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Hi everybody! Today is March 8, which means it’s International Women’s Day, a yearly celebration that focuses on celebrating women and their economic, political and social achievements throughout history.

(In case you were wondering or thinking about saying the words “But when is International Men’s Day?”, it’s November 19th. Now can we get back to this post?)

Let’s focus on ways to celebrate International Women’s Day, and a few ways I think are great to celebrate this day. How about some intersectional feminism, celebrating women, body positivity and fighting against romanticised abuse?

Check out Megan Jayne Crabbe’s book and Instagram on body positivity

Today’s society puts way too much pressure on the ‘ideal weight’ or body type. But woman (and men) could use some more body positivity in their lives. Megan Jayne Crabbe is my favorite body positivity guru and her instagram makes me happy. Check her out, she is known on instagram as @bodyposipanda.

Perspectives. I actually never posted the first picture. I took one look at it and decided that after months of dangerous crash dieting I still wasn’t thin enough. I’d failed. I hadn’t punished myself hard enough to wear that bikini and in my mind, that meant I didn’t deserve to be out in the world at all. That’s how every summer went, year by year. Missing out on all the days that should have been spent making memories in the light to shut myself indoors and focus everything on shrinking my body smaller. And every single year by the end of the summer, I’d take one look at myself and decide that it wasn’t enough. It was never ever enough. I wish I could get that time back now, spend it on letting myself grow in a million beautiful ways instead of forcing myself to be small, smaller, smallest. I can’t do that, but instead I can tell you what I wish I had been told back then: this is not your only option. You do not have to spend your life chasing weight loss. You do not have to punish yourself smaller. You do not have to put your life on hold until you can look in the mirror and see a body that you believe is worthy of being out in the world. You have ALWAYS been worthy of that. And you always will be, whether you’re smaller, larger, or exactly as you are. So for anyone who needs it, this is for you: stop hiding your body away from the light. Go let yourself grow in all of your beautiful ways. I’ll be making up for lost time and growing right beside you, and accepting my body unconditionally throughout it all. ?????

Een bericht gedeeld door Megan Jayne Crabbe ? (@bodyposipanda) op 3 Feb 2018 om 1:28 (PST)

Watch Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s TED talk on feminism and read her essay

We should definitely all be (intersectional) feminists! Chimimanda explains beautifully why we need feminism. You can also read her essay, which is only 52 pages, so really there is no excuse to skip it 😉

What does “feminism” mean today? That is the question at the heart of We Should All Be Feminists, a personal, eloquently-argued essay—adapted from her much-viewed TEDx talk of the same name—by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, the award-winning author of Americanah and Half of a Yellow Sun.

With humor and levity, here Adichie offers readers a unique definition of feminism for the twenty-first century—one rooted in inclusion and awareness. She shines a light not only on blatant discrimination, but also the more insidious, institutional behaviors that marginalize women around the world, in order to help readers of all walks of life better understand the often masked realities of sexual politics. Throughout, she draws extensively on her own experiences—in the U.S., in her native Nigeria, and abroad—offering an artfully nuanced explanation of why the gender divide is harmful for women and men, alike.

Argued in the same observant, witty and clever prose that has made Adichie a bestselling novelist, here is one remarkable author’s exploration of what it means to be a woman today—and an of-the-moment rallying cry for why we should all be feminists.

SUPPORT #OWNVOICES Books

Real feminism is intersectional. It is all inclusive and does not try to exclude or ignore groups of women in their idea of equality. We should support all women. Meaning women of color. Trans women. Disabled women. Mentally ill women…

How do you do this? Start by educating yourself. Personally, a way to do this for me is to read and support #ownvoices books! Reading stories by marginalized authors is important, but it’s even more important for them to get to write their stories and have them published.

Check out the Every Day Sexism Project

The Everyday Sexism Project exists to catalogue instances of sexism experienced on a day to day basis. They might be serious or minor, outrageously offensive or so niggling and normalised that you don’t even feel able to protest. Say as much or as little as you like, use your real name or a pseudonym – it’s up to you. By sharing your story you’re showing the world that sexism does exist, it is faced by women everyday and it is a valid problem to discuss.

–> http://everydaysexism.com/ <–

Read Bygone Badass Broads & check out some remarkable women who changed the world

Based on Mackenzi Lee’s popular weekly Twitter series of the same name, Bygone Badass Broads features 52 remarkable and forgotten trailblazing women from all over the world. With tales of heroism and cunning, in-depth bios and witty storytelling, Bygone Badass Broads gives new life to these historic female pioneers. Starting in the fifth century BC and continuing to the present, the book takes a closer look at bold and inspiring women who dared to step outside the traditional gender roles of their time. Coupled with riveting illustrations and Lee’s humorous and conversational storytelling style, this book is an outright celebration of the badass women who paved the way for the rest of us.

Check out A Magical World of Words’ posts on romanticed abuse

If we want to celebrate women, it’s also important to take a moment to reflect on the increasing amount of violence against women in media. And shockingly, the way this violence and abuse is brought in such a way that it is normalised, even romanticised. I guess we’ve all been there – swooning over the bad guy – but it’s important to realize we should not be normalising this type of behaviour. Amy at A Magical World of Words has a great series on this called ‘Fight Against Romanticised Abuse’, which I adore and you should definitely check out! Here are some of the posts so far:

These are just a few ways to celebrate International Women’s Day. How are you celebrating? Feel free to share the love and link me to any blogs, articles, videos, or websites you think are interesting!