What can we change to promote equity and equality?

change generational patterns equity at home gender equality how to support women international women’s day parenting for equality raising feminist kids stop victim shaming support female leaders women’s empowerment Mar 08, 2024

According to the official International Women’s Day website, 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.”

Let’s talk about what that looks like—not just on social media or in speeches—but in everyday choices, especially at home.

🎯 Real Ways to Support Women and Advance Equality

Equality doesn’t just come from new laws—it comes from changing the stories we live and pass down.

Here’s how you can take action today (and every day):

✅ Vote against laws that hold women back
✅ Mentor girls and women in your community
✅ Support victims of abuse—believe them and uplift them
✅ Stop victim shaming in any form
✅ Shop with and donate to women-owned businesses
✅ Contribute to a young woman’s education or tuition fund
✅ Learn about women’s history—not just in March, but year-round
✅ Pay women fair, competitive wages for their work

But there’s one more powerful thing you can do: break the cycle at home.

👀 Equality Starts With What Kids Hear at Home

Sometimes inequality doesn’t show up in policies—it hides in our habits. In our compliments. In our expectations. In how we talk to our sons and daughters.

We tell girls:
👰 “You’re going to make a great wife someday!”
🧼 “Make sure you always look presentable.”

We tell boys:
💪 “Man up.”
🧠 “You’re the man of the house now,” even if they’re just a child and their older sister is clearly more capable.

We excuse boys’ behavior and shame girls for the same. We praise boys for being assertive and label girls as “bossy.” These aren’t small things. They build the script our kids grow up with—and then pass on.

🧠 Reflect. Relearn. Rewire.

If you grew up with gendered expectations or unequal messaging—it’s okay. Most of us did. That doesn’t make you “bad”—it makes you human.

But if we want real gender equity, we have to unlearn what holds us back and stop believing that “equality” means a role reversal where women dominate. It’s not about flipping the script—it’s about rewriting it entirely.

💬 Talk About It With Your Family

Don’t let this conversation stop at your screen. Ask your kids:

“What messages do you think boys and girls hear about success?”
“What do you think fairness looks like in a family or at school?”
“How can we treat everyone with equal respect, regardless of gender?”

Let them wrestle with it. Let yourself wrestle with it. That’s how change happens.

💜 Final Note

International Women’s Day is a celebration. But it’s also a challenge: Will you help build a world that’s truly equal?

You don’t need a microphone or a platform. You just need the courage to notice, speak up, and start right where you are—at home, at work, at school, in how you raise and support the next generation.

And don’t forget—support the women around you, not just today, but every day.