Today marks International Women's Day - a day to celebrate our achievements, but also a time to call for change, recognise the injustices so many women face and to highlight restrictions to women's right and how far we have to go to see true gender equality around the globe.
Of course, there are still those who are completely and wilfully ignorant to the issues that still plague women in their daily lives.
So before they chirp up with their own views on why a day to champion for change shouldn't exist, here's seven reasons exactly why International Women's Day is more important that ever for women across the globe.
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The gender pay gap is still alive and kicking: a recent study by the Trades Union Congress found that that the average woman works for free for the first two months of the year because of the gender pay gap. The union found that the gap sits 17.9 per cent, and will take 60 years to equalise at the rate things are moving. Read Jennifer Lawrence's impassioned essay on the subject here.
Because ageism directed at women is alive and well. When famous men (in this case author Yann Moix) think it's acceptable to say things like this, we know there's still a problem: "I prefer younger women's bodies, that's all. End of. The body of a 25-year-old woman is extraordinary. The body of a woman of 50 is not extraordinary at all." Read this beautiful essay on embracing your age as a woman and feeling sexier than ever as you get older.
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Two women are killed every week by their current or former partner: and last year, this figure totalled 139 woman who died as a result of male violence. Looking at this globally, six women are killed every hour by people they know. These statistics on femicide are chilling, and people are starting to take notice. After being rolled out across the country in 2014, Clare's Law finally became legislature in the UK in January, which gives women the right to ask police if their partner may pose a risk to them - you can find out more here.
Women over 45 are still underrepresented in film and TV: Last year, just 11 of the top 100 grossing movies featured a female lead or co-lead 45 years of age or older. Listen to Amy Schumer, Tina Fey, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Patricia Arquette's sketch for their brilliant take on the matter...
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Period poverty is real: Plan International UK found that one in 10 young women (aged 14-21), and one in seven in London, can't afford to buy tampons, pads and other period products. This causes them to not attend school on a regular basis and miss out on vital education. You can read Adwoa Aboah's thought-provoking words on why period products should be free here.
Mainsplaining. Enough said: There's still those that totally refused to believe that period poverty even exists, just like this man who told us to 'shut up whining' about the cost of menstrual products as apparently woman use just seven tampons per cycle (!!!). Every woman we've spoken to has experienced a man explaining something to them that they already knew, and we're certain you have too - this chart sums it up here.
The pink tax is genuinely still a thing: And it's not just our toiletries and razors, either. New research has found that women may even end up paying more for their home mortgages and auto loans than men. Read Pretty52's investigation into the pink tax here.
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Happy International Women's Day to all our amazing readers.
Featured Image Credit: PA ImagesTopics: Life News, News, International Women's Day