Why International Women's Day

• Because millions of women throughout the world live in conditions of abject deprivation of, and attacks against, their fundamental human rights for no other reason than that they are women.

• Because millions of women throughout the world are treated as property, not as human beings.

• Because for millions of women their dress, work, appearance, who they socialise with, who they have an intimate relationship with, their reproductive choices, and sexuality are all subject to control by family/community/the state.

• Because girls are still subjected to female genital mutilation.

• Because women are still forced into marriage against their wishes.

• Because millions of women throughout the world live in conditions of abject deprivation of, and attacks against, their fundamental human rights for no other reason than that they are women.

• Because John Howard opposes the ACT's new legislation that allows people in same sex relationships to adopt children. He thinks that children should be brought up by a mother and a father who are married to each other.

• Because The Australian Federal Government has such a pitiful response to Domestic Violence and sexual assault against women and children - most recently the shelving of a multi million dollar Domestic Violence Community Education TV Ad campaign - without explanation.

• Because millions of dollars were taken from the Federal Government's Partnerships Against Violence Project to fund the stupid fridge magnets that came with the Terrorist packs we all got in the mail last year.

• Because the Federal Government supported changing the Federal Sex Discrimination Legislation so that IVF would be inaccessible to single women, lesbians, or any woman not in a relationship with a man.

• Because 72% of Primary Carers in NSW are women.

• Because in August 2003 the average weekly earnings of all women in the NSW workforce (including partime and casual workers) were $621.80, approximately 67.25% of the average male earnings ($924.50).

• Because women only make up 36.4% of the elected members of the NSW Parliament.

• Because women are objectified and consumerised, paraded, pulled, prodded, rated and sold like pieces of meat - and men (and women) justify it as choice.

For hundreds and hundreds of other reasons we have International Women's Day... To give women a voice. To speak out against oppression, sexism and discrimination.

International Women's Day is also a time to celebrate women's survival, our achievements, our bodies, our sexuality, our wit, our intelligence, our creativity, our resilience, our spunk, our spirit, our love, our strength....