of the former-Soviet republics. For example, in 2018 Russian people will enjoy a four-day-long vacation, from 8 to 11 March.

Irpen

Traditional celebrations and the meaning of International Women's day

International Women’s Day in Russia is mostly associated with the popular tradition of giving flowers: smiling women carrying bouquets of roses or tulips seem to be everywhere in the streets in this period of time. Not surprisingly, many Russians call March 8 the “Day of Spring and Flowers”. Apart from flowers, Russian men and women give presents - chocolates, postcards, perfume, cosmetics -  to all the important women in their lives: mothers and sisters, teachers and grandmothers, wives and girlfriends, daughters and colleagues.

Back to top

The current focus of this holiday, now, is not the rights of women, but the women themselves with their (highly expected) femininity, fragility, beauty. But is it a justified approach?

From the very beginning this holiday had certain political connotations and was connected with the struggle of women for the equality of their rights and emancipation. However, nowadays in Russia the day is freed from any political meaning and ceased to be the day of political actions. It became the day when all women get praise just for being women, and women’s achievements in the personal, public, and political spheres are acknowledged and celebrated. The current focus of this holiday, now, is not the rights of women and the battle for equality, but the women themselves with their (highly expected) femininity, fragility, beauty. But is it a justified approach?

The depolitization of Women's day

At the start, the initiative behind the 8th March is admirable: it promotes equality and emphasizes that women have full rights for the access to education, work, elections or any sphere of life. Women have all necessary skills to do great things and are not supposed to be restricted to household and family activities. Step by step such changes have been taking place around the world and women are getting the right to drive a car or vote at the elections. These all were essential steps for societal development, for equality and peace. 

All the rights women have now, are sometimes taken for granted. But it is important to remember that the right to vote, work alongside men, drive were achieved by hard work of pressure groups. Women all around the world who protested and sacrificed their freedom for their beliefs.  

Nowadays this fight for women's rights has not stopped and March 8 serves as th day to raise awareness to the inequality which is still present in many spheres of our life. Such influential speeches like Emma Watson's to United Nations are also very significant: they contribute to the spread of feminist movements and bring considerable changes all around the globe. However, surprisingly, the Russian mainstream society seems to ignore such achievements, movements and initiatives. The media hardly ever uses March 8 as the pretext to talk about women's rights in Russia.                                            

So,does 8th March in Russia celebrate sexes equality or is this day about something else? On the first glance, it looks appealing  – men rushing around with bouquets of flowers, chocolates, presents, organizing something special for their loved ones. For one day a Russian man does a favor to his partner or mother and does all household chores letting her relax and ‘enjoy her day’. 

All the other days of the year, though, it appears to be more challenging to expect cooperation from the men’s side. This way, instead of making big moves and changes which would bring a noticeable impact on society, Russians prefer to focus the societal attention on women for one day ingoring the issues of women's rights on the others.  Even the wishes which can be heard on this day sound sexist: ‘Be feminine!’, ‘Be beautiful!’, ‘I wish you true women’s happiness (which implies having a family or a partner)’. How is it possible that an inspiring initiative to promote women’s rights has not been able to avoid hypocrisy and sexism? How come the principal message of International Women's day became so distorted? 

References