First lady Jill Biden on Wednesday used a Women's History Month event at the White House to call on men to step up and fight to protect women's rights. The first lady, speaking ahead of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, didn't mince words as she lamented that women find themselves relitigating “battles that we thought we had won a long time ago.” “We need more men to hold each other accountable when women are being hurt or being left behind,” she said.
Millions of people around the world planned to demonstrate, attend conferences and enjoy artistic events Wednesday to mark International Women's Day, an annual observance established to recognize women and to demand equality for half of the planet's population. While activists in some nations noted advances, repression in countries such as Afghanistan and Iran, and the large numbers of women and girls who experience sexual assaults and domestic violence worldwide highlighted the ongoing struggle to secure women's rights. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres noted this week that women’s rights were “abused, threatened and violated” around the world and gender equality won’t be achieved for 300 years given the current pace of change.
KABUL (Reuters) -The United Nations deputy secretary-general discussed women's rights with Afghanistan's acting foreign minister on Wednesday after the Taliban authorities banned most female aid workers and stopped women and girls from attending high school and university. Amina Mohammed has also met with U.N. staff, aid groups and Afghan women "to take stock of the situation, convey solidarity, and discuss ways to promote and protect women's and girls rights," deputy U.N. spokesman Farhan Haq said in New York.