This week in Keeping Score: activists and DOJ defend trans rights; Senate recognizes Juneteenth as federal holiday; New York will offer gender-neutral IDs; Biden judicial nominees include a record number of women; and more.
Women in Biden-Harris Leadership
The Change Women Need: Systemic Reforms Power the Path to Equality
Sixty-six countries have outpaced the United States in women’s representation—not because their women are more qualified or ambitious, but because they have implemented electoral systems and policies to ensure more level playing fields and greater opportunity in the electoral process.
If the U.S. wants to accelerate greater gender representation and demonstrate it truly values women’s political leadership, we need changes to our political and electoral systems.
“Madam Speaker. Madam Vice President”: Feminists React to Biden’s Historic Joint Address
Biden’s address was optimistic and solution-oriented, with a heavy emphasis on the American Jobs Plan and American Families Plan.
But before he even began his prepared speech, Biden’s joint address was already one for the books: Never in history had two women shared the dais with the president, and feminists—both inside the chamber and out—did not hide their excitement.
“Every Issue is a Gender Issue”: United State of Women Highlights Gender Disparities in All U.S. Policy
“From student loan debt to CPR training; from COVID-19 impacts to homelessness, every issue is a gender issue,” says the United State of Women (USOW) about their new initiative to highlight gender disparities across all policy issues.
Table for 12, Please: Kamala Harris, Madame Vice President
A deep dive into the work Vice President Kamala Harris is doing at the table—nearly 100 days into this administration
Biden has said, “There’s not a single decision I’ve made yet” about his administration that he hasn’t consulted with Harris on first.
Feminists Call on Senate to Finally Confirm Kristen Clarke
Kristen Clarke, Biden’s nominee to be Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division at the Department of Justice, is tied up in a needlessly long confirmation process.
Feminist organizations have united to call for Senate confirmation of Kristen Clarke for DOJ, saying her “nomination comes at a crucial time.”
Table for 12, Please: Shalanda Young, Acting Director of Office of Management and Budget
On March 22, the Senate voted 63-37 to confirm Shalanda Young as the deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget. She is currently acting director of the department.
If Young is made director of the OMB, she would be the first Black woman in charge of the agency.
Women in the Cabinet: Much Progress Has Been Made, But There’s Still a Long Way to Go
President Biden’s Cabinet features gender parity for the first time. But parity is not equality, and there are still Cabinet glass ceilings women have yet to shatter.
Table For 12, Please: Isabel Guzman, Small Business Administrator, Will Manage $1 Trillion in Relief
On March 16, the Senate confirmed Isabella Casillas Guzman, President Biden’s pick to lead the Small Business Administration (SBA), an agency that has seen its profile grow enormously in response to the pandemic. She is the first Latina to lead the agency and the only Latina in Biden’s diverse Cabinet.
“Now more than ever, our small businesses need us,” Guzman said.
Women in Biden’s Cabinet Need to Be Seen and Heard
For the Biden administration’s female appointments to succeed, they will need the public to call out when they see sexist coverage of women leaders. After all, it takes guts for women to agree to live a public life.