International Women's Day 2010

International Women's Day is on March 8. International Women's Day 2010 celebrates the social, political and economic achievements of women around the world. International Women's Day started as a socialist political event. Today International Women's Day examines the struggles and triumphs of women all over the globe as they strive for political and social awareness.

The first International Women's Day was celebrated on February 28, 1909 in the United States. In 1910, the first international women's conference was held in Copenhagen. International Women's Day was marked by over a million in 1911 in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Denmark. On March 25, 1911, a fire at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory killed more than 140 workers fueling the celebration of International Women's Day.

International Women's Day dwindled in the 1930s until the 1960s with the rise of feminism. In 1965, International Women's Day became a non-working holiday in the Soviet Union.

Wikipedia reports the International Committee of the Red Cross is drawing attention to the hardships of displaced women for International Women's Day 2010. Women displaced by armed conflict face violence, discrimination and intimidation. Often these displaced women live alone with their children.

International Women's Day is an official holiday in Angola, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, China, Croatia, Cuba, Georgia, Guinea-Bissau, Eritrea, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Lithuania, Laos, Madagascar, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Nepal, Russia, Serbia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Vietnam and Zambia.

There are a few cool customs throughout the world on International Women's Day. In Italy, men give women yellow mimosas. This is also a tradition in Albania and Russia, where chocolate is another popular gift. In Hungary, Romania, Moldova, Macedonia, Lithuania, Brazil, Bosnia, Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, Slovenia, Serbia, Poland and Bulgaria, women are given flowers and sometimes get goodies from employers, too.

In Poland, there are feminist demonstrations on International Women's Day. In India, there are a variety of celebrations for International Women's Day. If you live in Romania or Portugal, you might go out with a group of women for an International Women's Day dinner party.

Here's to all the sisters around the globe on International Women's Day...we've come a long way! For more about International Women's Day events in your neighborhood, visit InternationalWomen'sDay.com.