THE SONG ‘I AM WOMAN’ WAS RELEASED IN MAY 1972. WRITTEN BY HELEN REDDY AND SINGER-SONGWRITER RAY BURTON, THIS SONG WAS PERFORMED BY REDDY WHO WAS OFFERING A VOICE FOR WOMEN OF THE TIME.
Helen shares in her YouTube video; “It was the first song I ever wrote that became a hit. It was my first number one. And the United Nations declared 1975 as International Women’s Year, and they have chosen this song to be their theme.” A true prediction of what a woman, and any person for that matter, can achieve. As the song says, “If I had to I can do anything. I am strong. I am invincible. I am woman.” In the 80s a friend of mine, an amazing woman I call Dr Kath, who has achieved more in her 44 years than many, often sang along to a commercial that used this song’s message to represent women’s ability to ‘do anything’… play cricket, work out and be strong.
It was empowering for her and for those around her. To this day, I still remember her singing “I am women, hear me roar” and the feeling that came with it. Yes, I can do anything. The song composition was the result of Reddy’s search for a song that would express her growing passion for female empowerment. In a 2003 interview in Australia’s Sunday Magazine (published with the Sunday Herald Sun and Sunday Telegraph), she explained: “I couldn’t find any songs that said what I thought being woman was about. I thought about all these strong women in my family who had gotten through the Depression and world wars and drunken, abusive husbands. But there was nothing in music that reflected that.” Bravo.
You may be wondering why I’m sharing this? Well, it’s International Women’s Day (IWD) on March 8. It’s fitting to remember an empowering message shared through music and used as a theme for International Women’s Year 40 years ago. IWD is a time to reflect on the progress made but to also continue to call for change and to celebrate acts of courage and determination by ordinary women who have played an extraordinary role in the history of their countries and communities. In harmony, our 2015 Australian of the Year is Rosie Batty, family violence campaigner, who has felt the true depths of despair only to find the strength to have a voice that makes a meaningful difference. Both humbling and empowering.
3000 WELLBEING
I AM STRONG. I AM INVINCIBLE. I AM WOMAN.
MISS MEANINGFUL COLUMN JANINE PHILLIPS AKA MISS MEANINGFUL is passionate about philanthropy and business with a love of combining the two living by the motto ‘one devoted person can initiate change’.
MAKE SURE YOU VISIT HER BLOG AT missmeaningful.com.au
This year’s theme for IWD is ‘Equality for women is progress for all’ emphasising how gender equality, empowerment of women, women’s full enjoyment of human rights and the eradication of poverty are essential to economic and social development. It also stresses the vital role of women as agents of development. To find out more about International Women’s Day visit www.unwomen.org.au/ international-womens-day If you’d like to hear ‘I Am Woman’ (again) and feel the strength that it invokes, simply visit YouTube and search for I Am Women. And enjoy.
MARCH 2015
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