U.S. Department of State Press Release: "International Women's Day"

Link here. Excerpt:

'On March 8, the United States joins people around the globe in honoring women and celebrating their contributions toward building a more peaceful, just, and prosperous world. The State Department, which has been led by strong, smart, and remarkably capable diplomats from Madeleine Albright to Condoleezza Rice and my predecessor Hillary Rodham Clinton, stands as a lasting example of the powerful change that determined women can make and sustain on behalf of America in the modern world.

It is a great and too often untold global success story that so much of the political, economic, and social progress of the last few decades could never have been imaginable without the leadership and courage of strong women. ...
...
Yet, despite the significant gains women and girls have made, too many challenges and barriers remain. In far too many places, women continue to be excluded from the ballot box and political leadership, and from land ownership and credit markets. In far too many places, girls are still kept home from school or are forced into early marriage. Too many women are being silenced, abused, or subjected to violence simply because of their gender. ...'