Learn all about International Women's Day in Brazil
Now Playing: Lesson Audio
Get this lesson’s key vocab, their translations and pronunciations. Sign up for your Free Lifetime Account Now and get 7 Days of Premium Access including this feature.
| Hello, and welcome to the Culture Class - Holidays in Brazil Series at PortuguesePod101.com. In this series, we’re exploring the traditions behind holidays and observances in Brazil. I’m Becky, and you're listening to Season 1, Lesson 20 “International Women's Day,” or Dia Internacional da Mulher in Portuguese. |
| As you know, Brazil is known for its beautiful women. Today we'll be talking about their day—International Women's Day. It’s celebrated in Brazil on March 8, generally with simple and beautiful tributes. |
| Now, before we get into more detail, I've got a question for you- |
| Which three Brazilian women are listed by Forbes as the world's most powerful? |
| If you don't already know, you’ll find out a bit later, so keep listening! |
| The women's struggle for labor rights is marked on March 8, because on that day in 1857, female workers at a New York factory went on “strike,” or greve in Portuguese. They demanded a reduction of their daily workload to ten hours, better wages, since they were getting a third of the wages of men, and better work conditions. They were locked inside the factory to suppress their protests, and it was burnt to the ground. About 130 women were killed. |
| In Brazil, this date is remembered with “flowers,” or flores in Portuguese, and small tributes to the women. Many husbands, sons, and employers present the women in their lives with “bouquets of flowers,” or buquê de flores in Portuguese, or potted plants accompanied by a short note. Children prepare small gifts for their mothers at school. |
| In some colleges, female students receive a small card with a message, and a small gift, like a chocolate, for example. |
| Many town councils, associations, and shops also prepare tributes to women, organizing special events for them! |
| The most common tributes are the distribution of “roses,” or rosas in Portuguese, and beauty treatments and other forms of pampering, such as massages and haircuts. Sometimes free medical consultations are even offered. |
| On this day, lectures are often organized on “women's rights,” or direito da mulher in Portuguese, and subjects connected with career development or health care. |
| Brazilian women continue to gain more rights and achievements. They have progressed a long way since 1879, when they won the right to study at institutes of “higher education,” or ensino superior in Portuguese, to 2011, when the first woman was elected to the presidency of the country. |
| Now it's time to answer our quiz question- |
| Which three Brazilian women are listed by Forbes as the world's most powerful? |
| In 2013, this list was composed of President Dilma Rousseff, originally a chemical engineer; Maria das Graças Foster, the president of the Brazilian energy corporation Petrobrás; and supermodel, entrepreneur and social activist, Gisele Bündchen. |
| How was this lesson? Did you learn anything interesting? |
| In your country, how do you celebrate Women's Day? |
| Leave your comments on the lesson page at PortuguesePod101.com, and we'll see you in the next lesson! |
Comments
Hide