Women celebrated

International Women’s Day celebrated its 100th anniversary on campus this week.

In collaboration with Fem Soc, Leeds University Union (LUU) held stalls and exhibits for the day on Tuesday 8 March.

Rachel Wenstone, the LUU Communications and Internal Affairs Officer, who organised the event, said: “International Women’s Day is a celebration of women, their successes, achievements and the significant contributions women continue to make to society.

“It’s an opportunity to look back and see how far women have come in the fight for equal rights, but it’s also a time to access how much further there still is to go – there is still no place in the worlds where women have equal rights to men.”

The day began with a free Women’s Breakfast from 8.30 to 10am in the Lounge. The Union Foyer held displays on the History of Emancipation in Britain and about the International Women’s Day’s 100 year history. Fem Soc also organised a range of events in the Hidden Café space, which included a presentation about Portuguese artist Carla Cruz and a discussion about International Women’s Day, asking the question: ‘Does it help?’

Lenka Vrablikova, another organiser of the IWD at Leeds University, said the day gave her the “opportunity to question things you would normally not question”.

A washing line in the Hidden Café space displayed the photos of 100 influential and inspiring women, ranging from artists, such as Madonna, to politicians like Benazir Bhutto, and also important figures of the suffragette movement, such as Emmeline Pankhurst. In the afternoon a rally started at Dortmund Square to protest against the cuts.

To stress the pay gap between women and men, Rachel Wenstone said they offered a discount in the Hidden Café. She said: “It’s extremely important to demonstrate that women working-full time are paid on average 15.5 per cent less an hour than men for work of the equivalent value.”