Your Spanish weekly news review: Feminism in Spain.

Hello students, how are you? I’m Celia, your Spanish teacher and we’re going to do our Spanish weekly news review.

Today I am here to talk about 8 March, International Women’s Day.

Many people think that the 8th of March is a day to celebrate in a romantic way, at least, unfortunately, in many countries it is celebrated in this way, by giving roses to women.

In one of my talks the other day, I talked about the origins of 8 March, which can be traced back to a rally in Denmark at the beginning of the 20th century. A large number of women, representing more than ten countries, came together to protest about the conditions in which they lived, to talk about the universality of women’s suffrage and finally to propose an international date to commemorate women.

It was initially proposed for 19 March, but a week later an unprecedented tragedy occurred: more than a hundred women died in a factory fire in New York. This tragedy sparked a debate about working conditions in America.

So where does the date 8 March come from?

On 23 January 1917, according to the Julian calendar, a huge number of women went out to protest under the slogan “Bread and Peace” in Russia, the IGM had left millions dead and the country was in a situation of total poverty.

In the Gregorian calendar, which is used in many parts of the world, this date corresponded to 8 March.

In Spain this week, despite the wind and rain, the streets were once again filled with men and women continuing the fight for a more egalitarian society. Now more than ever, as the Spanish far-right, and the far-right worldwide, seek to roll back the progress of recent years.

And you may ask, what progress has Spain made in recent years?

Well, I would highlight three:

The former Minister of Equality, Irene Montero, who belongs to the Podemos party, was a very transgressive minister who brought very important debates to the table. The first is the law of Sólo sí es sí (Only yes is yes), which includes express, explicit, verbal consent in which a woman agrees to have sex. Until now, in many legal cases, silence could be interpreted consent, though silence is a common reaction in people in the midst a trumatic experience.

This opens up a new panorama, there must be a verbal, resounding, confident YES.

The second great advance is the Trans Law. Now in Spain you don’t have to go through medical and psychological tests to confirm or deny your identity. You can do it by skipping all these steps and changing your identity card.

Thirdly, and here I am combining several things, is the increase in maternity and paternity leave, as well as the inclusion of menstruation in the right to health, or the attempt to guarantee safe and effective abortion.

And in your country?