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The logo of the Equal Opportunities Office at TU Dortmund University
Text: Up to Date, Queer and Feminist Calendar © Borgschulze​/​TU Dortmund
June 3

World Bicycle Day

World Bicycle Day promotes the reputation of the climate-neutral vehicle. However, the bicycle has also made a significant contribution to the emancipation of women.

World Bicycle Day takes place every year on June 3. The day draws attention to the health-promoting and climate-friendly benefits of cycling. It was initiated by US sociologist and bicycle activist Leszek Sibilski. In 2018, World Bicycle Day was officially recognized by the United Nations as a day of action (United Nations, n.d.).

The bicycle as a driver of women's emancipation

The bicycle is not only an important tool for an environmentally conscious change in transportation, but also plays a major role in the history of women's emancipation. This is why feminist bike tours and demonstrations have been taking place on bicycles for over ten years. The tradition began in 2013 with two female friends in the Turkish city of Izmir with the aim of creating more visibility for women on the streets (FWBR, n.d.). The form of action continued to spread and also became popular in Germany, for example on International Women*s Day in Berlin in 2024 (Tagesspiegel, 2024) or at the Fancy Woman Bike Ride in Bremen (Gerling, 2022).

I think it [the bicycle] has done more to emancipate women than anything else in the world. - Susan B. Anthony, 19th century women's rights activist (Bly, n.d.)

The first bicycle was built in Germany at the beginning of the 19th century. The bicycle quickly spread all over the world - because it was comparatively inexpensive and allowed people to get around quickly. The invention of the bicycle came at a time when women had to take care of the household and children and only rarely enjoyed an education or pursued a profession (Carstens, 2022). However, it was also the time of the first women's rights movements, especially in the US. The bicycle quickly became popular among women, as it enabled them to get around freely and saved a lot of time (ibid.).

However, not everyone was enthusiastic about women on bicycles and the new freedom that came with it. Doctors wrote medical reports to prove an alleged facial deformation in women who rode bicycles. Female cyclists in traffic were regularly accompanied by jeering or physically harassed (ibid.). Nevertheless, the bicycle became established as a means of transport for women at the latest with the beginning of industrialization in the mid-19th century. Bicycles could now be mass-produced and offered at even lower prices.

Cycling and women's rights today

Today, the bicycle is an everyday means of transportation for women in many countries around the world. In some countries, however, it has lost none of its importance in the struggle for emancipation. In Afghanistan, cycling is forbidden for women and girls for religious reasons (Dlf Nova, 2023) and in Iran it is not recommended by the religious leader. A protest formed here in 2016: Women cycling in Iran showed themselves under the hashtag #IranWomanLoveCycling and thus started a large movement (Petter & Röhling, 2016).

Films and stories also show that the bicycle can be seen as a symbol of female emancipation. In 2013, Saudi Arabian director Haifa al-Mansur produced the country's first feature film. The protagonist of the film is the ten-year-old girl Wadja, who wants nothing more than the green bicycle from the store next door. In Saudi Arabia, the religious authorities have allowed women to ride bicycles under male supervision since 2013 (Kaever, 2013).

The story of 20-year-old Khothalang Leuta from Lesotho in South Africa also illustrates this. She started riding a BMX bike as a child - in an area where it is not common for women to ride bikes and where very few people can afford one. Today, Khothalang rides and wins BMX races and wants to inspire other girls to take up cycling: "I think I can be an inspiration. And I hope I can amaze everyone with what a girl from Roma is capable of" (Nxumalo, 2021).

 

Last updated: May 2025

Sources (in German)

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