More Than A Magazine, A Movement
Weekend Reading for Women’s Representation is a compilation of stories about women’s representation.
This week: Black women establish themselves as early front-runners in statewide primaries; New Jersey must track data on the gender and race of appointees to state boards and commissions; efforts to pass the ERA in 2022; advances for women around the globe; RSVP for RepresentWomen’s Solutions Summit for a 21st Century Democracy; and more.
This week: Nebraskans face one of the most restrictive abortion bans in the nation; New York City’s first women-majority city council takes office; Ahmaud Arbery’s murderers sentenced to life in prison; D.C. Council approved free menstrual products in all schools; the gender gap in higher education widens; and more.
While the United States has a long way to go to achieve intersectional, gender-balanced governance, progress was still made in 2021. From historic appointments to record-breaking elections, women reached new milestones at every level of government this year.
So as difficult as it may be to find cause to celebrate in challenging times, here are 10 reasons to have hope for a more gender-inclusive future.
Abortion is not (just) a health issue. Whether we are willing to let women and people capable of becoming pregnant control their own bodies, for health or any other reason, is an equity issue—a question of who deserves bodily autonomy and freedom to reach their full potential.
Ultimately, abortion bans and restrictions are part of broader legal and societal structures that were unambiguously designed to not recognize women’s inherent equality.
When addressing the climate crisis, we discuss reducing emissions, increasing the use of renewable resources and improving energy efficiency. But the environment and gender inequity are tied together—and educated girls are the answer to reversing climate change.
The release of the first-ever National Strategy on Gender Equity and Equality Strategy is an ambitious plan. But ambitious priorities require a significant budget to match, in order for them to take root.
Major gender gaps persist in the U.S. armed forces, negatively impacting operational effectiveness, military culture and compliance with international law, according to a report released by the Georgetown Institute for Women Peace and Security.
To ensure women’s meaningful participation, the report suggests that women must be promoted to leadership positions and their input must be valued. To do so, the military must adopt better and more complete childcare and parental leave policies and decouple physical fitness standards from advancement.
According to the Public Policy Institute of California, a full two thirds of women voters (66 percent) are against the recall — a wide margin, compared to just 48 percent of men who are against it. Women are also much more approving of Newsom’s performance as governor — with 62 percent expressing approval, compared to just 43 percent of men.
The top-ranked countries of the World Happiness Report share a high level of public investment in human infrastructure. These countries are not socialist—they simply have more women in leadership positions.
The success stories of the 2021 World Happiness Report assure us that a shift towards caring policies and public welfare is not draining on the economy but rather the opposite.
This week: Biden administration speaks on Black maternal health; all U.S. adults are eligible for COVID-19 vaccination; Derek Chauvin is convicted for murdering George Floyd; Senate passes bill to address anti-Asian crimes; Biden pledges to cut emissions in half; and more!
