International Women's Day has been fighting for equality since 1911, yet here we are in 2026 with many of the same battles, same gaps, and same frustrations.
This year, women pushed back against the theme Give to Gain, and asked how more women are expected to give—time, labour, mentorship—before they gain a seat at the decision-making table? An influential voice in advertising, Zoe Scaman struck a different but equally pointed note in Campaign Asia, warning against the headlong rush toward AI. The world, she argued, doesn’t need more people racing toward an AI future without pausing to ask what kind of future it actually is.
Meanwhile, pay gaps persist, tokenism lingers, and every March 8, corporate timelines fill with purple graphics and hashtags before quickly moving on. Some voices cut through louder than others, and on LinkedIn, posts called out the performative gestures and demanded real change.
Cindy Gallop’s message was blunt: pay us, don’t empower us. Below are a few of the standouts that cut through the noise with raw honesty.
Cindy Gallop: Pay us, don't empower us
Adland veteran Cindy Gallop made a direct plea for LinkedIn's algorithm to stop favouring men and actually give women equal visibility, not just on IWD, but every day. She referenced her ongoing campaign for an independent equity audit of the platform and called out the empty language that dominates these conversations.
"On International Women's Day - and every other day - don't use words like 'empower' and 'celebrate'. Instead, use words like 'hire', 'promote', 'pay', 'raise', 'bonus', 'value', 'fund', 'invest in', 'enrich', 'give equity to', 'write checks to', 'vote for', 'elect', 'lead'. And don't just say it - DO IT. Plus a special plea to this platform and its algorithm: just for one day, on International Women's Day, PLEASE could you give women the same visibility on here as men? #FairnessInTheFeed"
Jo Juber: Fed up with condescending guff
Jo Juber, a brand, marketing and communications consultant from the UK, was completely done with the patronising noise around IWD. She cut straight to what actually matters.
"Just pay women more, or at least the bloody same, and hire them, invest in them and their companies or charities. And don't bin them off when they get pregnant, or old, or ill, or menopausal, or have caring responsibilities, or the audacity to have an opinion. And do this every single day of the year, forever and ever."
Maria Lima: Beyond flowers and gifts
Maria Lima, communications strategist and DEI advocate, called out the predictable corporate IWD playbook and demanded something real instead.
"Real celebration looks like conversations, the uncomfortable ones, the honest ones. About the pay gap. About who gets heard in meetings. About why women's ideas take longer to be taken seriously. … Because equity isn't a women's issue. It's everyone's responsibility. Take the first step — not with a bouquet, but with a conversation! #IWD2026 #RightsJusticeAction"
Síle Walsh: Tired of unpaid "exposure"
Síle Walsh, leadership coach and public speaker, perfectly illustrated why IWD fatigue exists by sharing her own experience.
"I have been invited to speak for International Women's Day 2026 several times, with the offer of 'exposure' rather than payment. Which, in a way, proves exactly why we still need International Women's Day… Women are increasingly tired of events for the sake of events."
Tala Booker: Persian lionesses never bow down
Tala Booker, founder and CEO of cross-border marketing agency Via, and board member of USC Annenberg Center for Public Relations, took a completely different but equally powerful angle, focusing on Iranian women.
"It’s the schoolgirls who refuse to shrink themselves. The younger generation of college girls who won't accept the limits they were handed. The women in the streets defying oppression by dancing and showing their hair. Older women, like my mother, who have lived through revolution, exile and rebuilding, and are still standing tall. And the millions of women across the Persian diaspora who refuse to look away and tirelessly advocate for their people. We call these women Shirzan, the lionesses. And it's the only word that fits. Because Persian women never have and never will bow down. Even when forced into silence, they never surrendered who they were. So, on IWD and everyday, let's not let a generation of lionesses fall to a regime that forces them to be silenced."
Daniel R. Hires: Matriarchy isn't patriarchy with different rulers
Daniel R. Hires, founder & principal at Impact Calling, challenged the very framework of power with a video post.
"Matriarchy is not 'women at the top'. It's the feminine way of organising life itself... communal, relational, supportive, not one above, no one beneath. Power moves through the community, not over it. This isn't about replacing one ruling class with another... it's about dismantling the idea that domination is the only way order can exist. Matriarchy isn't patriarchy with different rulers. Don't allow men who hate women to define feminism as women who hate men."
Daisy Varun: Empowerment without structural change is theatre
Daisy Varun, consultant for corporate L&D strategy, perfectly dissected the annual IWD hypocrisy cycle.
"We glorify women one day a year because it is easier than honouring them 365 days a year. We praise their strength because it absolves us from fixing what exhausts them. We admire their multitasking because we do not want to redistribute labour. We celebrate their 'balance' while ensuring the scales remain unfair. The real question is not 'Why don't we celebrate women more?' Because empowerment without structural change is theatre. And if you only show up for women when there is a banner behind them, you are not an ally… You are just an audience!!"
Source: Campaign Asia-Pacific
