Waverly Commu­nity Members,

Today is Inter­na­tional Women’s Day! March 8 is a global day cele­brat­ing the social, economic, cultural, and polit­i­cal achieve­ments of women. ​“The day also marks a call to action for accel­er­at­ing women’s equal­ity. IWD has occurred for well over a century, with the first IWD gath­er­ing in 1911 supported by over a million people. Today, IWD belongs to all groups collec­tively every­where. IWD is not country, group or orga­ni­za­tion specific” (IWD Website). The day was also founded to high­light the signif­i­cance of women’s contri­bu­tions to our world and make sure that every­one under­stands that women’s lives and expe­ri­ences should be honored and under­stood. Women matter because they are people. 

Under­stand­ing the basic reality that women matter does not elim­i­nate the reality that we still have tremen­dous work to do to trans­form our world. We need to create pay equity, lead­er­ship oppor­tu­ni­ties and expe­ri­ences, commu­nity safety and respect for all women. Respect­ing and support­ing women is not at odds with the rights of people who are not women. This is a strug­gle we can all embrace to make our world better. I hope that all students will be in conver­sa­tion with their fami­lies and teach­ers about how we can support women and girls at Waverly. 

Waverly is proud to host Nikki High, owner and founder of Octavia’s Book­shelf, as part of our Women’s History Month cele­bra­tions. This new local book­store is located at 1361 N. Hill Avenue in Pasadena and features a range of texts by women and BIPOC writers. High will visit with all Waverly students and talk about science fiction, Octavia Butler, and the joy of reading. We are excited to offer this oppor­tu­nity to students and faculty. 

To learn more about Inter­na­tional Women’s Day and Women’s History Month, you can check out the resources below. Hope you all have a great day and cele­brate the women in your lives today and every day. 

In Commu­nity,

Clarke

Resources:
Youth In Action: Digital Futures for Women | Juven­tud en acción: Futuros digi­tales para mujeres
Cele­brat­ing Women Who Tell Our Stories
National Women’s History Museum