It turns out the link between the color purple and the women’s rights movement goes a lot deeper than you may think…

Happy International Women’s Day, everyone! Log on to Google this morning, and the festivities have already begun, with a beautiful new Google Doodle that also becomes a striking animation, complete with purple confetti and hands waving purple flags animating the Google screen when International Women’s day is searched for.

International Women’s Day (IWD) is celebrated every year on March 8th to honor the achievements and struggles of women worldwide. It is a day that highlights the social, economic, cultural, and political accomplishments of women and recognizes the work that still needs to be done to achieve gender equality. While the day is celebrated in many different ways, one thing that is consistent across all celebrations is the use of the color as the official color of International Women’s Day.

So why is purple the official color of IWD? The answer lies in history, symbolism, and the feminist movement.

Firstly, history shows that the suffragette movement, which fought for women’s right to vote in the early 20th century, used purple, white, and green as their colors.

The three colors were used to represent three important aspects of the movement: purple for dignity, white for purity, and green for hope. These colors were often used in banners, ribbons, and clothing worn by suffragettes during protests and rallies.

In addition, the color has its own cultural history independent of the women’s movement, associated with royalty, luxury, and ambition. that’s because, historically, purple dye was expensive and difficult to make, making it a color reserved primarily for royalty and the wealthy.

As a direct result, the color became a symbol of power and status. This symbolism has been embraced by feminist movements, who have used the color to represent the power and ambition of women.

purple international women's day

That’s not the only reason. As it turns out, purple is also a color that is often associated with creativity, imagination, and spirituality. These traits have long been associated with women, who have often been cast as the keepers of culture and creativity. By using purple as the official color of IWD, the day becomes a celebration of not just women’s achievements in the workplace and politics, but also their contributions to culture and society more broadly.

There’s even a very famous movie entitled The Color Purple, based on the bestselling book by Alice Walker detailing the struggles of a young Black woman in America, which won the Pulitzer Prize as a book and directed by Steven Spielberg as a beloved film.

So in the end, the reasons are myriad. The official color of International Women’s Day is purple for a variety of historical, symbolic, and feminist reasons. It is a color that represents dignity, power, creativity, and hope. It is a color that has been used by feminist movements throughout history and continues to be a powerful symbol of the ongoing struggle for gender equality.

By using purple to celebrate IWD, we honor the women who came before us and inspire future generations to continue the fight for gender equality.

Happy International Women’s Day, everyone!