4,000 women run for office in Iraq

What an unexpected headline to greet me while browing my phone for news earlier today.

I had no idea that elections were taking place this weekend in Iraq, much less was I aware of the fact that women are guaranteed 1/3 of all seats that they run for.

This is affirmative action at its finest - in a week where President Obama signed into law "equal work for equal pay" legislation, across the globe, women are running for office and will win with laws in place to ensure that same occurs.

Here is the link to the story as it ran on CNN earlier today: http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/01/31/iraq.women/index.html?iref=mpstoryview As always, I encourage you to read the story in its entirety. One woman who is running for office stated: "Although a woman's role in the Arab world is mainly that of a mother and child bearer," she said, "I want to prove that women are just as capable as men when it comes to challenging arenas." Would that this were true throughout the world.

Women can choose to have babies, or not, choose to be full time mothers, wives and homemakers, or not or choose to have fulfilling careers, or not.

We are certainly living in exciting times.

It is time for the status quo in Iraq and elsewhere in the world to end - women are just as important as men and their contributions should be recognized and validated.