I’ve always wondered about this. I’ve also always been suspicious of how the working got dropped. If this was an extension of the struggle – to unpaid working women – then I would be all good with it,but as noted on the international women’s day website:
” IWD is now an official holiday in China, Armenia, Russia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan and Vietnam. The tradition sees men honouring their mothers, wives, girlfriends, colleagues, etc with flowers and small gifts. In some countries IWD has the equivalent status of Mother’s Day where children give small presents to their mothers and grandmothers.”
I like to think of it as a day to celebrate the history of working (paid and unpaid) womens’ protest rather than a way of reinforcing gender roles and heterosexuality.
Janlogie's Blog 