10 Quotes From People on the Frontlines for Equity
International Women's Day (March 8) is a global recognition of the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day is also an annual call to action for accelerating gender parity, as evidenced by this year's theme, #BalanceforBetter. The theme underscores the need for gender balance in the workplace and government, gender balance in media and sports coverage, a balance in the distribution of wealth, and gender balance in all other areas of society.
Some of the most famous and esteemed people in modern history have chimed in on their personal experiences, beliefs and observations on the struggle for gender balance. Their words are a reminder and a battle cry to move the ball forward and finally achieve #BalanceforBetter.
10 Quotes from People on the Frontlines for Equity
"Women belong in all places where decisions are being made... It shouldn't be that women are the exception." – Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg
"I raise up my voice — not so I can shout, but so that those without a voice can be heard… We cannot succeed when half of us are held back." – Malala Yousafzai, Activist for Female Education and Nobel Prize Laureate
"Each time a woman stands up for herself, without knowing it possibly, without claiming it, she stands up for all women."– Maya Angelou, Poet
"Achieving gender equality requires the engagement of women and men, girls and boys. It is everyone's responsibility." – Ban Ki-moon, former United Nations Secretary-General
"Women in this country must become revolutionaries. We must refuse to accept the old, the traditional roles and stereotypes… We must replace the old, negative thoughts about our femininity with positive thoughts and positive action affirming it, and more. But we must also remember that we will be breaking with tradition, and so we must prepare ourselves educationally, economically, and psychologically in order that we will be able to accept and bear with the sanctions that society will immediately impose upon us." – Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm
"In the future, there will be no female leaders. There will just be leaders." – Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook
"The test of whether or not you can hold a job should not be in the arrangement of your chromosomes." – Bella Abzug, Women's Rights Activist
"Feminism has never been about getting a job for one woman. It's about making life more fair for women everywhere. It's not about a piece of the existing pie; there are too many of us for that. It's about baking a new pie." – Gloria Steinem, Feminist and Women's Rights Activist
"Gender equality is more than a goal in itself. It is a precondition for meeting the challenge of reducing poverty, promoting sustainable development and building good governance." – Kofi Annan, Former United Nations Secretary-General
"It took me quite a long time to develop a voice. Now that I have it, I'm not going to be silent." – Madeleine Albright, Former Secretary of State
