Menkiti Onyebuchi Bernie, Features Editor
“One is not born, but rather becomes, a woman.” — Simone de Beauvoir
The social media has become a rallying ground for global issues. It’s vast reach and fast spread has made it an enviable tool of communication. In recent times, it has assumed a bigger role in sensitising and influencing discourse around the world. Hence, the celebration of the women’s history month isn’t different from this tradition.
This month marks the beginning of the celebration of women’s history month, a global phenomenon considered one of the most notable months for the woman; women all over the world. It is a month of women celebration cutting across all walks of life, capturing those whose strive to succeed stems from the rubbles of life from below and the top.
Definitively, the women’s history month is a special month set aside to mark the beyond-exceptional- idiosyncrasies of the female gender and even more, espoused in their contribution and inspiration to women all over the world to do more. It is more so, the celebration of successful women, impactful women and all those who have in one way or the other broken the glass ceiling of inroads in certain areas of human endeavor. This month does not also alienate the history of women who struggle daily to make their dreams come to reality.
As expected, this special month has taken a turn on the social media trending on a familiar hashtag, #womenhistorymonth and had since drawn the attention of embassies, governmental organisations, non-governmental organisations and corporate bodies.
For instance on it’s handle, the Black History Studies; captured the very beautiful African woman,
Wangari Maathai, the first African woman & first environmentalist to win a Nobel Peace Prize as her poster for the celebration of the day. The US Embassy Twitter handle celebrated a 2018 CNN Hero Abisoye Ajayi-Akinfolarin a Nigerian social impact entrepreneur whose foundation Pearls Africa focuses on developing young girls through basic coding skill acquisition.
The BBC, made it’s own women history. Una Marson who was born in 1905, and who died in 1965 was the first Black female broadcaster at the BBC from 1939 to 1946. She was a poet, publisher and activist for racial and sexual equality. She was also the secretary to the League of Coloured Peoples and Women’s International League for Peace. While another Twitter handle Trendy Africa, celebrated a legendary Nigerian woman, Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, the leading activist during Nigerian women’s anti-colonial struggles, and who founded the Abeokuta Women’s Union.
The US National Medical Association in their own stead tweeted Dr. Vivian Pinn whom she defined as a trailblazer in medicine. Dr. Pinn is one of the earliest African-American women to graduate from the UVA School of Medicine. Women in science also celebrated the women. They chose Dr. Roger Young, a hardworking woman and the first African-American woman to receive a doctorate in Zoology.
In Entertainment, Flipside entertainment group on it’s Facebook and Twitter adopted the face of a black young executive producer, who at the age of 14 landed a first-look deal with Universal. Her name is Marsai Martin, she is an inspiration to many. In the spirit of the celebration the US Army also tweeted saying; ‘Today, women serve in every career field in the Army and are critical members of the Army team.
Still on the social media feisty mood of celebration of the women history month, Atlantis also celebrated the renowned Nigerian writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, an Orange Price Winner. On the other hand, Women League on it’s socila media accounts celebrated Janet Reno, the woman who became US first female Attorney General under the Clinton Administration on March 12, 1993, and served throughout Bill Clinton’s tenure in office.
Many other social media enthusiasts, countries, groups, corporates and individuals went into history to celebrate great women who had coloured the history of yesterday. On their handles they celebrated greats such as Florence Nightingale -who she is credited for making the field of nursing a viable and respectable field of work for women. Nightingale-, “the Lady with the Lamp” as she was known.
A beautiful way it was to appreciate these exemplary women, and many more who continually ensure that the world around them continue to face individualistic upliftment for the generality of human race. It was the social media that galvanised the discourse and have followership to it.
