It was a very cold evening but it was great to see women and men standing together to call for gender equality and an end to all forms of discrimination against women.
Especially good to see my son Euan there to support the struggle!
"Kate Ramsden, bringing greetings from UNISON on International Women’s Day.
And very proud to be speaking here at this Aberdeen Rally
to celebrate the achievements of the women’s movement over the past 100 and more years
and to gird our loins for the battles yet to be fought.
We’ve heard a great deal about inspirational women and
there have been many throughout history – In fact some of them are here
today.
But despite the best efforts of those women and the women’s movement I
think we all know that gender inequality is alive and well.
Many of the challenges that I was facing and fighting as a
young trade unionist and Labour activist are the challenges that face us still
Some things have got better – but much has stayed the same
or got worse.
The problem is that we still live in a society dominated by
male power and male privilege.
The exploitation and abuse of women is one example of a
power imbalance that has never really gone away over the years.
