On July 19th -20th, 1848, the first women’s rights convention was held. Led by Lucretia Mott and Elizabeth Cady Stanton, the Seneca Falls convention sought to discuss and plan for the fight for women’s rights. This meeting began a long struggle for the justice of women, specifically women’s suffrage. In 1869, Stanton along with Susan B. Anthony, a fellow women’s rights activist, formed the National Women’s Suffrage Association (NWSA) to help women gain the right to vote. After a long effort, women finally were granted suffrage on August 18, 1920, with the ratification of the 19th Amendment. Although most women hoped this amendment would help to break the barrier between gender inequality, we still are fighting for women’s equality in the 21st century. That being said, women’s suffrage was still a major achievement in the history of women’s rights. However, there is still much that needs to be achieved on the issue of gender inequality.

Today, women in society face a multitude of issues concerning equality and rights. For example, women in the workplace earn only 77 percent of their male counterparts’ pay according to the Office of the Press Secretary in the White House. This statistic means that women earn, on average, 23 percent less pay despite performing the exact same task. Additionally, the U.S. Census data shows that by the age of 65, this pay gap will cause the average working woman to lose $430,000 over their lifetime. These horrible facts could be changed if the government passed legislation that would benefit women. Currently, though, this is unlikely due to the fact that only 110 out of 541 members of Congress are women, according to the Congressional Research Service. 20.3 percent, about 1/5 of Congress is made up of women. This small percentage of women in Congress makes it difficult to believe that any substantial change will occur unless we do something soon. The future of women’s rights lies in the hands of young women who could make a difference with the right education. For the lucky young girls in certain areas, this is a very possible and probable path. However, according to the UN Foundation, 62 million girls are being denied an education. We cannot let these girls grow up without an education. We need to work to change the future of women’s rights starting now.

In response to the inequalities that are occurring in our society today, many people have been taking action to help improve women’s rights. For example, Care is an organization that advocates for women’s empowerment, female education, and health access. Additionally, they seek to end child marriage and violence against women. Furthermore, individual women have been fighting to help with the rights of women. Gloria Steinem, a leader in feminist movements, founded Ms. Magazine and Ms. Foundation for Women. Both nonprofit institutions fight for the improvement of women’s rights, health, economic justice, and safety. In addition to Steinem, many other people have been campaigning for gender equality. Oprah Winfrey, a former talk show host and women’s rights activist, is also working towards equality for women in society. Winfrey created the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls which is a boarding school for underprivileged high school girls from South Africa. The school gives these girls, who may have never had the chance to be properly schooled, an opportunity to receive a world-class education. Numerous women and people all over the world are promoting women’s rights and equality. However, there is still more work that needs to be done and everyone can help.

There are various ways that all people can support the fight for gender equality. The most important step in fighting for women’s rights is doing research. Learn about the history of women’s rights and feminism. Having a strong foundation about the issues and obstacles women face today can be crucial to beginning our journey to equality. Additionally, joining or donating to an organization that promotes and works toward women’s equality is extremely helpful to the feminist movement. However, to become even more involved, the participation in peaceful protests, rallies, and marches for women’s rights is very beneficial as well. Finally, calling or writing to local representatives about possible reforms for women’s equality is a great way to engage in the fight for gender equality and feminism. There are many more actions that can be taken to help the future of women’s rights in addition to these few methods. The time for change is now.