This weekend was International Women’s Day, a holiday that’s been celebrating the achievements of women since the early 1900s.

From the International Women’s Day site:

Following the decision agreed at Copenhagen in 1911, International Women’s Day (IWD) was honoured the first time in Austria, Denmark, Germany and Switzerland on 19 March. More than one million women and men attended IWD rallies campaigning for women’s rights to work, vote, be trained, to hold public office and end discrimination.

About a week after the rallies, an event took place that shined a spotlight on the importance of such a day.

Have any of you heard about the Triangle Waist Factory fire in New York City? It was a tragic event where 146 mostly young, immigrant women died in a horrific fire at the blouse factory, many jumping to their deaths from the 9th floor of the building. There was gross negligence on the part of the company owners, including the locking of doors during work shifts and the lack of functioning fire hoses.

Near closing time on Saturday afternoon, March 25, 1911, a fire broke out on the top floors of the Asch Building in the Triangle Waist Company. Within minutes, the quiet spring afternoon erupted into madness, a terrifying moment in time, disrupting forever the lives of young workers. By the time the fire was over, 146 of the 500 employees had died. The survivors were left to live and relive those agonizing moments. The victims and their families, the people passing by who witnessed the desperate leaps from ninth floor windows, and the City of New York would never be the same.

The owners were found not to be liable for the tragedy but this one event was a turning point for the rights of working women.

Working conditions for women and men have improved since the early 1990s, but unfortunately, women still have a long way to go when it comes to equal pay and equal opportunities to advance in their careers.

A day to reflect on how far we still have to go is a good thing…if anyone really notices.