March 8th is known all around the world as International Women’s Day. This day was introduced as a part of women’s right movement and marks the anniversary of the repression of New York City’s female textile workers. While International Women’s Day began to be celebrated as a part of socialist and communist movements, today it has created its own market. Commemoration of International Women’s Day ranges from being a public holiday in some countries to being largely ignored by others.  While for some it is a day for protest and raising awareness, for others it is a day to celebrate womanhood.There are various meanings associated with International Women’s Day and some have lost its connection to its original focus on equality and justice. 

Growing up I always associated Women’s Day with buying flowers and making cards for my mother. Today, I am more aware that the disconnection between the history of Women’s Day and how it is vastly celebrated is due to the way it has been marketed, which is similar to a holiday like Valentine’s Day. People, especially men, are encouraged and expected to buy chocolates, perfumes and cosmetics to the important women in their lives. Many cosmetic stores, especially in Turkey have their own annual Women’s Day sales. From kindergarten, children are thought to make presents for their grandmothers and mothers, but they are never taught how this day began to be celebrated. By disassociating Women’s Day from its political past, it has become a day of expressing the beauty and frugality of womanhood. In Russia it is even called Day of Spring. The praise of the beauty and value of women and how they should be protected, is just another way of society controlling and defining the place of women. 

The way this day has been celebrated and marketed has blurred its purpose. While I believe it is important to have a day to appreciate and remember the women’s right movements, these efforts of equality are overlooked by many even on a day that is about the unequal conditions women have to live in.

This year a post by a Turkish singer and actor called Özcan Deniz, led me to question International Women’s Day further. The singer made a very offensive post on his Instagram account regarding who gets to celebrate Women’s day that received many backlash. 

“Eeyy bu pazar günü full makyaj eşofmanlarla evde kafede vs elınde telefondan 8 mart kadınlar günü mesajlarını okuyan kadın şu an mutfağında çalışan şana servis yapan ÇALIŞAN kadının 8 mart EMEKÇİ kadınlar gününü kutla. Hatta ona bır hedıye alö Bu gün bütün kadınların değil, EMEKÇİ kadınların günüdür. Yürekten kutlarım.” 

Translation to English

 “To all the women who are wearing their make up and sitting at home or at a cafe with their phones glued to their hands reading messages about Women’s Day, this is not your day. Today is the day to celebrate working women who are now preparing or serving your food. Get her a present. Today is not all women’s day, it is the laborer women’s day.” 

To his surprise, the spelling and grammatical errors are not the only thing that is wrong with his statement. As a privileged and somewhat powerful man he even feels entitled to discriminate and lecture women on a day that is about the equality of both sexes. Perhaps one of the saddest things about this post is that Deniz believes that by making this statement he is praising what he calls “laborer women”. 

It is important to define and recognize the true meaning of International Women’s Day. While, It is certainly not a day that is just about pink flowers and cheerful cards, it is also not a day that should be defined by a man. The fact that he had the audacity to even make this post epitomizes many problems caused in our society by entitled men. The fact that he can make an argument about what type of woman can celebrate this day shows the power dynamic that has been causing problems for women not only in the workplace, but also in their daily lives. 

Furthermore, through his examples it is easy to understand where he sees women in the workplace. As he briefly gives examples who “laborer women” are, Deniz mentions cooks and waitresses. He does not mention nurses or doctors in hospitals, workers in factories, teachers at schools, lawyers, accountants etc. According to this post women are working jobs that are concerned with serving others. 

What I want to focus more on in this post are the women who do not deserve to celebrate Women’s Day. The stereotype he describes refers to an unemployed and possibly stay at home mother. His one dimensional point of view is again so painful to read. As a man who probably never had to cook or clean, he sure can not say that taking care of a home is not labor. 

My mother and my grandmother are both stay at home mothers. Growing up I never imagined being a stay at home mother. My ideal of a powerful woman was always a business woman. Now I know that it takes more power to sacrifice one’s own dreams and ideals for their family. My mother was a journalist. She even got a scholarship to get a masters degree in London. She continued working after my sister was born. However, having me eighteen months later, she could not stand the long hours and stress. She loved her work and always dreamed of writing her own book, but she decided to let go of her dream for me and my sister. My grandmother was a seamstress. Even though she got married when she was very young, she always had the dream to open up her own store. Similarly she had to put her family first. My grandfather was a soldier, with him always travelling my grandmother was mostly alone with her three kids. She had to give up her dream and continue sewing only for her kids. 

My mother and grandmother are one of many women who are not “laborer women” according to Özcan Deniz and many others. According to this understanding they do not qualify to be celebrated. Well that is just another inequality women have to face every day in their homes. Their work at home is never valued, because they are not the “breadwinners”. These women do not simply just sit at home with their make ups glued to their phones. Although the incorporation of International Women’s Day  to consumerist culture is detrimental to the political and social purpose of the day, at least women like my mother or grandmother get the appreciation they deserve, even it is just once a year.