Women make up 50.8 percent of the world’s 7,404,976,783 person population. That means that there are 3,761,728,205 women. Yet, for some reason, women, throughout time have been, and still are, treated like a nonexistent part of our history.

Yes, men and women differ biologically. When it comes to representation in academia, where it should be equal, it is also different. Women are dropped. I had my nine year old brother try to name some important women from history – he was able to list Betsy Ross, Harriet Tubman and Rosa Parks. When asked to list some important men, he was able to go on for at least ten minutes – I had to stop him. Where are women in history? It’s not like women just recently decided to show up and start doing things. Angela Merkel is not the first woman to have thought of going into government. Malala Yousafzai is not the first to have thought of advocating for women’s right to education.

In 1777, Sybil Ludington went on a midnight ride similar to, but actually twice as long as Paul Revere’s. In the 1920s, Zelda Fitzgerald’s dancing, writing, and musical talents were always overshadowed by those of her husband, the author of The Great Gatsby, Scott Fitzgerald. I never learned about these women in school. I had to discover them on my own.

Abigail Adams sent a letter to her husband John Adams while he was at the Constitutional Convention, in which she wrote, “remember the ladies.” Yet, so many women are forgotten in the annals of history.

My sister is in Israel, spending her 10th grade Spring semester abroad. She called me from Israel on International Women’s Day to tell me that one of the male counselors from her program had just said that International Women’s Day is irrelevant and Women’s History Month is neither important nor necessary. She didn’t understand why he would say that, and asked me what I would’ve said if I had been there.

I told her that I would have said yes, and told the counselor that I agree with him. I would have continued to say that I also believe that having an International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month is pretty ridiculous. I believe that everyday should be women’s day!  

Women should be acknowledged for their role in society not just during one day of the year, and their contributions to the world for not just one month, but for the entire year, every year. After all, men are acknowledged constantly. We study men’s history in school. That’s why there’s no need for an International Men’s Day or Men’s History month. I would also add that I believe that both International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month should be eliminated – as soon as women are treated as complete equals to men.

That will take some time. So, in the meantime, my sister’s counselor should crack open a book on Elizabeth Cady Stanton or Rosalind Franklin, or perhaps read more blogs and articles about the importance of women’s history. Women need to be recognized as a part of our history.