Hundreds of people marched for International Women's Day in Melbourne on March 8.
Julie Kun, from Women's Information and Referral Exchange, said: "I'm after safety and respect for women. We see it in the 70% gender pay gap and we see it in the fact that one in five women will experience violence. We need to change this now. Every day needs to be women's day."
First nations activist Monica Morgan said: "Our struggle has a long road and there is a long road ahead of us. Indigenous people around the world have been fodder for land theft, imperialism and invasion. Aboriginal women have our children taken from us and Aboriginal women have some of the highest incarceration rates in the country."
Women's demands include:
• An end to racism;
• Economic justice;
• The right to join and contribute to unions and organise free from harassment and intimidation;
• Comprehensive income support for the unemployed, parents of children up to the age of 18, the aged, carers and people with disabilities;
• Recognition of and compensation for women's unpaid labour;
• Protection from discrimination, free healthcare, and affordable housing for all;
• Reproductive justice;
• Sexual liberation and transgender rights;
• An end to violence against women;
• Disability rights;
• Immediate action to stop environmental destruction; and
• Free, accessible education.
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