By Jess McDonald
Each year, International Women’s Day arrives in a wash of purple branding, breakfast panels and social media hashtags. It is fair to ask whether it still carries weight, or whether it has been diluted by corporate messaging.
But here on Melbourne’s Westside, where community still matters and grassroots action is part of our DNA, the answer feels clear.
Yes. It still matters.
The United Nations theme for 2026 is Rights. Justice. Action. For ALL Women and Girls. It is not just a slogan. It is a reminder that equality has never been automatic, and it is never guaranteed.
In Australia, one woman is killed approximately every ten days by a current or former partner. Domestic and family violence remains one of the most pervasive human rights issues in the country. The national gender pay gap sits at around 13 to 14%. Older women are now the fastest growing group experiencing homelessness, often after a lifetime of unpaid care work, lower superannuation balances and economic vulnerability following divorce or widowhood.
These issues are not happening somewhere else. They exist in our suburbs, in our schools, in our workplaces.
International Women’s Day is not about performative celebration. It is a checkpoint. A moment to ask whose rights are still being debated, where justice is delayed, and what action we are prepared to take beyond words.
At the same time, International Women’s Day is not only about what is broken. It is also about recognising how far we have come and who made that progress possible.
Much of modern Australia was influenced by women whose names rarely make headlines.
Women like Rosie Batty, who turned personal tragedy into national reform around domestic violence. Merle Thornton and Zelda D’Aprano, who publicly defied discrimination and demanded equal pay.
Margaret Tucker and Pearl Gibbs, who fought for Aboriginal rights and welfare when their voices were systematically excluded. Faith Bandler, who helped secure the 1967 Referendum and reshape the rights of Indigenous Australians.
Daisy Bindi, who led the 1946 Pilbara strike demanding fair wages and dignity for Aboriginal workers. Jessie Street, who championed women’s and Indigenous rights on a global stage.
Elizabeth Evatt, the first woman appointed to the Family Court of Australia. Eva Cox, a relentless advocate for gender equality. Alice Henry, who fought for women’s workplace rights in the early labour movement. And Nancy Wake, one of the most decorated women of the Second World War.
Their actions shaped this country. Their courage made change possible. It is upon their shoulders that we stand today.
International Women’s Day gives us an opportunity to bring these stories into our everyday conversations, especially for the next generation of girls growing up in our neighbourhoods.
High Tees’ Changemakers T shirt was created to honour these 12 Australian women and spark conversations about the rights and freedoms many now take for granted. Wearing it on 8 March – or any day – is about flying the flag for women who refused to stay quiet.
Importantly, 10% of profits from every Changemakers T shirt are donated to Friends with Dignity, an organisation supporting survivors of domestic violence as they rebuild their lives.
This year, through the Business Elevate program supported by the Maribyrnong City Council, I partnered with Keira Nicole Photography to elevate these stories to life locally. Ten Westside women, changemakers in their own right, were photographed and interviewed wearing the High Tees Changemakers T shirt. It was a celebration of history, but also a reminder that change continues to begin in communities like ours.
International Women’s Day. 8 March, does not belong to marketing campaigns. It belongs to communities. It belongs to women and girls whose rights are still being negotiated and whose equality is still incomplete.
Rights. Justice. Action. For ALL Woman and Girls.
To purchase a t shirt – hightees.com.au
High Tees is a West Melbourne based social enterprise, creating political punchy and Australiana merch to raise money for causes we care about. Designed and printed to order in Melbourne.
