Catalonia prepares for International Women’s Day: ‘Strength of feminism is here to stay’

Catalan institutions and organizations are preparing for International Women’s Day on Friday, March 8. 

On Friday evening, there will be a large demonstration held in Barcelona, with thousands of women expected to go on strike and take part in the protest.

The gathering will begin at 6 pm at the Jardinetes de Gràcia area, at the top of Passeig de Gràcia, before moving down towards the Arc de Triomf. 

The 8-M Assembly, the organizers of the demonstration, has called for people to "overflow the streets with feminism" to denounce all labor insecurity and violence suffered by women, lesbians, and trans people, and demand rights. 

Natàlia Cámara, a member of the collective, explained that this was the aim of the demonstration at a press conference earlier this week. 

The protest in Barcelona will be held under the slogan 'Women, lesbians, and trans people standing against precariousness, borders, and genocide'.

The demonstration also stands against the European Pact on Immigration and Asylum, and to shine a light on "the genocide in Gaza" while demanding the Catalan and Spanish governments pressure Israel for a ceasefire. 

This demonstration coincides with the general strike called by trade unions CGT, Intersindical-CSC, and IAC.

At Wednesday’s institutional event ahead of International Women’s Day at the Catalan government headquarters building, Minister for Equality and Feminism Tània Verge remarked that "the strength of the feminist movement on the streets and in institutions is here to stay."

Verge also noted that this day had received little attention for decades, but in the last years has drawn large numbers. 

The minister pointed out that sexual and reproductive rights "are at the center of the political agenda and have been a key part of the country's feminist transformation." 

In the same vein, Catalan president Pere Aragonès vindicated the feminist struggle and the push for new rights in the face of the "reactionary wave" and "hate speeches."

Women in managerial positions falls by 6% in Catalonia in 2023

The presence of women in managerial positions fell by 6% in Catalonia in 2023 and is clearly stagnating in IT sector, as the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce reported this week during the presentation of the study 'Gender Equality Indicators in Catalonia'.

"We went from 39% of women in management positions in 2020 to only 33% in 2023. We believe that the pandemic had a lot to do with it," said the director of the Women's Business Economy Observatory, Carmen Poveda.

In addition, the hourly wage gap in these occupations remains fairly stable, around 20.6% (€41/hour for men and €33/hour for women). "Female talent is wasted, the glass ceiling remains," Poveda pointed out.

"The progression towards equality, which was rapid in the beginning, has stagnated in the last eight years as shown by most indicators," lamented the director of the observatory. 

"Women have a higher educational level than men (58% of all university degrees) and young girls have less school failure (12% compared to 15.8% of boys), but this higher educational level has not been translated into a significant reduction of inequalities in the labor market," Poveda said.

7 in 10 girls afraid of sexual violence in public spaces and nightlife

71.4% of girls say they are afraid of suffering sexual violence in public spaces and nightlife.

This is one of the main points that has come from a study carried out by primary care nurse Marta Núñez Sánchez, who analyzes the affective-sexual experiences in adolescence and socio-cultural factors that influence the behavior of teenagers.

According to the study, 61.5% of young women say they have suffered unwanted sexual touches and 77.6% report having been the victim of sexual or sexist comments.

The study was carried out with the collaboration of 176 teenagers aged between 14 and 18 who study at the Montserrat Roig high school in Terrassa and the Castellarnau high school in Sabadell.

According to the results, the first time young people encounter pornography is at the age of 7. The average age at which consumption begins is 12 years.

In fact, Núñez points out that "one out of every two young people interviewed says that pornography gives them ideas for sexual experiences."