President and Sabina Higgins hosted their first virtual International Women’s Day initiative, with an online celebration of women’s voices and talents on 8 March.
The President invited some remarkable women to unite their voices in song, poetry and thought, in an online tribute to the courage in which International Women’s Day is rooted. Titled ‘Ar Aghaidh le Misneach agus le Chéile’ (Going Forward with Courage and Together) the online event is part of the President’s ‘Samhlaíocht agus An Náisiún’ initiative.
Click on the Audio, Speech or Video tabs for more information.
Each year President Higgins and Sabina celebrate International Women’s Day to highlight the social, economic and political achievements of women and to add to the call for action to address continuing gender inequality and violence against women.
This year, due to the public health guidelines in place during the Covid-19 pandemic, President Higgins and Sabina Higgins have decided to celebrate the day in a new way: a virtual celebration of the courage of women.
By inviting women to contribute their reflections through words, poetry or song, the President aimed to bring exceptional voices to the fore, in a tribute to the extraordinary, and everyday, courage of Irish women.
Each contributor was asked to contribute a short, home-made video, as tribute to the courage (‘misneach’), creativity (‘cruthaitheacht’), leadership (‘ceannaireacht’), vision (‘fís’) and power (‘cumhacht’) of women in Ireland.
The videos are available on the Áras an Uachtaráin Youtube channel.
Related events:
- President hosts reception to mark International Women’s Day 2020
- President and Sabina host a “Women In The Sciences” reception, marking International Women’s Day (2019)
- President and Sabina host a Garden Party promoting Gender Equality and Respect for all (2019)
- President marks International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women (2019)
- President hosts a reception to mark International Women’s Day (2018)
- President and Sabina host reception to mark International Women’s Day (2017)
- President hosts a reception in his role as a Global World Leader of UN Women’s HeforShe Campaign (2016)
- President hosts a reception to mark International Women’s Day (2015)
