Happy Women’s Equality Day! We celebrate August 26th because 103 years ago, in August 1920, the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was adopted, prohibiting the federal and state governments from denying the right to vote to U.S. citizens based on sex. This was a major milestone in the advancement of women’s rights.
In 2023, women can be considered equal to men in so many ways. Women account for slightly more than half of U.S. college students and of the college-educated labor force in the U.S. Women have made gains in professions including law (women significantly outnumber men in U.S. law schools, and as of 2022, 38% of all lawyers in the U.S. were women), medicine (the number of women physicians continues to increase each year, and as of 2021, 47% of residents and fellows were women), and sports (earlier this year, the Equal Pay for Team USA Act was passed, ensuring equal compensation for U.S. women athletes competing in international competitions). A woman (Kamala Harris) holds the country’s second most powerful political position as Vice President.
There is certainly much to celebrate! Yet there is also much to be done to achieve true equal rights. American women are still struggling with the gender pay gap, worse healthcare than men and other countries, and overwhelming societal pressures (like moms bearing the burden of being the assumed default parent) based on outdated gender stereotypes that impact their mental health.
So let’s not take Women’s Equality Day for granted. Instead, let’s:
1. Teach Our Kids that Women Can Do & Be Anything.
Consider whether you treat your son differently than you do your daughter. For example, do you perhaps (perhaps subconsciously) have higher expectations of your daughter being polite and well-behaved? Consider whether you hope they have equivalent access to opportunities in life. What our kids see and hear matters. Advocate for – and take! – parental (including paternity!) leave, persuade and expect dads to participate in the PTA, be wary of media that portray only moms packing lunches and driving carpools, and encourage boys to express their emotions. When opportunities are endless and equitable for girls, expectations of women, both cultural and internal, shift for the better.
2. Appreciate the Amendment.
The women’s suffrage movement in the U.S. began several decades before the Nineteenth Amendment was ratified in 1920. And while the long-awaited law granted millions of American women the right to vote, it took several more decades for women of color to exercise that right due to race-based local laws and other prejudiced policies.
Today, unfortunately, millions of American women do not exercise their eagerly sought-after right to vote. The League of Women Voters, a nonpartisan nonprofit formed last century as a merger of the country’s two foremost women’s suffrage advocacy organizations, believes women can be a powerful force in our democracy. Learn more about voter registration, local elections, and how to help increase voter participation in your community at VOTE411.org.
3. Support Other Women.
3. Support Other Women.Women’s equality is not a reality; it is still aspirational rather than accurate. The World Economic Form reports that the global gender gap is not expected to close until 2154. In 2023, the U.S.’s ranking on gender parity fell to 43, 16 slots from last year. Women continue to be held back at work and in society due to discrimination about their age, childcare responsibilities, and other gender-related stereotypes. Women continue to spend more time than men on housework, childcare, and other domestic work.
Yet I remain optimistic. The young women I work with in my counseling practice often describe being raised with the same expectations and priorities as their brothers. The working parents I coach recognize the value of workplace flexibility, men as caregivers, and women in leadership. My friends are truly women who mention my name in a room full of opportunities.
Surround yourself with the same, and don’t underestimate the importance of supporting other women. After all, as women’s rights champion Susan B. Anthony said, “[Wherever women gather together,] failure is impossible.”
