While International Women’s Day has been informally celebrated since the early 1900s, the United Nations officially recognized it in 1975, marking it as an annual observance to commemorate the importance of the woman in all aspects of society. In many countries, International Women’s Day has graduated to the status of national holiday, including Afghanistan, Armenia, Cambodia, Cuba, Georgia, Eritrea, Mongolia, Russia, Turkmenistan, Vietnam, among others.

We commend the efforts made these past several years in the United States towards raising the position of women. Federal agencies, including USAID or the state, defense, and justice departments, have taken heed to President Obama’s December 2011 Executive Order to establish a U.S. National Action Plan on Women, Peace, and Security to ensure women’s participation in preventing conflict and keeping peace. In August of 2012, we celebrated the introduction of the Women, Peace, and Security Act to ensure that this National Action Plan would become more than just an executive order, that we would eventually see its implementation as national legislation.

Most recently, Congress passed the historical Violence Against Women Act. This strengthened our justice system and social services to ensure that women can protect themselves from violence within our own borders, that we can reduce the high rates of physical and sexual violence, so women can safely participate in all aspects of society without fear of attack.

In terms of women’s political participation, an historical number of females were elected composing 18.9% of the 113^th United States Congress—or 101 of the 535 seats (20 Senators, 81 House Members). To name a few significant achievements, Massachusetts saw its first woman elected to Senate (Elizabeth Warren). Wisconsin’s Tammy Baldwin became the first openly gay and female politician to the Senate. New Hampshire became the first state with an all female delegation to the U.S. House of Representatives.

And yet, there is still much to worry about. We may have seen historical gains, but we still fail to rank up to many other countries. While we may have 18.9% participation in Congress, many other countries charge ahead, including Iraq with 25.2% female composition of Parliament or Afghanistan with 27.7%. The Inter-Parliamentary Union ranks the United States as 77th out of 190 countries in terms of female participation. This is unacceptable for a country that prides itself on equality.

In the early 1900s, International Women’s Day focused on improving women’s status in the labor force. Certainly we have achieved much progress in this area since that time. However, women continue to be unfairly discriminated against in the workplace. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, women have lost 454,000 federal, state, and local government jobs compared with 267,000 by men since the end of the recession in June 2009 (Bloomberg News).

Even this past January, government payrolls cut approximately 8,000 positions for women compared with 1,000 for men. This imbalance is bound to continue as sequestration descends upon our economy, possibly trimming growth by 0.5% and prospectively eliminating 350,000 more jobs, according to Bloomberg News.

Take a moment this International Women’s Day to remember all that women have achieved and that still more needs to be done. Take part in the celebration of women by finding an event near you. We must remember that equality and protection for women means stability worldwide.

-Hannah Wheeler, Communications and Development Intern – Boston College Class of 2012

WASHINGTON

“Secretary Clinton has continually stated that it is time for the US to ‘fundamentally change the ways we do business’ with regards to women’s issues,” stated Susan Shaer. “WAND knows that women must be at the table when developing and executing plans for sustainable peace. We look forward to working with Congresswoman Johnson, Congressman Carnahan, Ambassador Verveer, WILPF, and other Congressional and community leaders, to push for funding and legislative efforts that support the implementation of this plan to promote women, peace and security.”

The NAP states that the US will "institutionalize a gender-responsive approach to its diplomatic, development, and defense-related work in conflict affected environments," and will work to increase women's rights and "substantive participation in peace processes, conflict prevention, peacebuilding, transitional processes, and decision making institutions in conflict-affected environments."

“This Roundtable Discussion is a part of my women’s peace initiative A World of Women for World Peace,” said Congresswoman Johnson. “Through this initiative, I have worked tirelessly to bring attention to those on the forefront of the peace movement. Whether meeting with international delegations or hosting events on Capitol Hill, such as this one, I hope to bring conflict resolution to our dialogue. The goal for this discussion was to provide a foundation for how my colleagues and I can best support the implementation of the National Action Plan.”

“Women and girls are disproportionately affected by violence, conflict, and humanitarian disaster,” said Congressman Carnahan. “Though we hear about it all too rarely, they have made incredible contributions to ending conflict around the world—like in Liberia, where Muslim and Christian women came together to help end civil war—or in Northern Ireland, where women were essential in initiating the peace process. Today, women in countries around the world, like Sudan, the DRC, Afghanistan, and countries affected by the Arab Spring continue to demand a voice in peace, transition, and governance. These women, and so many more, exemplify why UN Security Council Resolution 1325 and the U.S. National Action Plan on Women, Peace, and Security are critical for global security and prosperity. Our roundtable dialogue helped further Congressional commitment to ensure robust implementation of the National Action Plan.”

The NAP is the outcome of a process that began more than a decade ago with the passing of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325, which encouraged the UN and its member states to integrate a "gender perspective" in all aspects of peace and security. In October 2004, a subsequent Security Council Presidential Statement called on the “development of national action plans” to further implement SCR 1325. To date, 35 countries have approved plans.