Chapter Four Womens Struggle for Political Equality in the United States Mary Hawkesworth The practice of politics

in the United States looks very different when womens lives are placed at the center of analysis. Narratives that begin with proclamations of eq ality and inalienable rights and relate tales of the progressive nfolding of freedom do not capt re womens political e!periences. "isc ssions of the history and development of the official instit tions of state depict a terrain from which women have been e!cl ded by law and by c stom. St dies of the constit tion and the legal system often fail to note that neq al treatment on the basis of race and gender has been the r le rather than the e!ception. Many acco nts of U.S. politics also fail to mention the critical contrib tions of women to the development of incl sive and participatory democratic practices. This chapter will provide an overview of womens political engagements in the United States and consider how womens political activism challenges many ass mptions abo t #merican political life.

The United States: At A Glance Table 4 ! :eography 9op lation #frican #merican #sian #merican =atino>a Native #merican ?hite :"9 9er (apita :"9 9olitical System ,/6-,/7,* sq are kilometers -,7/;+-/44+ *-.8< +.7< *;.+< *.7< 6,.7 < @*7/71- trillion @;6/;77 Aederal 3ep blic

Origin Stories $ rocentric acco nts of the origins of the #mericas emphasi%e moments of &discovery' by (hristopher (ol mb s )*+,-./ #merigo 0esp cci )*+,1./ and 2ohn (abot )*+,1. and the beginnings of coloni%ation with the establishment of the first permanent $ ropean settlements in 0illa 3ica de la 0era (r % )*4*,. 3oanoke 5sland )*41+./ 2amestown/ 0irginia )*678. and 9lymo th/ Massach setts )*6-7.. 3eflecting the str ggles of $ ropean coloni%ers/ these narratives often erase the histories of the vibrant indigeno s peoples who pop lated the land for
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-7/777 years prior to coloni%ation and whose land/ livelihoods/ and lives were appropriated by the settlers. Bmitting the histories of some -777 native peoples with distinct lang ages and c lt res also enables settler stories to leave o t detailed disc ssions of the ravages of disease/ dislocation/ warfare/ and forced relocation that came close to annihilating the indigeno s peoples of North #merica . "ndigenous Women The indigeno s women of North #merica differed from one another by lang age/ c lt re/ and traditions/ yet they played vital roles in prod cing and s staining the livelihoods of their people/ gathering food/ b ilding shelters/ transporting goods/ trading/ managing family wealth and reso rces/ and in some instances/ serving as chiefs and shaman )spirit al leaders and medical practitioners.. 5n some of the &Airst Nations/' women played cr cial political roles. 5roq ois women/ for e!ample/ had rights to representation at all co ncils/ to nominate co ncil elders and depose chiefs who failed to promote the comm nity good/ to make and abrogate treaties/ and to s pervise domestic and foreign policies )Niethammer *,88C #lbers and Medicine *,1;C $tienne and =eacock *,17C Shoemaker *,,4.. ?ithin many indigeno s comm nities/ women had far more eq al relations with men/ especially in the spheres of religio s and political decisionD making/ than was characteristic of $ ropean settler comm nities in the &new world.' #s nineteenthDcent ry #nglo womens rights advocates noted/ &5ndian women/' whom &civili%ed men pitied as dr dges' had enEoyed political eq ality for cent ries/ while settler women were still str ggling to obtain political rights )$vans *,,8.. 5ndeed/ for many indigeno s women/ one conseq ence of s stained contact with #nglo settlers was the importation of gender hierarchies into indigeno s comm nities. Ensla#ed Women Some narratives of colonial life point o t that the earliest settlers were disproportionately male. The ratio of women settlers to men was * woman for every ; men in New $ngland and * woman for every 8 men in 0irginia )Ferber *,17.. Get these demographic claims omit statistics abo t enslaved people in the colonies. ?hen race and gender are taken into acco nt/ colonial e!perience in the &New ?orld' looks dramatically different. 9athDbreaking research on #frican #merican women has revealed that 17 percent of all women who crossed the #tlantic prior to *177 were #frican )Morgan -77+.. $nslaved womens labor/ prod ctive and reprod ctive/ was central to every aspect of social/ economic/ and c lt ral life in the #merican colonies. 5n stark contrast to the iconographic image of the male slave that has dominated historical acco nts of slavery/ #frican #merican womens historian/ 2ennifer Morgan/ provides systematic evidence that women constit ted +7 percent of the #frican captives s bEected to &Middle 9assage' from the fifteenth to the eighteenth cent ries. Sold into settler comm nities and ho seholds that had markedly different ling istic/ religio s/ and traditional practices than their comm nities of origin/ enslaved women str ggled mightily to s rvive. The maEority of enslaved women )86 percent. performed gr eling field work/ comprising the maEority of the agric lt ral labor force in the Hritish colonies. 5n addition to their physical labor/ their reprod ctive labor was also e!ploited. :iven the pa city of #nglo women in the colonies/ the se! al e!ploitation of enslaved #frican women was deemed essential to satisfy the desire of slaveDowners/ as well as enslaved men. #ppropriation of the reprod ctive labor of enslaved women was indispensable to the prod ction/ maintenance/ and distrib tion of slaveDowners wealth. 5ndeed/ Morgan notes that for a significant part of the colonial period/ the economic val e of enslaved women and their children/ as calc lated by slaveDowners themselves/ e!ceeded the val e of enslaved men. 5n disc ssions of law and order in colonial settlements/ slaveDowners and colonial administrators e!plicitly

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considered the ses of enslaved women &as a preventive against social nrest/' as a strategic mechanism of social control indispensable to the stability and perpet ation of colonial regimes. Settler Women Settler womens reprod ctive and prod ctive labor was also vital to the homeDbased colonial economy. #nglo women bore eight children on average. Bne child in fo r died d ring the first yearC half died before reaching ad lthood )Ferber *,17.. ?omens work was highly val ed and essential of the s rvival of the comm nity. 5n a preDind strial world where home and worksite were not separate/ women engaged in domestic gardening/ prod cing s bsistence crops for family cons mption/ and in home man fact re/ incl ding spinning/ weaving/ the prod ction of clothes and staples s ch as soap and candles. ?omen also participated f lly in familyDr n b sinesses. #n early cens s in 9hiladelphia/ for e!ample/ indicated that d ring the eighteenth cent ry women were ;- percent of the shopkeepers/ *8 percent of the tavern keepers/ and a large proportion of the innkeepers. ?omen also engaged in a wide array of trades/ working as silversmiths/ tinsmiths/ barbers/ bakers/ fish picklers/ brewers/ woodworkers/ fo nders/ tanners/ rope makers/ l mberEacks/ g nsmiths/ b tchers/ milliners/ tailors/ net makers/ harness makers/ potash man fact rers/ printers/ morticians/ flo r processors/ seamstresses/ chandlers/ coach makers/ cleaners/ dryers/ bra%iers/ and embroiderers )Ferber *,17.. :irls were e!cl ded from the first free/ p blic schools created in New $ngland in *61; and were less likely to receive ed cation at home. #s a res lt/ the rate of illiteracy among women was 47 percent higher than that of #nglo men in *864 )$vans *,,8.. Nonetheless/ some privileged women were well ed cated and practiced professions as early as the seventeenth cent ry. 5ndeed/ the first woman on record to have practiced law in the colonies was Margaret Hrent of Maryland/ whose legal cases appear in colonial records in the *6;7s. 5n *6+1/ she petitioned the colonial :overnor of Maryland for eq al rights for women/ arg ing that women sho ld have &a voice and a vote' on the same terms as men. Women and the American Revolution " ring the period of the 3evol tionary ?ar )*886D*81;./ women e!panded their economic and political contrib tions in ways vital to the s ccess of the war. Men left their homes and b sinesses d ring war time for a variety of reasons. Some were revol tionaries/ fighting as soldiers and as political leaders to win independence from the Hritish. Some were loyalists to the Hritish (rown and ret rned to $ngland or fled to (anada. Some men were I akers and pacifists who ref sed to fight as a matter of conscience and who were imprisoned for their ref sal to bear arms. ?hile their fathers/ brothers/ h sbands/ and sons were away from home/ women managed the family farms and b sinesses and kept the economy f nctioning )Ferber *,17.. ?omen also provided the labor essential to the s ccess of the boycott of Hritish goods/ the central economic weapon sed by the #merican revol tionaries against the (rown. To ens re the s ccess of the boycott/ women had to change their p rchasing practices and e!pand their prod ction of essential goods to meet market demand. They prod ced s fficient homesp n clothes to accommodate civilian pop lations and to s pply revol tionary troops. They prod ced food/ blankets/ and medicines to provision the troops. They removed lead weights from their windows and melted them down to make b llets. Some *-/777 &women of the army' fed the armies on the march/ provided la ndry and se! al services/ and n rsed the wo nded. Hritish and #merican war records indicate one woman &camp s pporter' for every *7 members of a Hritish regiment and for every *4 revol tionary soldiers. Heca se they co ld move more freely across enemy lines/ women were recr ited to serve as spies for both sides in the revol tionary conflict.

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?omen who s pported the #merican troops also la nched f ndraising efforts to cover the costs of the revol tionary effort. ?omen in 9hiladelphia/ for e!ample/ raised @;77/777 in one campaign to s pport ?ashingtons forces )Ferber *,17C $vans *,,8.. The egalitarian commitments of I akers f eled early efforts by women in 9ennsylvania and New 2ersey to sec re rights of political participation. #s early as *866/ 9hiladelphia women circ lated a pamphlet entitled/ &Sentiments of an #merican ?oman/' which proclaimed that they were &born for liberty' and &ref sed to be enchained by tyrannic governments.' 5n Hoston in *886/ #bigail #dams e!pressed similar sentiments to her h sband/ 2ohn/ a prominent member of the Second (ontinental (ongress/ which was crafting the "eclaration of 5ndependence. &5 long to hear that yo have declared an independencyJand by the way/ in the (ode of =aws which 5 s ppose it will be necessary for yo to make/ 5 desire yo wo ld 3emember the =adies/ and be more genero s and favo rable to them than yo r ancestors. "o not p t s ch nlimited power in the hands of H sbands. 3emember all men wo ld be tyrants if they co ld. 5f partic lar care and attention is not paid to the =adies/ we are determined to foment a 3ebelion )sic./ and will not hold o rselves bo nd by any =aws in which we have no voice/ or 3epresentation' )H tterfield *,6;.. 2ohn #dams response was tellingK &#s to yo r e!traordinary (ode of =aws/ 5 cannot b t la ghL."epend pon it. ?e know better than to repeal o r Masc line Systems' )H tterfield *,6;.. #ltho gh #bigail #dams had no s ccess in pers ading her h sband to abandon &masc line systems' of power/ women in New 2ersey had greater s ccess. ?hen the state constit tion was being drafted in the aftermath of the 3evol tionary ?ar/ New 2ersey women insisted that &they had borne the weight of war and met danger in every cornerC' and as s ch/ were entitled to political rights on the same terms as men. They s cceeded in pers ading the state assembly to award voting rights to single women who owned property. (ontrary to pop lar myths/ some women in the United States had voting rights in the earliest years of the 3ep blic/ rights that were rescinded for partisan political reasons in *178 )#pter Flinghoffer and $lkis *,,-.. 5n developing their constit tions in the aftermath of the #merican 3evol tion/ twelve of the original states/ Eoined by New 2ersey in *178/ set a precedent in &nationDb ilding/' which has been widely replicated aro nd the globe. "espite womens critical contrib tions to the revol tionary str ggle/ at the moment of victory/ women were e!cl ded from participation in the design of political instit tions and from eq al participation within those instit tions. Hy e!cl ding women from f ll citi%enship/ constit tionDmaking became a means of prod cing gender identities tied to legallyDsanctioned relations of male domination and womens s bordination )3ai -77-.. The gender ineq alities enshrined in constit tional law often e!acerbated ineq alities entrenched in c stom and tradition )Smart *,,-.. Ae dal and colonial hierarchies had been gro nded in class/ family ties/ nationality/ gender/ and race. #ltho gh the #merican 3evol tion claimed to break with s ch fe dal hierarchies/ the constit tions created within the first &liberal rep blic' replicated and strengthened hierarchies tied to gender/ race/ class/ and membership in Airst Nations/ by denying eq al citi%enship and rights of political participation to these gro ps. The $esign of the Federal System #ltho gh the "eclaration of 5ndependence claimed to speak for all #mericans/ the original *; colonies fo ght for political freedom as independent states. The original framework for governance/ The #rticles of (onfederation/ recogni%ed the sovereignty of *; states.

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"esigned to forge a military and political alliance among these states to protect them from f t re $ ropean/ partic larly Hritish/ aggression/ the #rticles of (onfederation created weak mechanisms to coordinate the foreign policy of the several states. 5t did not/ however/ coordinate policies governing the economy/ commerce/ and ta!ation/ nor did it provide means to repay revol tionary war debts either to other nations or to individ al soldiers who fo ght for the revol tionary army and had been paid in promissory notes. #gitation to strengthen the bonds among the United States c lminated in the (onstit tional (onvention held in 9hiladelphia in *818. #ltho gh all *; states sent delegates to the (onstit tional (onvention/ representatives from many states walked o t when it became clear that the goal of the gathering was to Eettison rather than amend the #rticles of (onfederation. The new constit tion/ which emerged from a series of compromises at this convention/ created a new form of government that differed in important respects from any government previo sly created. The framers of the constit tion called their creation a &federal' rep blic. 9rior to *818/ history doc mented many e!periments with unitary systems of governance in which sovereignty was centrali%ed. ?hether sovereigntyDDthe power to make and enforce law/ adE dicate disp tes/ and direct foreign relationsJwas lodged in the hands of one person )monarchy./ a few people )aristocracy./ or many people )democracy./ within a nitary system the sovereign possesses the ltimate power to direct all political affairs within the state. The sovereign might choose to delegate some of that power to other officials/ b t as sovereign/ s>he co ld reclaim any delegated power at any time. Confederations were alliances of nitary states for limited p rposes/ typically for common defense/ Eoint military actions/ or for economic advantage. Members of a confederation wo ld delegate limited power to their representatives to negotiate on behalf of the state. H t any sovereign co ld withdraw from the confederation at any time or n llify the terms of any agreement negotiated by a representative. The U.S. federal system was designed as a hybrid/ which incorporated certain aspects of a nitary system and certain aspects of confederation. 5t created two levels of sovereignty within the same geographic area/ the federal government and state governments/ b t attempted to demarcate specific E risdictions for each. The federal government was given power to make war/ reg late commerce/ incl ding creating a common c rrency/ and represent the nation in foreign policy/ negotiating treaties and establishing alliances with other nations. The state governments were to have a thority over all other matters pertaining to the health/ ed cation/ and welfare of the people/ matters of criminal and civil law/ criteria for citi%enship/ property ownership/ marriage and family life. The new system of d al sovereignty was called a &federal' system as part of a p blic relations campaign to convince the states to ratify this new constit tion. Since &federal' so nded like &confederation/' the term was chosen to foster the belief that states wo ld be the most powerf l entities in this new system. $!actly how this new system of d al sovereignty wo ld work was a s bEect of great contestation. 2ohn #dams/ who was later to become the second president of the United States/ was convinced that d al sovereignty was an impossibilityK two s preme powers governing the same territory was/ to his monotheistic mind/ as nthinkable as two :ods reigning over heaven and earth. Many citi%ens were concerned that the proposed constit tion wo ld erode the liberties they had so recently won. They organi%ed to oppose ratification of the constit tion/ calling themselves/ antiDfederalists. #le!ander Hamilton/ 2ames Madison/ and 2ohn 2ay la nched a campaign to defend the constit tion/ p blishing h ndreds of newspaper articles nder the pse donym/ Publius. These essays/ later rep blished as The Federalist Papers )Hamilton/

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Madison and 2ay *,6*./ provide a detailed disc ssion of the provisions of the constit tion and the separation of powers envisioned by this new hybrid polity. The Federalist Papers make clear that the federal system is designed to solve m ltiple political problems. 5n addition to providing for a &common defense' against o tside aggressors/ the new system was intended to safeg ard against &maEority tyranny/' a &danger' perceived to be incident to democratic governments. 5ndirect election of the president by an $lectoral (ollege/ the creation of a &rep blican' form of representative government involving a bicameral legislat re/ appointment of Senators by state legislat res )This provision was altered to allow pop lar election of Senators by the *8th #mendment to the (onstit tion/ passed in *,*;../ and nomination of S preme (o rt E stices by the 9resident with confirmation by the Senate/ were all intended to c rb the &dangers' of democracy. 5ndeed/ the Ho se of 3epresentatives was the only part of the government elected directly by voters. 5ts members were envisioned as amate rs/ who wo ld serve as lawDmakers only a few months of each year for a twoDyear term and then ret rn to their families and their f llDtime occ pations. Senate conc rrence was req ired to pass any act approved by the Ho se of 3epresentatives/ providing a mechanism to limit any &e!cesses' that might emerge from the peoples representatives. #nd sho ld the Senate fail to restrain the passions of the Ho se/ the 9resident was also empowered to veto laws passed by the bicameral legislat re. The government was f rther ins lated from the &passions of the people' by the restriction of voting rights to propertyDowning whites/ which/ after New 2ersey rescinded womens s ffrage in *178/ were f rther restricted to propertyDowning white men )Feyssar -777.. #rticle 50 of the (onstit tion reserved the power to establish the criteria for citi%enship to the statesK &The citi%ens of each state shall be entitled to all privileges and imm nities of citi%ens of the several states.' 5n *818/ all state constit tions imposed property and racial )whiteness. req irements for citi%enshipC and all b t New 2ersey imposed gender )maleness. req irements as well. The framers of the (onstit tion employed only raceDne tral and genderDne tral lang age in this doc ment/ referring to citi%ens/ persons/ electors/ representatives/ senators/ E stices/ and the presidentC yet they knew f ll well they were constit ting a citi%enry that e!cl ded women/ blacks )enslaved and free./ and Native #mericans. #rticle 5/ Section , of the (onstit tion allowed the importation of slaves )i.e./ &the importation of s ch 9ersons as any of the states now e!isting shall think proper to admit'. ntil *171. #s members of &Sovereign Nations/' Native #mericans were e!cl ded from and ineligible for citi%enship. The only reference to women in the Federalist Papers involves a disc ssion of the &dangers posed to the safety of the state by the intrig es of co rtesans and mistresses.' The ratification campaign spearheaded by the Aederalists s cceeded. The (onstit tion was adopted in *81,. (ontestations over the meaning of the &en merated powers' of the federal government/ the resid al powers reserved to the states/ the rights of citi%ens/ and the very definition of citi%enship dominated m ch of nineteenth cent ry politics in the United States. The first ten #mendments to the (onstit tion/ known as the Hill of 3ights )*8,*./ attempted to resolve some of these iss es. M ltiple r lings by the S preme (o rt attempted to resolve q estions concerning the distrib tion of powers between the federal government and the states/ often accrediting the power of the federal government. #ppealing to &states rights/' several states passed legislation to &n llify' laws passed by the federal government/ which the states considered an nconstit tional invasion of the powers reserved to the states. The #merican (ivil ?ar/ fo ght bitterly from *16*D*164/ ltimately established the S premacy (la se of the federal government/ eliminated the possibility of state n llification of

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federal laws/ and emancipated enslaved blacks. The &3econstr ction #mendments' passed in the aftermath of the civil war ended one form of instit tionali%ed racial oppression. The *;th #mendment )*164. abolished the instit tion of slavery. The *+th #mendment )*161. created federal citi%enship/ a notion of rights and imm nities for all &persons born or nat rali%ed in the U.S./' which co ld not be infringed by the states. The *+th #mendment also incl ded an &eq al protection cla se/' which pledged to g arantee that all U.S. citi%ens wo ld receive eq al protection of the laws. The *4th #mendment )*187. was designed to enfranchise #frican #mericans/ proclaiming that the &right of citi%ens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on acco nt of race/ color/ or previo s conditions of servit de.' #ltho gh the civil war amendments se lang age that so nds incl sive/ in a n mber of historic decisions/ the S preme (o rt r led that only men were &persons' in the &constit tional' sense. 5n keeping with these r lings/ the initial implementation of the *4th #mendment e!tended voting rights only to #frican #merican menC and within a decade of its passage/ state laws/ which were pheld by the U.S. S preme (o rt/ created literacy tests/ poll ta!es/ and a range of restrictive registration meas res that effectively disenfranchised black men as well as the black women/ a sit ation that was not remedied ntil the twentieth cent ry civil rights movement s cceeded in sec ring passage of the 0oting 3ights #ct of *,64. Expanding the Definition of Politics While Struggling for Political Equality Eighteenth Century "nitiati#es $!cl ded from participation in politics within the official instit tions of state and federal governments/ women in the early years of the 3ep blic devised innovative strategies to change p blic policy/ sing litigation in the co rts and developing a concept of p blic interest lobbying to change the law. Bne of the first to seek reco rse to the co rts for redress of grievances was Hett/ an enslaved woman in ?estern Massach setts owned by (olonel 2ohn #shley/ a leader of #merican forces in the revol tionary war. Serving the table while (olonel #shley entertained revol tionists/ Hett heard a good deal of disc ssion of the "eclaration of 5ndependence and the &selfDevident tr th' that &all men are created eq al/' which was also being sed as a fo nding principle in the new constit tion of the state of Massach setts. She pointed o t to two of #shleys g ests/ Thomas Sedgwick and Tapping 3eeves who were disting ished lawyers/ that a constit tional principle of eq ality seemed markedly inconsistent with the practice of slavery. #nd she asked them if there was any way that the legality of slavery co ld be challenged by an appeal to the new state constit tion. Sedgwick and 3eeves agreed to bring a s it on her behalf to the state co rts. Their first effort was thwarted by se! bias in the law. The E dge r led that as a woman/ Hett was not recogni%ed as a &person' in the eyes of the law/ and hence lacked standing to s e in co rt. Hett then enlisted the aid of Hrom/ a fellow slave belonging to (olonel #shley/ to Eoin her in the s it. Sedgwick and 3eeves took Brom and Bett v. Ashley )*81*. to the Massach setts S preme (o rt/ where the E stices vindicated Hetts insight and declared slavery a violation of the states constit tion. The instit tion of slavery was abolished in Massach setts/ 1- years before =incolns $mancipation 9roclamation/ d e to an ast te political intervention by an enslaved black woman. To celebrate this historic victory/ Hett claimed the name/ $li%abeth Areeman/ q it the #shley ho sehold/ and took a Eob as a paid servant in the home of Thomas Sedgwick/ where she worked for the rest of her life ):iddings *,1+.. 5n addition to litigation/ women in the eighteenth cent ry began organi%ing &benevolent societies/' prec rsors of p blic interest gro ps/ to press for reforms that wo ld benefit women and children in the new nation. Bne key target of this activism was ed cation. 5n *81+/ 2 dith

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Sargent M rray began p blishing articles calling for the ed cation of girls and women/ envisioning a c rric l m geared toward womens independence. She arg ed that topics in the liberal arts sho ld be s pplemented by the mastery of sef l skills/ affording women alternatives to marriage as a means of s pport. 9roponents of womens ed cation opened private schools catering to the da ghters of affl ent families. They also press red local political leaders to open the p blic schools to girls and s cceeded in pers ading some local a thorities to allow sessions for girls in the early mornings )6K77 M 1K77 a.m.. and in the s mmer months/ when the boys were not sing the b ildings. These efforts prod ced palpable res lts. Hy the t rn of the nineteenth cent ry/ literacy rates for white women began to eq al those of white men )$vans *,,8.. Many states/ however/ contin ed to prohibit the ed cation of black women and men. %ineteenth Century &obili'ations Thro gho t the nineteenth cent ry/ &woman rights' activistsDDblack and whiteDDadvanced an encompassing vision of womens eq ality. They fo ght not only for the s ffrage/ b t for the transformation of traditions and belief systems that tr ncated their h manity. They fo ght for the abolition of slavery and indent red servit de/ for ed cation for girls/ for literacy training for ad lt women/ for the right to speak in p blic/ for the right to own property/ for the right to contract/ for the right to s e and be s ed in co rt/ for the right to divorce and to have c stody of their children/ for religio s doctrines that enshrined the eq ality of men and women/ for economic opport nities/ for professions open to all who q alified/ for married womens right to work/ for all womens right to receive their own wages/ for a living wage/ for shorter working days and safer working conditions/ and for an end to child labor. 5n their work for these manifold ca ses/ women demonstrated an ac te nderstanding of state and federal politics. They also c ltivated a conception of politics that was more democratic/ more participatory/ and more iss eDdriven than was the norm in nineteenth cent ry #merican politics. Heginning with the co rageo s work of Maria Stewart/ a free black woman/ who in *1;7 la nched a p blic speaking to r to mobili%e s pport for abolition and womens rights )3ichardson *,18./ women devised a strategy for political ed cation/ informing the p blic abo t iss es that politicians so ght to avoid/ framing policy q estions in terms of social E stice/ and mobili%ing p blic opinion to press re lawDmakers to change policy. They invented p blic interest lobbying/ gathering tho sands of signat res on petitions to present to legislators/ providing elected officials with e!pert testimony concerning the merits of proposed legislation/ and demanding that elected representatives be acco ntable to the people. They became skilled grassDroots mobili%ers/ organi%ing picnics/ marches/ and demonstrations thro gh leafleting and the circ lation of manifestos. They developed press strategies to enco rage the media to cover the p blic events they orchestrated. They wrote letters to the editor and opinion pieces to contest views they opposed. They also developed alternative media/ s ch as The Revolution and the National Womans ournal )$vans *,18/ $dwards *,,8. 5n their efforts to achieve f ll citi%enship/ women worked within the "emocratic and 3ep blican parties/ s pporting candidates who pledged to work for legislation to empower women. They fo nd/ however/ that candidates who accepted their assistance d ring campaigns for electoral office/ all too often betrayed the womens rights agenda once they were in office )$dwards *,,8.. Ar stration at s ch rec rrent betrayal motivated women to form their own political parties/ la nching the Home 9rotection 9arty/ the 9rohibition 9arty/ the $q al 3ights 9arty in the last decades of the nineteenth cent ry and the National ?oman 9arty in the early twentieth cent ry. They also created nonDpartisan precinct cl bs that wo ld canvass electoral districts/ ho se by ho se/ trying to pers ade voters to vote on the iss es/ rather than on the basis

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of a party label. Seeking a national platform for the ca se of womens liberty/ two women la nched campaigns for the presidency of the United StatesK 0ictoria ?oodh ll ran for 9resident in *18-C and Helva =ockwood ran for the presidency in *11+ and again in *111. #s in the eighteenth cent ry/ some women attempted to se the co rts to gain recognition of eq al citi%enship. 5n the presidential election of *161/ S san H. #nthony went to the polls and cast a ballot/ claiming that since she was req ired to pay ta!es/ she o ght to be entitled to vote nder the f ndamental principle/ &No ta!ation witho t representation/' which f eled the #merican revol tion. She was arrested/ tried/ and convicted of voter fra d. " ring her trial/ the E dge ref sed to allow her to testify in her own behalf/ insisting that women had no legal standing in the co rts. Ained @*77 by the co rt/ S san H. #nthony contin ed her civil disobedience/ ref sing to pay the fine and mobili%ing ;7 women to Eoin with her in casting & nlawf l ballots' in the election of *18-. 5nvoking the *+th #mendment/ several cases arg ed that as &persons' born in the United States/ women fit the definition of citi%ens established in this constit tional amendment and therefore q alified for f ll rights/ incl ding the right to practice professions s ch as law and medicine/ the right to vote and the right to hold elective office. 5n Brad!ell v. "llinois )*18;./ #inor v. $appersett )*18+./ and "n re %oc&!ood )*11+./ the S preme (o rt consistently held that women were not &persons' in the constit tional sense. 5n the eyes of the law/ &persons' were male/ a constit tional interpretation that was not officially overt rned ntil *,8* in Reed v. Reed. ?omens rights activists also championed certain tactics designed to help women to c ltivate their political skills. #s part of the long campaign for womens rights/ women organi%ed m ltiple &constit tional conventions/' mock legislative assemblies in which women ass med the positions of law makers and drafted new laws to govern the rep blic. #ltho gh these laws had no binding force/ participation in making them introd ced women to practices of governance and honed their skills in speech making/ legislative bargaining/ and coalition b ilding. The model laws passed also provided a glimpse of the difference it might make to have women serving in large n mbers in elective offices )H hle and H hle *,81.. 3es rrecting tactics from the revol tionary period/ some womens right activists organi%ed economic boycotts as a way to enlist b sinesses in the ca se for womens liberty. $!cl ded from rights of political participation/ women deployed their market power as cons mers in an effort indirectly to affect political o tcomes. Fnowing that many b siness leaders e!ercised considerable political infl ence/ proponents of womens rights sed their economic power to press re b siness owners to s pport policies that wo ld improve womens lives )$dwards *,,8.. The $istory of Woman 'uffra(e records the prodigio s energy that women devoted to political activism to sec re their rights as citi%ens of the United States )H hle and H hle *,81.. 5n their acco nt of the political str ggle to win eq al citi%enship/ (arrie (hatman (att and Nettie 3ogers Sh ler )*,-6/ *,6,. comp ted the n mber of campaigns women organi%ed to gain voting rightsK &?omen cond cted 46 campaigns of referenda to male votersC +17 campaigns to get legislat res to s bmit s ffrage amendments to votersC +8 campaigns to get state constit tional conventions to write woman s ffrage into state constit tionsC -88 campaigns to get state party conventions to incl de woman s ffrage planksC ;7 campaigns to get presidential party conventions to adopt woman s ffrage planks in party platformsC and *, campaigns to *, s ccessive congresses to sec re passage of the federal s ffrage amendment.' The *,th #mendment to the U.S. (onstit tion/ which establishes that &the right of citi%ens of the United

*;7

States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State on acco nt of se!/' was ratified in *,-7. Early T(entieth Century "ssues and Tactics Many acco nts of #merican women and politics stop with the s ccessf l passage of the *,th #mendment/ creating the mistaken impression that women attained meaningf l eq ality in *,-7 and that womens political activism evaporated immediately thereafter. H t womens campaign for eq al opport nity/ eq al treatment before the law/ and eq al representation in the elective and appointive offices of this land did not end in the early twentieth cent ry. The str ggle for voting rights contin ed nabated for #frican #mericans/ whose constit tional entitlement to vote was not respected at state or federal levels ntil the passage of the 0oting 3ights #ct in *,64. Moreover/ the vision of meaningf l eq ality developed by womens rights activists encompassed far more than voting rights. 5n the early *,-7s/ women mobili%ed on m ltiple fronts. Aorming the ?omens 2oint (ongressional (ommittee/ which became one of the most powerf l lobbies in ?ashington/ ".(./ proponents of womens liberty fo ght for legislation to meet the needs of women and children. They s cceeded in getting the ShepperdD Towner #ct/ the first womens health bill/ passed in *,-*. # year later/ they sec red passage of the (able #ct/ which ended the practice of stripping #merican women of their citi%enship when they married men who were citi%ens of other nations. They b ilt voting coalitions within the Ho se and the Senate and won the req isite twoDthirds maEority to pass a constit tional amendment to end child labor/ which was then sent to the states for ratification. 5n *,-;/ they introd ced the $q al 3ights #mendment to (ongress )#nderson *,,6.. Targeting the "emocratic and 3ep blican parties for transformation/ womens rights activists la nched &47>47' campaigns to ens re womens eq al representation on national party committees and state party committees. #chieving this obEective at the national level/ and within *1 states by *,-,/ women working in the two maEor parties discovered to their dismay that a g arantee of eq al participation did not ens re eq al power in party decision making. 5ndeed/ as 2o Areeman )-777. has brilliantly doc mented/ both "emocratic and 3ep blican parties shifted the site of real decisionDmaking from party committees to backrooms once women gained eq al representation in party committees. " ring their first &cent ry of str ggle' for political eq ality/ womens rights advocates achieved a n mber of sing lar accomplishmentsK emancipation/ property rights/ creation of niversal/ mandatory p blic ed cation/ access to higher ed cation and the professions/ divorce and c stody rights for women/ creation of settlement ho ses/ minim m wage legislation/ occ pational safety and health legislation/ s ffrage/ maternal and infant health careJto name a few )Ale!ner *,4,.. &9rogress' toward eq ality has been neither nilinear nor contin o s/ however. There have been setDbacks/ points at which racism/ se!ism/ and heterose!ism have been mobili%ed to thwart the legal recognition of eq al h manity and eq al rights. 2im (row legislation mandating racial segregation/ the separate b t eq al doctrine anno nced by the U.S. S preme (o rt in Plessy v. Fer(uson in *1,6/ the s ccessf l campaign in the *,-7s to defeat the ratification of the (onstit tional #mendment to abolish child labor in the United States/ legislation that eliminated federal employment for married women d ring the "epression/ are all e!amples of s ch defeats. 5n the aftermath of ?orld ?ar 55/ after women had ass med critical roles in the war economy essential to the nations victory/ and after women had managed ho seholds/ b sinesses and comm nities while so many men were away at war/ many women arg ed that the time for the f ll reali%ation of gender and racial eq ality had arrived.

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Resur(ence of Feminist Activism in the )'econd Wave* (ontrary to pop lar myths/ women did not leave the labor force when the Second ?orld ?ar ended/ b t they were forced o t of highDpaying Eobs/ which they had performed s ccessf lly d ring the war years. #fter the war/ womens labor force participation remained well above preD war years/ b t their share of professional and technical Eobs diminished significantly. Hetween *,+* and *,+1/ womens share of professional and technical positions dropped from +4.+ percent to ;1.6 percent while their proportion of clerical Eobs increased from 4-.6 percent to 8-.6 percent )Areeman *,84/ ;1.. #s a conseq ence/ pay ineq alities/ which had plag ed women workers since their entry into the formal labor force in the midDnineteenth cent ry/ were e!acerbated. Hy the midD*,67s/ the median income for women workers was @*/6;1 compared to @4/;76 for men. 3ace f rther heightened these ineq ities. ?hite women who worked f llDtime o tside the home earned 41.- percent of the median income earned by white menC black women who worked f llDtime o tside the home earned only 8* percent median income earned by white women and 66 percent of the median income earned by black men )Areeman *,84/ ;7.. " ring the *,47s/ growing n mbers of #merican women attended and grad ated from colleges and niversities. The n mber of women earning college degrees increased from +,/777 in *,;7 to *;,/777 in *,67 to -8,/777 in *,61 )Areeman *,84/ -,.. "espite these q alifications/ few were able to find professional careers comparable to those of male college grad ates. Aor most of the twentieth cent ry/ the ?omens H rea of the "epartment of =abor was the only agency of the federal government officially charged with responsibility for addressing the needs of women. (reated d ring the Airst ?orld ?ar as the ?omens "ivision of the Brdnance "epartment/ the agencys mission was to look after the needs of women working in the m nitions ind stry. #fter the war/ the office was renamed ?omen in 5nd stry Service and moved to the "epartment of =abor. 5n 2 ne *,-7/ it was renamed again/ the ?omens H rea / and made a permanent b rea of the "epartment of =abor. #s part of its mandate to form late &standards and policies which shall promote the welfare of wageDearning women/ improve their working conditions/ increase their efficiency/ and advance their opport nities for profitable employment/' the ?omens H rea tracked a variety of ineq ities in womens employment/ incl ding pay ineq ality/ Eob segregation by se!/ nfair working conditions/ and the & nder tili%ation' of working women. #ltho gh its reports caref lly doc mented forms of discrimination enco ntered by working women/ as a government agency/ the ?omens H rea s power to remedy s ch inE stice was constrained by stat te and b rea cratic politics )" erstD =ahti *,1,.. To circ mvent these limitations/ $sther 9eterson who had worked as an advocate for women and labor prior to her appointment as "irector of the ?omens H rea by 9resident Fennedy/ pers aded the 9resident to create a 9residential (ommission on the Stat s of ?omen. $stablished in *,6*/ nder the leadership of $leanor 3oosevelt and the direction of $sther 9eterson/ the 9residents (ommission on the Stat s of ?omen la nched a systematic st dy of the condition of #merican women in the second half of the twentieth cent ry. Their report/ American Women/ p blished in *,6;/ doc mented in great detail systemic problems pertaining to discrimination in employment/ neq al pay/ lack of social services s ch as child care/ and neq al treatment by the law in all 47 states and at the federal level. The 9residents (ommission on the Stat s of ?omen had a n mber of direct and indirect effects. #t the federal level/ (ongress passed the $q al 9ay #ct of *,6;/ which mandates eq al pay for eq al work. (ongress also incl ded &se! discrimination/' along with racial/ ethnic/ and religio s discrimination in Title 055 of the (ivil 3ights #ct of *,6+/ prohibiting these forms of discrimination in ed cation and employment. Heca se so m ch of the discriminatory legislation

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nearthed by the (ommission was embedded in state stat tes/ the (ommission and the 9resident rged the :overnors of each of the states to appoint State (ommissions on the Stat s of ?omen to investigate and recommend remedies for stateDspecific iss es. Hy *,68/ State (ommissions on the Stat s of ?omen were active in all 47 states. #nn al conferences bro ght representatives from these State (ommissions together/ helping to lay the gro nd work for a national network of womens rights activists/ while also helping to consolidate a &womens agenda/' identify strategies for social change/ and strengthen the activists nderstandings of the possibilities and limitations of &insider' techniq es for social transformation. 5ndeed/ ac te awareness of the limitations of the State (ommissions as vehicles for feminist transformation led a gro p of activists to la nch the National Brgani%ation for ?omen )NB?. d ring the final days of the *,66 meeting of the State (ommissions on the Stat s of ?omen )Hole and =evine *,8*C Areeman *,84.. Aeminist activism in the *,67s had m ltiple so rces. The ?omens H rea and the 9residents (ommission and the State (ommissions on the Stat s of ?omen played important roles in providing the evidence to demonstrate that despite passage of the ?omens S ffrage #mendment/ women remained &second class' citi%ens. They also identified appropriate steps that might be taken within e!isting political/ economic/ and legal frameworks to redress womens legitimate grievances. Aor many #merican women/ however/ the pervasiveness of governmentallyDsanctioned racism and se!ism afforded them little hope that &insider' strategies for social change wo ld be effective. "espite years of str ggle in s pport of eq ality before the law/ #frican #merican women had s ffered repeated betrayals by activists who s pposedly shared their ca se and by politicians s pposedly bo nd to phold the $q al 9rotection (la se of the *+th #mendment to the (onstit tion. " ring the *1,7s/ the National #merican ?omens S ffrage #ssociation la nched an overtly racist s ffrage strategy designed to win s pport of So thern legislators. The &So thern strategy' rged law makers to enfranchise white women so their votes co ld &cancel' the votes cast by black men. Bn more than one occasion/ concern for the &sensitivities' of s ffragists from the So th led white organi%ers of maEor s ffrage marches to replicate &2im (row' policies d ring s ffrage parades/ req iring #frican #merican s ffragists to march as a separate gro p behind white feminists/ rather than as members of their state delegations. 9oll ta!es/ literacy tests/ citi%enship e!aminations/ and physical intimidation prohibited black women and men from casting their votes in elections across the United States. ?hen social sec rity legislation was passed d ring the height of the depression in the *,;7s/ the two professions in which the maEority of #frican #merican workers were concentratedJagric lt ral labor and domestic workJwere e!empted from the provisions of the legislation. School segregation on the basis of race ens red that #frican #mericans received s bstandard ed cation. Thro gh (l bs of the National #ssociation of (olored ?omen and organi%ations s ch as the National #ssociation of Negro ?omen/ National #ssociation for the #dvancement of (olored 9eople )N##(9./ the (ongress Bn 3acial $q ality )(B3$./ Aellowship for 3econciliation )AB3./ black women and men devised m ltiple strategies to advance their rightsC b t they met with contin ing intransigence from whites ):ray ?hite *,,,.. 5n the aftermath of ?orld ?ar 55/ #frican #mericans responded to instit tionali%ed racism in the United States with new initiatives that incl ded renewed voter registration drives/ p blic demonstrations for civil rights/ and civil disobedience from nE st laws. HighlyDtrained civil rights organi%ers s ch as $lla Haker/ 3osa 9arks/ and Aannie =o Hamer helped la nch and lead the civil rights movement. Tho sands of yo ng women and men developed a vision of social E stice and

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learned tactics of &direct action' nder their a spices and thro gh key organi%ations s ch as the So thern (hristian =eadership (onference )S(=(./ the St dent NonDviolent (oordinating (ommittee )SN((./ and the Mississippi Areedom "emocratic 9arty. Their vision of social E stice encompassed gender/ class/ and racial eq ality. Th s the civil rights movement also played a cr cial role in la nching feminist activism in the *,67s ):reenberg *,,1C ?hite -77*.. (ontrary to pop lar stereotypes/ black women were more s pportive of feminism than white women as the womens movement mobili%ed. # *,8- 0irgina Slims poll recorded that 6percent of Hlack women and +4 percent of white women favored &efforts to strengthen womens stat s in societyC' and 68 percent of Hlack women compared to ;4 percent of white women e!pressed &sympathy with the efforts of womens liberation gro ps' )Areeman *,84/ ;1.. #frican #merican women were actively involved in the invention of the -7th cent ry variant of #merican feminism/ E st as they had been in the nineteenth cent ry version/ working within massDbased organi%ations s ch as NB?/ nion str ct res s ch as the (oalition of =abor Union ?omen )(=U?./ informal city networks and conscio snessDraising gro ps. They also created feminist organi%ations to combat the comple! intersections of racism/ se!ism and homophobia/ s ch as the (ombahee 3iver (ollective and the National Hlack Aeminist Brgani%ation. Union activism and comm nity activism also provided key sites for the emergence of feminism. =atinas/ s ch as #ileen Hernande% and "elores H erta/ worked within the 5nternational =adies :arment ?orkers Union )5=:?U. and the United Aarm ?orkers Union UA?/ respectively/ to address iss es of low wages/ poor working conditions/ and racism. 5n the co rse of this work/ they also began to mobili%e women aro nd iss es of their &triple oppression/' that is/ oppression rooted in race/ class/ and gender/ and to raise conscio sness abo t the nfairness of womens &do ble d ty' )domestic labor in addition to work o tside the home. and &triple shift' )paid labor in the workforce/ npaid labor in the home/ and vol nteer labor in comm nity organi%ations.. 5n places like So thern (alifornia/ Te!as/ Alorida/ and New Gork (ity/ =atinas also began creating womenDonly organi%ations and p blishing newsletters and maga%ines foc sing on womens iss es. 5n =os #ngeles/ for e!ample/ Arancisca Alores/ coD fo nder of the (alifornia =eag e of Me!ican #merican ?omen/ which enco raged political activism among (hicanas/ went on to edit and p blish Re(eneracion/ an activist maga%ine foc sing on womens iss es/ fo nd the (hicana Service #ction (enter/ play a leading role in the establishment of Comision Femenil/ and organi%e many of the first =atina conferences )Martin *,,*C :arcia *,,8C 9ardo *,,1C 9ere% *,,,.. #mong white women/ feminism flo rished partic larly on niversity camp ses and among women involved with &New =eft' and antiDwar organi%ations s ch as St dents for a "emocratic Society )S"S.. Thro gh civil rights activism/ antiDpoverty work/ and protests against the 0ietnam ?ar/ many yo ng women learned that se!ism was as common among yo ng men as it was among their elders. #s their efforts to address se! discrimination within co nterD c lt re and progressive organi%ations met derision and reb ff/ some women began to meet separately to disc ss social change tactics and to e!plore the politics of interpersonal and intimate relations. &(onscio snessDraising/' &assertiveness training/' a growing conviction that &the personal was political' and commitment to forms of social change that encompassed p blic and private spheres became hallmarks of res rgent feminism )$vans *,8,.. " ring the late *,67s and early *,87s/ tho sands of women took to the streets to p blici%e their ca ses/ to ed cate the p blic abo t pervasive se! discrimination/ to gather signat res on petitions/ to press re elected officials for legislation/ to press for social change and social E stice. The magnit de of feminist accomplishments over the past few decades makes it

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easy to forget how m ch they had to fight forK access to birth control and abortionC an end to sterili%ation ab se and pregnancy discriminationC access to ed cation and employment on the basis of meritC access to child care and early childhood ed cation programsC access to creditC eq itable divorce settlements and pension benefits/ the politici%ation of iss es s ch as se! al obEectification/ acq aintance rape/ marital rape/ domestic violence/ and se! al harassmentC creation of shelters for victims of rape and domestic violence and changes in police and co rt practices pertaining to these crimesC the involvement of men in domestic and reprod ctive labor. Aeminism is often described as a social movement in order to capt re the dimensions of selfDgenerated/ independent/ and innovative collective action embodied in the activism of so many women d ring this period. ?hile the concept ali%ation of feminism as a social movement capt res important aspects of these mobili%ations/ thinking abo t feminism only as a social movement has a n mber of drawbacks. 5n playing to the medias fascination with spectacle/ a social movement foc s can mask feminist activity within social/ religio s/ political/ academic/ and military instit tions )Fat%enstein *,,1./ making it appear that feminism has &ended' when women are no longer in the streets. (onflating feminism with forms of protest and mass demonstrations also s stains a representation of feminism as perpet al o tsider. Since s ch o tsider stat s is f ndamentally incompatible with working within the system/ feminism is condemned to temporary and fleeting manifestations/ for the instit tionali%ation of feminist principles and mobili%ation within instit tions appears to lie beyond reach. Social movement frames also tend to red ce feminist goals to those amenable to legislative sol tions. Bnce legislation has been passed/ feminism is rendered obsolete. Th s while the concept ali%ation of feminism as a social movement highlights one form of feminist activism/ it has the ironic effect of declaring feminism &dead' long before feminists have achieved the social transformations they envision. The movement is prono nced dead as feminists contin e the str ggle to achieve their nreali%ed agenda. Aeminist activism in *,87s did generate a n mber of impressive legislative and legal victories. #fter nearly 47 years of effort/ feminists s cceeded in press ring the (ongress to pass the $q al 3ights #mendment in *,8- and send it to the states for ratification. Under the leadership of Hernice Sandler/ a task force of the ?omens $q ity #ction =eag e )?$#=. la nched a class action complaint of se! discrimination against colleges and niversities in the United States. Using the affirmative action req irements for recipients of federal grants and contracts monitored by the Bffice of Aederal (ontract (ompliance/ ?$#= worked with women inside instit tions of higher ed cation to press re them to stop discriminating against women or risk losing their l crative federal contracts )Sandler *,8;.. (ongresswoman Martha :riffiths )"emocratDMichigan. worked within the (ongress to b ild a voting coalition to pass Title 5N of the *,8- $d cation #mendments/ which prohibits se! discrimination in ed cational programs receiving federal s pport. #mended several times/ Title 5N has been responsible for dramatic increases in the n mbers of girls and women involved with school athletic programs and for the e!tension of college athletic scholarships to women athletes across a range of varsity sports. The S preme (o rt decision in Roe v. Wade )*,8;./ in combination with their earlier decision in +ris!old v. Connecticut )*,64./ sec red womens legal access to contraceptives and abortion. Thro gh intensive efforts/ feminists s cceeded in heightening p blic awareness of violence against women/ created shelters and services for rape victims and battered women/ and press red local/ state/ and federal governments to change laws/ police and co rt practices/ and to provide f nding to address these important iss es. 5n *,81/ the federal government passed the 9regnancy

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"iscrimination #ct/ which made it illegal to fire/ ref se to hire/ or discriminate in any other way against a woman beca se of pregnancy. #ltho gh these are impressive accomplishments/ foc sing e!cl sively on p blic policy in assessing feminisms impact wo ld be a mistake. $q ally important res lts of feminist activism areK increasing n mbers of women in the medical and legal professions and in elective officesC changes in organi%ation of domestic life/ ranging from shared childcare and shared domestic labor in heterose! al ho seholds to some womens decisions to bear and rear children on their ownC feminist mobili%ations within instit tions s ch as the (atholic (h rch and the military to redistrib te power and responsibilityC and innovative feminist scholarship across the h manities and social science disciplines/ which is reorienting pop lar nderstandings of the world. ?ithin academic instit tions/ for e!ample/ womens and gender st dies have flo rished. Arom str ggling programs la nched by a handf l of feminist scholars at a small n mber of #merican schools in *,6,/ womens and gender st dies have grown e!ponentially. #ccording to the National ?omens St dies #ssociation )N?S#./ more than 177 colleges and niversities in the United States now offer ndergrad ate and grad ate degree programs in the field. Aeminist scholarship has also made h ge strides with more than 87 Eo rnals devoted e!cl sively to the p blication of feminist research and with innovative book series p blished by virt ally every maEor press. &:ender e!perts' are a growing field of professionals employed by governments/ N:Bs/ and international instit tionsC and transnational feminist activists have b ilt and contin e to b ild global networks to advance common obEectives. ?ithin these diverse domains/ feminist scholarship and activism are transforming the ways the world is viewed/ analy%ed/ and lived. #s was the case with the first cent ry of feminist str ggle/ &progress' for women has been neither ncontested nor constant. 5n the early *,17s the campaign to ratify the $q al 3ights #mendment failed/ three states short of the n mber req ired to make the #mendment operative. #ffirmative action has been nder s stained attack since the late *,87s and has been prohibited as the res lt of referenda passed by states s ch as (alifornia and ?ashington. Thro gh litigation in other regions incl ding the Midwest and the So th/ affirmative action programs have been severely c rtailed and the n mber of st dents of color admitted to elite niversities has declined as a res lt. 5n *,,6/ (ongress passed the &9ersonal 3esponsibility and ?ork Bpport nity 3econciliation #ct' )93?B3#./ which raciali%ed and demoni%ed poor women/ and abolished welfare entitlements in the United States. 9atterns of residential racism and white flight have perpet ated a racially segregated school systemK 47 years after the Bro!n vs. Board of ,ducation decision/ more than 17 percent of #frican #merican children are still being ed cated in instit tions in which st dents of color are in the maEority. #ltho gh womens reprod ctive freedom is s pposed to be constit tionally protected/ 11 percent of co nties in the United States c rrently offer no abortion services. 5n March -77+/ the U.S. (ongress passed and the 9resident signed the &Unborn 0ictims of 0iolence #ct/' which makes it a separate federal crime to kill or inE re a fet s while committing a federal crime against a pregnant woman. This law declares that a &person' possessing f ll constit tional rights &e!ists from the moment of conception.' %eo)liberalism and Contemporary Struggles for "nclusion (ontemporary womens rights activists have noted that contin ing str ggles for incl sion are taking place in a political conte!t of &backlash/' an onDgoing effort to reverse the gains that women and people of color have made in the United States )Aal di *,,*.. Hacklash is occ rring within a larger ideological shift toward neoDliberalism/ which s btly transforms perceptions of feminist activism and of the role of the state itself. 5n the United States/ as in other liberal

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nations/ d ring the str ggle to create liberal democratic practices in the nineteenth cent ry and d ring mobili%ations to create social democracy in the aftermath of ?orld ?ar 55/ social E stice activists nderstood the state as a viable site of political contestation. Thro gh political party platforms as well as the politics of direct action/ proponents of social E stice engaged the nation state as the primary means by which to str ggle against the enormo s power of the capitalist market. Aeminists/ like other progressive activists/ perceived the state as a niq e vehicle in the str ggle for social E stice beca se the state had the capacity to bestow eq al rights/ to legislate policies to redress historic e!cl sions and ineq ities/ to se its ta! reven es towards redistrib tive ends/ to provide all citi%ens with a decent q ality of life/ and to change e!ploitive conditions of labor. 5n devising m ltiple strategies to politici%e womens iss es/ feminists intentionally so ght to transform what had been constr ed as matters of private/ intimate/ or personal relations into obEects of p blic concern. 5n forging their political agenda/ feminists intentionally so ght to redefine &p blic' iss es. Th s they s ggested that an iss e is p blicK &*. if it is treated as politically importantC -. if it is nderstood as ca sally related to societal str ct res in which all citi%ens are implicatedC and ;. if its sol tion is viewed as req iring a collective effort to bring abo t relief for victims and reform to prevent f rther occ rrence' )Felly -77;/ 88.. 5n targeting the state/ feminists so ght to force the official instit tions of government to treat women and womens concerns as matters of political importance. Thro gh co rt cases and legislative battles/ they fo ght to demonstrate e!actly how the law constr cts and s stains p blic>private spheres and the relations of gender ineq ality that pervade them. Hy ill minating state complicity in the s bordination of women/ feminists tried to foster p blic awareness of the depths of collective responsibility for cent ries of womens e!cl sion/ marginali%ation/ and e!ploitation in the hope that p blic knowledge of inE stice wo ld trigger collective action to change the laws/ the social str ct res/ and the personal relations shaped by them. 5n the U.S. and in nations aro nd the globe/ feminists have devoted and contin e to devote e!tensive efforts to the formation of a feminist p blic sphere or &co nterp blic' as a cr cial step in the politics of social change. 5t is a step that pres pposes engagement with the state as a critical ven e for democratic politics. The tenets of neoDliberalism/ however/ transform the conditions nder which feminist activists attempt to engage genderDbased inE stices. #s we have seen/ beca se of the e!cl sionary laws and practices of governmental instit tions/ feminists in the U.S. have relied heavily on &o tsider strategies' for engaging the state/ organi%ing grassDroots campaigns/ social movement organi%ations )s ch as NB? and Aeminist MaEority Ao ndation./ and professionallyD staffed lobbying firms )e.g./ ?omens $q ity #ction =eag e O?$#=P/ National #bortion 3ights #ction =eag e ON#3#=P.. Heca se these o tsider strategies fall within neoDliberal definitions of the &private' sphere/ neoDliberalism characteri%es feminist political activism as private interest gro p activity. ?hat social movement feminists nderstand as a political str ggle for social E stice/ the rights of women citi%ens/ or for &womens rights as h man rights/' neoDliberals constr e as private mobili%ations to gain p blic reso rces. Aor e!ample/ neoDliberals frame feminist efforts to sec re state f nding for rape prevention/ domestic violence prevention/ and shelters for women who e!perience rape and domestic violence as &special interest' lobbying. 5n changing the framing ass mptions from a disco rse of social E stice to a disco rse of private p rs it of economic reso rces/ feminist goals are depolitici%ed and resignified as &private' endeavors. Hy &privati%ing' feminist appeals to the state for redress of grievances/ neoDliberals can depict feminist activists )as well as antiDracism activists/ gay and lesbian activists. as

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proponents of &special interests/' who nfairly demand &special rights.' #s appeals to social E stice are red ced to claims for &special treatment' within the neoDliberal frame/ they lose their E stification and can be dismissed as violations of individ al )i.e./ white male. &rights' and & niversal' norms. (a ght within the privati%ation imperatives of neoDliberalism/ feminist claims for social E stice are dismissed as special pleadings of private interest gro ps. Stripped by neoDliberalism of a social E stice conte!t/ feminist mobili%ations have no greater claim on the p blic than the campaign of any interest gro p for private advantage. The moral s asion afforded by demands to remedy inE stice is effectively ne trali%ed as pl ralist politics ass mes the g ise of providing an eq al playing field for all private interests. NeoDliberalism privati%es feminist endeavors by s bs ming them nder interest gro p politics at the same time that it redefines the role of the state. Bver the past few decades/ neoD liberalism has profo ndly altered perceptions of the kinds of contestations possible within the nation state )Hoover and 9lant *,1,.. 3es rrecting the classical view that ineq ality among people is nat ral rather than politically constit ted and maintained/ neoDliberals insist that state efforts to red ce ineq ality are f tile and necessarily oppressive. 3ather than ind lge topian fantasies/ the role of the state/ on this view/ is to promote individ al freedom/ nderstood as the individ als p rs it of material selfDinterest. The state can best advance this end by facilitating economic development/ which in t rn will resolve social problems. State strategies to foster economic development incl de dereg lation of the corporate sector/ provision of special incentives for economic development in free enterprise %ones/ red ctions of income/ estate/ and corporate ta!es/ and elimination of welfare &dependency.' ?ithin the parameters set by neoD liberalism/ the political agenda sho ld be winnowed down to the provision of essential b siness services and sec rity )domestic and global.. No space e!ists on this streamlined neoDliberal agenda for feminist politics. #t best/ feminist efforts to e!pand the p blic agenda appear oddly anachronistic/ a remnant of the misg ided b t b oyant politics of the si!ties. #t worst/ feminist disco rses are constr ed as pet lant groveling in &victimi%ation/' which d pe women into practices that worsen their condition )Hoff S mmers *,,+.. ?hile neoDliberals actively advocate the c ltivation of the corporateDfriendly &night watchman' state as a matter of intentional p blic policy/ many voices participating in contemporary globali%ation debates s ggest that the retrenchment of the welfare state is less a matter of willf l political design and more a conseq ence of the relentless forces of globali%ation. ?hether advanced by proponents or opponents of globali%ation/ disc ssions of the &hollowing o t' of the state/ the &erosion of sovereignty/' and the &demise of the welfare state' accept the neoDliberal concl sion that social E stice politics have no place on the contemporary political hori%on. #s 9eter $vans )*,,1/ 16. has s ggestedK &The pervasive antiD state disco rse in the #ngloD#merican global order has solidified into a domestic political climate that makes engaging the state as an ally seem farfetched.' The conseq ences of this ideological shift are prono ncedK &Strategies aimed at increasing state capacity in order to meet rising demand for collective goods and social protection look foolish in an ideological climate that resol tely denies the states potential contrib tion to the general welfare' )$vans *,,1/ 1+.. The shift toward neoDliberalism has dire conseq ences for women that e!tend beyond the &privati%ation' of social E stice iss es. 9ersistent ineq alities are placed beyond redress. $fforts to &c tDback the state' translate into the elimination of a range of professional Eobs that have afforded women a ro te to middleDclass e!istence. 5n addition/ elimination of entitlements to welfare and c tbacks in other forms of social provision increase class ineq alities and heighten

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the poverty of the most v lnerable U.S. citi%ens/ a gro p in which women and their children are overDrepresented. $ach of these conseq ences will be disc ssed briefly below. "espite more than two h ndred years of political effort/ women remain at great remove from the achievement of legal/ political/ or economic eq ality in the United States. Aeminist legal scholars have demonstrated that the fail re to ratify the $q al 3ights #mendment leaves women legally v lnerable to neq al treatment in state and federal law. 5n reviewing cases involving claims of se! discrimination/ the U.S. S preme (o rt has ref sed to declare se! a &s spect' classification/ which means that state governments and the federal government may pass laws that treat men and women differently as long as they have a &rational basis' for doing so/ and the legislative means adopted are s bstantially related to the ends the state seeks to accomplish. "espite the *+th #mendments g arantee of eq al protection of the law/ then/ men and women can be treated differently by the law in the contemporary United States. Aeminist lawyers have estimated that some *4/777 stat tes treating men and women differently remain on the books. ?omen and politics scholars have pointed o t that elective offices are one of the most glaring arenas of gender ineq ality. #ltho gh women constit te 4- percent of the U.S. pop lation/ no woman has ever served as 9resident or 0iceD9resident of the United States. ?omen c rrently hold only 8, of the 4;4 seats )*+.1 percent. in the *7,th U.S. (ongress )*+ of the *77 seats in the SenateC 64 or *+., percent of the +;4 seats in the Ho se of 3epresentatives.. The U.S. trails behind 48 other democratic nations in the percentages of women in elective office at the national level. #ltho gh women of color hold only *, seats or ;.4 percent of the 4;4 seats in (ongress )*- #frican #merican women and 8 =atinas serve in the Ho se of 3epresentatives/ none c rrently serve in the Senate./ black women and =atinas constit te a higher percentage of the #frican #merican and =atino delegations in (ongress/ than white women do in comparison with white men. #frican #merican women constit te -6.6 percent of the black delegation in (ongress and =atinas comprise ;*.- percent of the =atino delegationC while white women make p only *8 percent of the white members of (ongress. ?ithin the states/ women hold -4 percent of the statewide elective offices/ b t only 1 )*6 percent. governorships/ and --.4 percent of the seats in legislative assemblies. ?hile the n mbers of women in office increased steadily between *,6, and *,,4/ in the past decade progress has stagnated/ leaving women a very long way from achieving eq al representation. 5ndeed/ a recent st dy by the (ongressional I arterly proEected that if women were to contin e to move into federal elective offices at the same rate that they have been since *,*8 when 2eannette 3ankin first won election/ it wo ld take another +;- years for women to achieve eq al representation in p blic office. Get most mainstream politicians/ Eo rnalists/ and citi%en activists fail to see womens deprivation of p blic roles as a political iss e. ?omens contin ing nderDrepresentation in elective offices is p %%ling/ in part/ beca se women participate more actively in other aspects of politics than do men. ?omen have been o tDvoting men in every election since *,6+. Since the *,47s/ women have been 84D17 percent of the campaign workers in the "emocratic party and more than 47 percent of the campaign workers in the 3ep blican party. 5n both parties/ women are more active as rank and file party activists at the precinct level )Areeman -777C Sanbonmats -77-.. 9olitical scientists have offered a range of e!planations of the pa city of women in elective offices. Many of these acco nts s ggest that women choose not to engage in the ro gh and t mble of electoral politics. Ma rice " vergers The Political Role of Women )*,44./ one of the earliest comparative st dies of womens political engagements/ for e!ample/ s ggested

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that women were nknowledgeable abo t and disinterested in politics/ a view that was cited often to e!plain womens absence from elective offices. Since the *,87s/ women and politics scholars have gathered considerable evidence to demonstrate the inadeq acy of this acco nt and to s pport other more ill minating e!planations of womens nderrepresentation in positions of political power. Several of the early st dies did not contest the idea that women were less politically active than men b t investigated the role of gender sociali%ation in prod cing womens &passivity' and s ggested that strategies of &co nterDsociali%ation' be developed to enable women to participate f lly )Aowlkes *,1+C Felly et al. *,,*C Alammang *,,8/ (hapter 4.. Some scholars developed a &sit ational acco nt/' s ggesting that the demands of motherhood left women little time to devote to f llDtime political careers that ro tinely involved evening engagements and e!tensive travel/ b t was m ch more compatible with local comm nity activism/ where many women invested their political energies )=ee *,86/ *,88.. Bther scholars foc sed on str ct ral barriers s ch as ed cation/ occ pation/ and income that made it more diffic lt for women to ass me positions of political leadership. 9rior to the *,17s/ womens levels of ed cational attainment were lower than mens. ?omen were far less likely to hold advanced degrees and to practice professions s ch as law and b siness/ which served as ro tes to political office. ?omens incomes and control of wealth were significantly lower than mens/ affording them fewer reso rces to devote to costly electoral campaigns for office )H llock and Hays *,88.. More recent st dies have pointed o t that the factors holding women back/ whether pertaining to sociali%ation/ mothering/ or socioDeconomic stat s/ are themselves socially prod ced. They are the res lt of laws/ norms/ and c stomary practices that enforced separate spheres and limited ed cational/ citi%enship/ and political opport nities on the basis of race and gender )Siltanen *,,+/ Alammang *,,8.. " ring the past two decades scholarship in the field of women and politics has ill minated a range of distinctively &political' obstacles to womens election to p blic offices. 9olitical scientists have long known that inc mbency is a maEor factor in electoral s ccess. ( rrent office holders who seek reDelection have a ,4 percent chance of ret rning to office and 14D,7 percent of inc mbents typically seek reDelection. #s a conseq ence/ winning elections when r nning as a &challenger' is e!tremely diffic lt. Since women were barred by law from most elective offices at state and federal levels ntil the second decade of the twentieth cent ry/ those who chose to r n for office typically faced an inc mbent/ th s they faced a h ge political obstacle to electoral s ccess. 5n a series of important st dies/ ?ilma 3 le and 2oseph Qimmerman )*,,+. demonstrated that electoral systems themselves may constit te barriers to womens election to p blic office. 5n the United States/ the electoral system creates singleDmember districts )only one person represents the district. with winnerDtakeDall elections/ decided by pl rality r le )whoever wins the most votes is electedC a maEority of votes is not req ired.. Thro gh m ltiple large/ crossDnational st dies/ 3 le showed that single member districts with winner take all elections are far less hospitable to womens election than are m ltiDmember districts with proportional representation )i.e./ districts in which political parties present slates of candidates to the voters and are awarded a percentage of seats in the legislat re proportionate to the percentage of pop lar votes they win in the election.. =ike p blic offices/ political parties contin e to be maleDdominant instit tions. Male party leaders tend to recr it other men to r n for &winnable seats/' th s playing a &gatekeeper' role that effectively e!cl des women. Aor years/ party leaders claimed their preference for male

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candidates simply responded to voter preferences/ citing opinion polls from the *,;7s that indicated that voters wo ld not cast a ballot for a q alified woman. 9 blic opinion polls since the *,87s/ however/ reveal that se! bias among voters is no longer a problem in the United States. Se! bias among male party elites remains a si%able obstacle to women seeking elective offices. "espite clear evidence of the role of political instit tions in creating and perpet ating ineq ality/ neoDliberalism provides no role for the state in redressing these genderDbased ineq ities. 5n addition to placing womens nderrepresentation in elective offices beyond redress/ neoDliberalisms attempt to &shrink' the state also has direct effects on employment opport nities for women and people of color in the p blic sector. $mployment in the federal b rea cracy/ often in the &redistrib tive agencies' of the welfare state/ has been the primary ro te to middle class e!istence for many #merican women. &:reat society programs in the *,67s heightened the importance of social welfare employment for all gro ps/ partic larly women. Hetween *,67 and *,17/ h man services acco nted for +*< of the Eob gains for women compared with -*< for men. #mong women/ there were significant differences in the importance of h man services employment for whites and blacks. Aor white women/ the social welfare economy acco nted for ;,< of the Eob gain between *,67 and *,17C for black women/ an even more dramatic 41< ' )$rie/ 3ein R ?iget *,1;/ *7;.. &"ownsi%ing' the government/ then/ places the economic sec rity/ the precondition for a tonomo s citi%enship/ at risk for tho sands of women who have positions in local/ state and federal agencies. NeoDliberal c tbacks threaten #frican #merican men as well. More than oneDthird of all #frican #merican lawyers/ and ;7 percent of all black scientists work for the federal government )Hacker *,,-.. Th s the neoDliberal effort to shrink the state is neither race nor gender ne tral. 5n celebrating the capitalist market as a sphere of freedom in which individ als vol ntarily contract with their employers to sell their labor power/ neoDliberalism not only falsifies the historical record/ b t also forecloses options for addressing se!D and genderDbased biases in the occ pational system. #s disc ssed above/ local/ state/ and federal laws have been sed to restrict womens and minorities participation in the waged labor force/ to prohibit their freedom to contract/ and to str ct re the ed cational and work opport nities available to them. NeoDliberal rhetoric abo t freedom to contract masks that history of gender/ racial and ethnic discrimination by the state/ while r ling o t contemporary state intervention to correct the longD term effects of those e!cl sionary practices. 5n the contemporary labor force/ womens nderrepresentation in positions of power in the p blic sector mirrors womens position in the private sector/ a phenomenon that economists have labeled the &glass ceiling.' Bver the past three decades/ women have made important gains in the labor force and in the professions. 5n *,87/ +; percent of women over the age of *6 were employed o tside the home. Hy -77-/ 67 percent of women were working o tside the home/ constit ting +1 percent of the paid labor force. ThirtyDtwo percent of ad lt women had completed + or more years of college by -77*/ compared with only ** percent in *,87. 5n the first decade of the twentyDfirst cent ry/ ;7 percent of the physicians and -,.; percent of the lawyers and E dges are women/ p from less than 4 percent in *,87. 5ndeed/ the U.S.H rea of =abor Statistics )-77+. reports that in -77-/ women held 47 percent of the positions in &managerial and professional specialty' category. To arrive at this statistic/ however/ they rely pon a wide range of positions in middle and lower management/ as well as selfDemployment. The top of the $!ec tive>Managerial pyramid is still dominated by men. ?omen hold less than five percent of the senior management positions in Aort ne *777 corporations.

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" ring the last three decades of the twentieth cent ry/ the nat re of the U.S. economy changed dramatically. "eind striali%ation shifted the U.S. economy from a man fact ring powerho se to a service economy. #t the o tset of the twentyDfirst cent ry/ 8- percent of the Eobs in the United States were in the service sectorC only -.4 percent of the Eobs were in farming/ fishing and forestry. ?hile the nat re of both male and female employment has changed with deind striali%ation/ Eob segregation by se! persists and the kinds of service work that women do )e.g./ n rsing/ secretarial work/ childcare. differs from the kind of service work that men do )e.g/ marketing and p blic relations/ f neral directors and morticians.. St dies of comparable worth have doc mented that Eobs traditionally performed by women pay ;- percent less than Eobs traditionally performed by men that req ire comparable levels of ed cation/ responsibility/ and skill. Get/ neoDliberalisms emphasis on free choices of individ als who vol ntarily contract their labor services within a competitive market precl des state intervention to redress pay ineq ities tied to Eob segregation by se!. 9ay ineq ities contin e to harm working women and their families. #ccording to the H rea of =abor Statistics/ white womens earnings were 81 percent of white mens earnings in -77-/ while #frican #merican womens earnings were 68 percent and =atinas earnings were 4+ percent of white mens earnings. 2ob segregation by se! acco nts for a good deal b t not all of the pay disparity between men and women workers. ?hen researchers control for ed cation/ e!perience/ and q ality of Eob performance/ women still earn *7 percent less than their perfectly matched male co nterparts. The c m lative impact of pay ineq ities over a working womans lifetime can be staggering. #ccording to the U.S. (ens s H rea / a man and a woman who grad ate from the same niversity/ with identical grade point averages/ and eq ally positive letters of recommendation/ who begin their careers in the same field and who perform their d ties with the same levels of dedication/ skill/ and alacrity/ will not have the same lifetime earningsK a man can e!pect to earn 47 percent more over the co rse of his lifetime than a comparably sit ated woman will earn. #ltho gh a slight decline in the pay gap between men and women has occ rred over the past *7 years/ the difference is d e to declining male wagesJ not to increasing wages for women. The term/ &femini%ation of poverty/' was coined by feminist economists to make visible the growing concentration of poverty among women and their children in the late twentieth cent ry. Since *,6,/ the incidence of poverty among ad lt women has grown dramatically as the incidence of poverty among ad lt men has declined. 5n -77+/ ;6 million U.S. citi%ens )seven million families./ *; percent of the pop lation/ live below the poverty lineK 17 percent of the ad lt poor are women. 9overty is not eq ally distrib ted across the U.S. pop lationK nine percent of white #mericans/ -; percent of #frican #mericans/ -* percent =atino>as/ *7 percent #sian #mericans and ;7 percent of Native #mericans live in poverty )U.S. (ens s H rea -77-.. 9overty is partic larly concentrated among single women headsDofDho sehold/ that is/ among women who are raising their children aloneK -- percent white/ ;4 percent black/ ;8 percent =atina/ and *4 percent #sian #merican women heads of ho sehold live on incomes below the poverty line/ which the federal government set at @1/1,7 for a single individ al and @*1/+77 for a family of fo r in -77+. The kind of poverty e!perienced by women ho sehold heads is ac teC more than half are living with income less than 47 percent of the official poverty level. (ontrary to many pop lar beliefs/ the vast preponderance of the poor work/ b t the wages they earn are ins fficient to provide a decent standard of living. 5n -77+/ the minim m wage in the United States was @4.*4>ho r/ which wo ld yield an ann al wage of @*7/877 for f llDtime

*+-

work. Si!tyDone percent of minim m wage workers are ad lt womenC of these/ more than half have children to s pport. # minim m wage worker who devotes +7 ho rs>week for 47 weeks>year to employment earns @*+77 less than the poverty level if she has one child to s pport and @8/877 less than the poverty level if she has ; children to s pport. To grasp the intensity of this level of poverty/ consider a recent st dy by the $conomic 9olicy 5nstit te/ which indicates that it takes an income of @-8/777>year to afford a - bedroom apartment and meet basic needs in r ral areas of the U.S. in -77+ and @4-/777>year to have the same minimal standard of living in an rban area. Get -+ percent of the U.S. labor force earns less than @1.-;>ho r or @*6/6+7>year. 5n the richest nation of the world/ the working poor/ who are disproportionately women and their children/ lead very diffic lt lives. NeoDliberal premises precl de state intervention to redress these growing ineq alities. #ltho gh the conte!t of womens str ggle for f ll citi%enship/ eq al rights/ and a more eq al share in decisionDmaking has changed with the advent of neoDliberalism and backlash politics/ many womens rights activists in the U.S. contin e to their efforts to address persistent political/ economic and social ineq alities in the twentieth cent ry. Tens of tho sands of organi%ations/ created by women and for women/ seek to develop womens political agendas/ cond ct gender a dits and gender impact analyses of government policies/ b ild progressive coalitions among women/ deepen the meaning of democracy and democrati%ation/ deliver m chD needed services to women/ and press re p blic and private sectors to incl de more women and respond better to womens concerns. The s bstantive scope of s ch feminist work incl des livelihood str gglesC the politics of food/ f el and ho singC womens health and reprod ctive freedomC ed cation for women and girlsC employment opport nity/ eq al pay/ safe working conditions/ and protection against se! al harassmentC rape and domestic violenceC se! al traffickingC womens rights as h man rightsC militari%ationC peace makingC environmentalismC s stainable developmentC democrati%ationC welfare rightsC #5"SC and parity in p blic office. 5n the United States as in the rest of the world/ womens political activism contin es on all these fronts.

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