International Day of the Girl: Let's make some noise

If I had my way, my kids would get International Day of the Girl off from school. Banks would be closed. No mail would arrive. City streets would shut down for Day of the Girl parades.

A little disruption, a little celebration-not unlike the Fourth of July. An Independence Day for girls. Fireworks and all.

Wednesday marked the holiday's fifth birthday: The United Nations declared Oct. 11 International Day of the Girl in 2012 to "highlight and address the needs and challenges girls face, while promoting girls' empowerment and the fulfillment of their human rights."

This year's International Day of the Girl, according to the U.N., kicks off a yearlong effort to bring global attention to the challenges and opportunities girls face before, during and after crises.

"The world's 1.1 billion girls are a source of power, energy and creativity," the group says on its Website. "And the millions of girls in emergencies are no exception."
It's a mission that can hardly be contained to a single day. If you're interested in helping achieve it, a Day of the Girl Website (dayofthegirl.org) offers a toolkit and several worthy campaigns to join. Organize a #GirlsResist town hall, work to make menstruation products accessible at schools, address sexual harassment in schools-it's all there.

This year's celebration, I would argue, should be dedicated to Malala Yousafzai, who attended her first lecture at Oxford University this week-five years after Taliban militants shot her in the head for advocating for girls' education.

She'll study philosophy, politics and economics at the vaunted institution.

Much to celebrate, much work left to do.

Now. Let's talk about gifts.

Two books-one newly released, one that arrives in late October-are perfectly suited for the day.

The newly released book is "Firsts: Women Who Are Changing the World" (Liberty Street), edited by Time magazine editor-in-chief Nancy Gibbs and photographed by Brazilian photographer Luisa Dorr.

The book profiles 45 women ranging in age from 16 to 87 who are pioneers in their fields-technology, entertainment, politics, sports and so on.

"She broke the glass ceiling. What a jagged image we use for women who achieve greatly, defining accomplishments in terms of the barrier rather than the triumph,"

Gibbs writes. "Talk to women about the forces that drive them, and they hit notes of joy and fascination-a passion for music or molecules or fastballs or food that took them places their sisters and mothers had not gone before."

Serena Williams is profiled (first tennis player to win 23 Grand Glam singles titles). Rachel Maddow is in there (first openly gay anchor to host a prime-time news program). Kellyanne Conway made the cut (first woman to run a winning presidential campaign), as did Aretha Franklin (first woman to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame) and Gabby Douglas (first American gymnast to win solo and team all-around gold medals at one Olympics).

"My mom always used to say, 'Inspire a generation,'" Douglas says.

It's a remarkable lineup, and their stories are, in turns, bold and bewildering.

"I don't know if we've got bathroom facilities for you," Kathryn Sullivan, the first American woman to walk in space, was told by her male colleagues at NASA. (This was 1978.)

"I thought, 'There's a tree right over there, and that toilet doesn't actually care who pulls the handle, and I think this will be fine," Sullivan recalls.

From Mo'ne Davis, the first girl to pitch a shutout and win a Little League World Series game: "I'm kind of used to striking out guys now, but when I first started, a lot of people didn't think I was good."

Yeah, well.

The second book is "200 Women Who Will Change the Way You See the World" (Chronicle Books), and it hits stores Oct. 31. (A belated gift, if you will.)

Edited by Ruth Hobday, Sharon Gelman, Marianne Lassandro and Geoff Blackwell and photographed by Kieran Scott, the book poses the same five questions to women from all different backgrounds:

What really matters to you? What brings you happiness? What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery? What would you change if you could? Which single word do you most identify with?

Margaret Atwood is interviewed. Ashley Judd, Jane Goodall, Roxane Gay, Gabourey Sidibe and Ruth Bader Ginsburg are interviewed.

"I would have society buy into the notion that daughters are to be cherished as much as sons," Ginsburg says, when asked what she would change. "I don't want daughters to be held back by artificial barriers, rather, they should be given the opportunity to grow, aspire and achieve according to whatever talents they have. That is my dream for the world."

Mine too. Let's get going.

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