March 8: International Women’s Day

International Women’s Day 2010 is March 8.

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Although it is not formally observed in the United States, International Women’s Day is a major day of global celebration of women. In different regions, the focus of the celebrations ranges from general celebration of respect, appreciation and love towards women to a celebration for women’s economic, political and social achievements.

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Please take our International Women’s Day quiz to learn more about women’s issues around the world and throughout history… The questions for this quiz were submitted by IRIS’s YES students from Nigeria and Tanzania who are living and studying in Iowa this year.

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1. When was the first International Women’s Day observed?

a. March 19, 1908

b. March 19, 1910

c. March 19, 1911

d. March 19, 1919

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2. What is the theme of the 2010 International Women’s Day?

a. Investing in Girls and Women

b. Equal rights, equal opportunities: Progress for all

c. Women in decision-making

d. Women and HIV/AIDS

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3. Who, as leader of the newly founded “Women’s Office” of the Social Democratic Party of her country, introduced the idea of and started the first International Women’s Day?

a. Clara Zetkin, Germany

b. Rosa Luxemburg, Poland

c. Alexandra Kollantai, Russia

d. Shadi Sadr, Iran

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4. Of these four countries, three do not officially observe International Women’s Day. Which of these countries does formally observe International Women’s Day?

a. England

b. United States of America

c. Cuba

d. Nigeria

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5. On International Women’s Day worldwide, men customarily give what to women who are important to them (including their mothers, wives, girlfriends, colleagues, etc.)?

a. Small jewelry

b. Flowers and small gifts

c. The beverage of her choice

d. Cookies or cakes

Women in Media

6. What female journalist won the award for Best TV Talk Show in the People’s Choice Awards on January 6, 2010?

a. Tyra Banks

b. Oprah Winfrey

c. Rachel Ray

d. Ellen DeGeneres

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7. What is the most discussed political issue in media concerning women?

a. Equal pay

b. Voting rights and restrictions

c. Abortion

d. HIV/AIDS rates

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8. Who is considered the first female African American journalist?

a. Regina Anderson

b. Daisy Bates

c. Mary Ann Shadd Cary

d. Hallie Quinn Brown

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9. Each year, three women are awarded the International Women Media Foundation’s Courage Award. Which of these women did not win in 2009?

a. Christine Hahn, Canada

b. Jilia Baniyaghoob, Iran

c. Iryna Khalip, Belarus

d. Agnes Taile, Cameroon

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10. Which former singer and model caught the media’s attention when she got married and became the First Lady of a country in which she was not born?

a. Eva Peron (Argentina)

b. Carla Bruni (France)

c. Cherie Booth (Great Britain)

d. Hayrunnisa Gul (Turkey)

Global Issues

11. Of those in Africa who are HIV positive, what percent are women?
a. 25%
b. 50%
c. 75%
d. 80%

12. What fraction of the world’s work do women do, and what percentage of the world’s income do women receive?
a. 1/2, 50%
b. 1/3, 75%
c. 3/4, 40%
d. 2/3, 10%

13. What country was the first to give women the right to vote?
a. Australia
b. United states of America
c. Sweden
d. New Zealand

14. Approximately how many women die of unsafe abortions each year?
a. 7,000
b. 10,000
c. 15,000
d. 70,000

15. According to the World Health Organization, ___% of girls aged 17 or under in South Africa have been the victim of rape or attempted rape.
a. 15%
b. 25%
c. 40%
d. 45%

Famous Female Political Leaders

16. Who is the current chancellor of Germany?
a. Angela Merkel
b. Hannah Arendt
c. Anne Frank
d. Betty Paoli

17. Asha Rose Migiro is the Vice Secretary to the United Nations. What is her home country?
a. India
b. Tanzania
c. Turkey
d. Japan

18. Who is the first and only elected female president in Africa?
a. Elisabeth Dometien (Central African Republic)
b. Carmen Pereira (Guinea Bissau)
c. Agathe Uwilingiyamana (Rwanda)
d. Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf (Liberia)

19. Which nation has the greatest percentage of women in politics (53.6% of elected officials are women)?
a. Rwanda
b. Germany
c. Argentina
d. Belarus

20. Which of these political leaders was assassinated in 2007? (Hint: She was the first women elected to lead a Muslim state.)
a. Benazir Bhutto, Prime Minister of Pakistan
b. Megawati Sukarnoputri, President of Indonesia
c. Tansu Ciller, Prime Minister of Turkey
d. Khaleda Zia, Prime Minister of Bangladesh

Fun Facts

21. Men use an average of 7,000 words/day. How many do women use?
a. 7,000
b. 10,000
c. 14,000
d. 20,000

22. Who is the only female judge in the Bible?
a. Ruth
b. Deborah
c. Mary
d. Esther

23. Which female author produced the first literature for the mass market of juvenile girls in the 19th century? (Hint: She wrote “Little Women.”)
a. Jane Austen
b. Louisa May Alcott
c. Emily Dickinson
d. Anne Bronte

24. The first female governor in the U.S. was Nellie Ross, elected in 1924 in which state?
a. Delaware
b. California
c. Wyoming
d. New Hampshire

25. In 1963, who was the first women to go into outer space?
a. Valentina Vladimirovna, Russia
b. Dr. Shannon Matilda Wells Lucid, U.S.A.
c. Chiaki Mukai, Japan
d. Sally Kristen Ride, U.S.A.

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Answers:

(1) C; (2) B; (3) A; (4) C; (5) B
(6) D; (7) C; (8) C; (9) A; (10) B
(11) C; (12) D; (13) D; (14) D; (15) C
(16) A; (17); B; (18) D; (19) A; (20) A
(21) D; (22) B; (23) B; (24) C; (25) A