Apple celebrates International Women’s Day (in its stores)

Apple continues to recognize its own need to change in terms of gender diversity with a month-long celebration around International Women’s Day, including extended free trials to some streaming channels.

A month of women in focus

To pay its respects to the idea of workplace gender, race and creed diversity, the company has announced a range of customer-focused celebrations, offers, courses and other nods to the fact that women should have more seats on its own board.

All through March, the company’s retail stores will host a total of over 5,000 sessions called “She Creates”.

These are intended to show women doing great things to address tough topics using photography, design, technology, business, music and film.

Select stores will host more than 100 sessions led by women across industries and mediums who are: “Empowering those around them through creativity, including co-chair of the Women’s March Linda Sarsour, musicians Meghan Trainor and Victoria Monét, designer Carla Fernández, and many more,” the company PR promises.

What Apple says

“Celebrating the work, spirit and contributions of women is so important to Apple,” said Deirdre O’Brien, Apple’s senior vice president of Retail + People.

“We’re thrilled to recognize International Women’s Day through the ‘She Creates’ programming series and bring these experiences to our stores so everyone can be inspired by some of the world’s most passionate and innovative creators.”

It’s good that O’Brien wants to celebrate the contributions of women as Silicon Valley continues to have a problem recruiting women with the right skills, so it seems pretty necessary to try to educate new talent.

Technology is still a boy’s club, it seems

Apple has hired more women and underrepresented minorities every year and pays women the same as their male equivalents.

Quite right, too.

We’ve not yet seen Apple’s diversity report for 2019. But it sure looks like the industry remains primarily white and male — which is quite a problem when AI is coming and will reflect the unconscious prejudices of its creators.

But, on with the show…

Up next…

Apple has also announced some other events:

• A Music Lab featuring music from Alicia Keys in which participants will remix her track, ‘Underdog’.
• An Art Lab called “Playful Portraits” which draws inspiration from three female artists from New York, Tokyo and Warsaw. This session is about creating art from photos using Procreate on an iPad Pro.
• Special sessions hosted by female creators are planned in select stores around the world – and you can find out more here.

Apple also plans to celebrate International Women’s Day with the following activities:

Apps by women

Every day in March, the App Store is celebrating the women who bring the apps and games people love to life. In the US, each App of the Day and Game of the Day for the month will highlight work by female developers, designers and entrepreneurs.

Apple TV content and offers

Starting today, customers can explore the Apple TV app’s International Women’s Day collection from women.  Curated collections include Bold New Voices, Women Directing Women, Rebellious Icons and Recent Watershed Moments in TV —sourced from the content inside the TV app, (TV+, new movies in iTunes, streaming apps and premium channels.

To celebrate International Women’s Day, Apple is offering extended free trials from Starz, BritBox, History Vault and Lifetime Movie Club channels, featuring inspirational and compelling female-empowered shows and movies.

Podcasts

On March 8, International Women’s Day, a new curated collection on Apple Podcasts called “Changing the Narrative” will feature podcasts celebrating women podcasters, shows and stories. Apple Books will feature exceptional women recommending their favorite books.

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