When women are given, society gains

By Dr Margaret Nakhid-Chatoor

Psychologist and educator

mncpsych17@gmail.com

On March 8, the world will once again mark International Women’s Day. This year’s theme, #GiveToGain, has stirred some debate on the intent of the theme.

At first glance, it sounds transactional, as though women’s empowerment must be justified by profit or material advantage. But its deeper meaning is transformative. Giving is not about loss—it is about transformation. It is about the truth that when we give women the rights, opportunities, and dignity they deserve, we all gain a society that is more just, more humane, and more whole.

St Francis of Assisi once said, “It is in giving that we receive.” This wisdom is timeless. It reminds us that generosity enriches the giver, not just the receiver. In the context of women’s rights, it means that when we give space for women’s voices, when we give mentorship, when we give advocacy, we receive stronger communities, healthier families, and workplaces that thrive.

The gain is not material—it is social justice. It is the collective flourishing for a society, that comes when equality is no longer a dream but a lived reality for many.

Globally, we see that women still hold only a fraction of the legal rights afforded to men. That loss is not a gap but a wound, a deliberate wound and divide created and legitimised through the ages.

For centuries, women were denied rights that men took for granted—voting, property ownership, education, bodily autonomy. Every advancement of women today, therefore, is not a ‘gift’ given to us, but the return of what was unjustly withheld.

In Trinidad and Tobago, we can acknowledge that strong strides have been made in education for women and girls and that there is a functioning healthcare system. But what’s often missing, and what truly unlocks the promise of empowerment, are the structural and cultural supports that allow those systems to translate into lived equality for the many who do not have access to these supports, constrained by poverty and domestic situations.

To this end, if we are to create meaningful links between what is offered and seamless access to benefits, policymakers must realise more acutely, that empowering women through education, healthcare, and economic opportunity is not charity; it is prevention.

It interrupts cycles of poverty before they begin, equips mothers to raise children who inherit resilience instead of trauma, and transforms women into anchors of stability in households and neighbourhoods.

This empowerment must become strategy. It must become a form of strategic justice that acts as a shield against future harm, both physical and psychological. The trauma experienced by women and girls fuels cycles of fear, depression, and instability that weaken the very fabric of our society. The healing must begin!

To give is to heal.

l Giving women equal rights under the law heals the wound of exclusion.

l Giving girls access to education and following up on those families where it is not prioritised, heals the wound of silenced potential.

l Giving survivors of abuse and violence the justice they deserve, heals the wound of impunity and interrupts patterns of trauma that perpetuate violence across generations.

l Giving women the space to lead heals communities deprived of their wisdom and talent.

Each act of giving is a stitch that closes the wound of inequality and strengthens the fabric of society against crime, violence, and psychological harm. And what do we gain in return? Definitely not an abstract gain but safer streets, stronger families, and a society where justice is not a privilege but a right.

As I muse on these thoughts while writing another article on women’s empowerment, it is with a heavy sigh that I acknowledge that the marker has not moved significantly enough in women’s favour.

In fact, violence against women has increased. It is easy to ask: why continue this journey of enlightening others through my writings, in a world that has become so hateful? The answer is because silence is surrender, and surrender is not an option. Every act of advocacy, every word spoken, every stitch we place in the wound of inequality is resistance against that hate. If we stop, the wound widens. If we persist, the healing continues.

Yes, progress feels slow, and the statistics can be disheartening. But history has never been moved by despair—it has been moved by persistence. The suffragists persisted. The civil rights leaders persisted. Survivors who spoke out persisted. And because they did, the world shifted. Our task is to continue that lineage of courage. To give, even when the gains feel invisible. To give, even when the hate feels louder than the hope. Because in giving, we stitch the wound closed, and in time, we will gain the justice and peace that generations of women have fought for.

The measure of our resolve in 2026 will not be how loudly we celebrate women one day a year, but how boldly we invest in them every day thereafter.

And let us commit, here and now, to a future where women no longer wait for justice, but live it—fully, freely, and without compromise.

Happy International Women’s Day 2026. Take care!