Why purple is the color of 8M gear

During the last feminist marches that have been carried out recently, the the color that stood out the most is purple. During the demonstrations on Monday, March 8, he was also the predominant tone among the women walking towards the Zócalo in Mexico City. But why was this color chosen?

to exist different versions of why this tone takes over the streets in every feminist protest. The first is very simple and is due to the aesthetics of the colors. At combinar el azul, which “represents” men, and the pink, for women, purple is formed, which “represents “gender equality.

One of the most replicated versions is that at the beginning of the fight colors to represent values ​​of the same were purple, white and green. At the beginning of the last century, English suffragists used these colors to represent them.

“Violet, the color of rulers, symbolizes the royal blood flowing in the veins of every fighter for the right to vote, symbolizes their awareness of freedom and dignity. White symbolizes honesty in private and political life. And green symbolizes hope for a new start, ”said English activist Emmeline Pethick, who is credited with the decision to use the colors.

Too, after the Bolshevik revolution of 1917communist politics Aleksandra Kolontái, was an activist who fought for women in Russia. According to the newspaper The avant-garde, the game He left aside the color red to underline the specificity of his political activity of the specific fight for the rights of women..

Another from explanations and which is the most popular among women, refers to a tragedy that triggered the first major mobilizations. On March 25, 1911, 146 workers died in the Triangle Shirtwaist textile factory in New York. 123 were women.

Most of them were teenagers, young adults, immigrants, of Jewish and Italian descent, and they worked on making men’s shirts that were supposed to be purple.

The the working conditions were abusive, forcing women to work nine hours a week, plus seven hours on Saturdays, and their wages were the minimum. It was a Saturday afternoon when the fire started on the eighth floor and it quickly spread throughout the building.

Although the firefighters reacted early, it was not enough because they were. unable to put out the fire. According to legend, as the blaze continued, the plume of smoke could be seen for miles around New York City, and its color was purple, like the color of the cloth the women were waving.

When the workers wanted to leave, they could not, as the exits had been blocked by the owners of the factory, who wanted to avoid unauthorized breaks in the working day.

Now purple is also used for some metaphors. The writer Gemma Lienas used the metaphor of seeing the world with “purple glasses”, since that’s what the harsh reality looks like.

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