North London Chinese Association 北倫敦華人協會

To read full article, follow the link: Photos: They embody the spirit of International Women’s Day : NPR

March 8 is International Women’s Day — a date picked in honor of a remarkable Russian protest.

During World War I, women in Russia went on strike. They demanded “bread and peace.” Among the results of their four-day protest: the Czar abdicated and women gained the right to vote.

This bold strike began on Feb. 23, 1917, according to the Julian calendar then used in Russia. That date translated to March 8 in the Gregorian calendar that much of the world uses. So that’s the day chosen for this celebratory event.

True to the spirit of those Russian women, the world pauses on this day to celebrate the achievements of women. This year to mark International Women’s Day, the United Nations is calling for “Rights. Justice. Action. For all women and girls.”

Sometimes, the true achievements are the ones that we barely see. The photographers at The Everyday Projects, a global photography and storytelling network, have shared portraits of women who in ways large and small are determined, like those Russian women over 100 years ago, to improve the lives of women and to build a better world.

Singing with strength

Kuala Lumpur-based photographer Annice Lyn likes to highlight the strength, resilience and the stories of women who are often overlooked.

That’s the inspiration for her portrait of Jean, 72, as she prepares for a performance of Chinese opera at Kwai Chai Hong, a restored heritage alley in Kuala Lumpur’s Chinatown in August 2024.

Such performances, typically staged during festivals and temple celebrations, combine singing, acting, martial arts, elaborate costumes and symbolic makeup to tell classical stories from Chinese folklore, history, and literature.

“Performers like Jean often dedicate decades of their lives to mastering this art form, preserving techniques and stories that are centuries old,” says Lyn. They told her that they may encounter negative reactions — questions like “are you wasting your time” or simply indifference.

“Sustaining a centuries-old practice in a modern urban setting requires both resilience and passion,” says Lyn, who made this picture minutes before the performance. “I wanted to give Jean the dignity she deserves through this portrait, a strong, intimate image that acknowledges her beauty, her discipline and the life she has dedicated to Chinese opera. I hoped to make her feel seen and heard, capturing not just a performance but a living cultural legacy.”

The government has announced a new definition of anti-Muslim hate that includes violence, harassment and prejudicial stereotyping – as it insisted the move will not curtail free speech.

Ministers say it is a working definition and a “tool for government and organisations to better understand, measure, prevent and address anti-Muslim hostility”.

Crucially, the definition is non-statutory – meaning it is advisory and has no legal backing.

Discrimination of someone due to their religion or belief is already unlawful under the Equality Act.

Communities Secretary Steve Reed told MPs that ministers had a duty to act against record levels of hate crime against Muslims, but that “you can’t tackle a problem if you can’t describe it”.

He also denied the definition would interfere with freedom of speech or create “blasphemy laws by the back door”.

Hate crimes against Muslims reported to police in England and Wales rose by almost a fifth in the year ending March 2025, to 3,199 offences.

The figure does not include incidents reported to Metropolitan Police due to changes in its recording system.

Jewish people faced the highest rate of hate crimes, according to the government figures, with 106 incidents per 10,000 population. Muslims were second, with 12 per 10,000 population.

What is the government’s definition of anti-Muslim hostility?

Anti-Muslim hostility is intentionally engaging in, assisting or encouraging criminal acts – including acts of violence, vandalism, harassment, or intimidation, whether physical, verbal, written or electronically communicated – that are directed at Muslims because of their religion or at those who are perceived to be Muslim, including where that perception is based on assumptions about ethnicity, race or appearance.

It is also the prejudicial stereotyping of Muslims, or people perceived to be Muslim including because of their ethnic or racial backgrounds or their appearance, and treating them as a collective group defined by fixed and negative characteristics, with the intention of encouraging hatred against them, irrespective of their actual opinions, beliefs or actions as individuals.

It is engaging in unlawful discrimination where the relevant conduct – including the creation or use of practices and biases within institutions – is intended to disadvantage Muslims in public and economic life.

Speaking in the Commons, shadow communities minister Paul Holmes said the definition risked “hindering legitimate criticism” – which Mr Reed rejected.

“We will not do what [the Conservatives] did and stand by and simply watch while Muslim communities face targeted abuse in ways that any decent country would consider to be absolutely intolerable,” he replied.

Mr Reed announced the new definition as he unveiled a wider strategy on social cohesion.

The British Muslim Trust welcomed the move, with chairman Shabir Randeree saying it would “help guide institutions that have too often been too slow or too weak in their responses to incidents a tolerant and respectful country like ours must never accept”.

The government is to also appoint a special representative on anti-Muslim hostility to engage with communities and help facilitate understanding and implementation of the definition.