The victories that followed the American civil war and the 1960s civil rights era are once again under attack, echoing earlier efforts to roll back equality and redefine democracy, says JOE SIMS
AMID the biggest wave of industrial action by women workers perhaps in history, our international wpmen’s day event will celebrate the vital contributions that women make in our unions and our communities.
Many work in traditionally undervalued, underpaid but absolutely essential roles. If the Covid lockdowns showed us anything, it was that the workers we most rely upon are mainly in roles regarded as women’s work. Carers, cleaners, cooks, nurses and healthcare staff, to name but a few.
As trade unionists we hoped that a recognition of this would see those jobs valued more and paid better. How wrong we were. The Thursday evenings “clapping for carers” have been long forgotten as we revert to business as usual.
For generations black women have shaped Britain’s activism, arts and public life despite exclusion and discrimination. ZITA HOLBOURNE pays tribute to these political trailblazers and cultural icons, whose courage continues to inspire
Half a century after transformative laws reshaped Britain, women’s rights are again contested. This International Women’s Day is a call to remember how change was won, and to organise to defend it, says KATE RAMSDEN
Working-class women lead the fight for fair work and equitable pay and against sexual harassment, the rise of the far right and years of failed austerity policies, writes ROZ FOYER



