As we celebrate the centennial of the 19th Amendment, it is so important to reflect on the work it took to get to this moment, but also acknowledge how far we have to go to reach full equality in the US.
In the next 100 years, our women’s movement has the opportunity to heed the lessons of the suffrage movement - and what 1920 left undone - by remembering that the fates of ALL women -- White, Black, Asian, Latinx, indigenous, LGBTQ -- are intertwined, that if you are suffering, then I am suffering. And, that when we work together and lift each other up, we are so much more powerful than when we stand alone.
To truly realize gender equity by 2120, we need to support women in their dual roles as breadwinners and caregivers, with a particular focus on women of color, who face such large income and wealth disparities.
As Covid-19 has exposed, women have been deemed both essential and expendable for far too long, and the only solution is to redesign our systems and economic structures to better support working families. We need policies like paid family leave and equal pay. We need increased access to affordable childcare and flex time. We need equal partners at home to carry their fair share of household responsibilities. And, we need a cultural revolution that sees caregiving as more than “women’s” work, but an economic necessity, where we value women for their full contributions to society and support women in leadership.
Jennifer Siebel Newsom is first partner of California. She is a filmmaker and founder and chief visionary officer of The Representation Project.