A Day Without a Woman? I choose a Day to Celebrate Women.

Are you taking off on March 8, 2017 to honor International Woman’s Day and the call to action from the The Women’s March 100 Days of Action? At first I balked, thinking that subtracting myself from the workforce or economy for the day was insufficient, unhelpful, or counter to my own personal goals for contributing every single day to a better America. But I have since thought better of it.

On March 8, I am taking the day off work. Not to strike or protest, but to pause and reflect, to honor and celebrate, to be in solidarity with women around the world and across time.

I plan to visit and tour Jane Addams’s Hull House in Chicago, IL. (800 S. Halsted).  Jane Addams was the first American woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. Her social reform efforts helped immigrants, women, and children. Her messages are entirely relevant today. Her example is instructive and inspirational, especially at this precarious time in U.S. history. The current attack on immigrants is making national news, where counter to promises, non-criminal immigrants are being included in sweeps for deportation. But consider also the regressive effect on child labor laws of old, in the face of some law-makers attempting to depress teen wages in order to skirt minimum wage increases popularly enacted.

Join me in informing and encouraging your friends, teachers of your children, and your employers or clients that you will be off that day and you respect their choice to be off too. I will be taking my children out of school that day.

If you want to come along, drop me a line. I have arranged a group tour at 11:30 am that can scale up to 50 people. It will cost $10 per person (more or less depending on the number who attend and whether or not we see the democracy movie).

What other ways do you suggest we honor women on March 8? Here is a list of women to explore. Perhaps your local museums and libraries offer you a moment to pause, reflect and celebrate.