Since the 1970s, women have fought to change the political climate of the United States by advocating for gender equity.
Ex of Gender Equality: three people of varying heights are all given the same size box to see over a fence. Two of the people still cannot see over the fence.
Ex of Gender Equity: three people of varying heights are all given differently sized boxes, according to their heights, to see over a fence. All three of the people can see over the fence
“A woman is like a teabag. You never know how strong she is until she gets into hot water.” -Eleanor Roosevelt
The right to vote was just the beginning. Women’s fight for equitable rights has been ongoing for centuries and is far from over. From reproductive rights to equal pay, women have a long way to go before equity is reached. They will not stop fighting.
Reproductive Rights and equal pay have always been of interest and debate for the past and present. Though great progress has been made over the years, there still seems to be conflict over whether or not women should have full autonomy over their own bodies,rights and equity. Miya Iwataki, Karen Clark, Peggy Yorkin and Kathy Spillar have worked with their communities in order to provide equity for all by advocating for resources regardless of gender,status or race.
In 1946, Japanese internment camps closed and the Japanese community in Little Tokyo in Los Angeles struggled to recover, working from the ground up to rebuild. The Nisei generation sheltered their children from their own history like Miya Iwataki who grew up longing for an Asian activist movement.
With the rise of activist movements in the 1970s, Asian Americans, African Americans and Chicanos protested to have access to the basic equitable resources like health care, employment and education. Miya’s community was viewed as an example community that had no issues however poverty, lack of proper healthcare and a drugs epidemic impacted Little Tokyo. Equity then became a tool to collaborate and create a sense of community.
Miya Iwataki
“The difference between stumbling blocks and stepping stones is how you use them.”
Longing for an Asian movement, Miya Iwataki became an activist at a young age. She pushed for equitable healthcare for the Japanese community, by taking part in the creation of the Japanese American Community Services[JACS]. Being the first Asian center of its kind, the main goal was to “serve the people” by raising consciousness of the community with workshops and resources. Due to Japanese women suffering triple the oppression and succumbing to opioids, the Asian Women’s Center opened to offer resources on health, fostering, and education. Miya has also advocated for women’s rights and education in China and Africa.
Photo of Miya Iwataki with Mervyn Dymally at Nishi Hongwanji Temple in 1982.
“women were getting together. We needed to talk about what was happening at our workplace, opening up, building trust, because there wasn’t that much trust between women. And really talking about our fears, our insecurities, meaning sometimes being fearful. Because men used to say, “Oh yeah, we support women’s liberation and the Asian Women’s Movement but don’t lose your femininity." Anyway, whatever! There were women’s groups all over, but at a certain point we needed to move beyond sharing our grievances and what’s wrong...So we used to have programs—like we did an eight-week educational series studying the history of women’s oppression and the women’s movement.”
Image of Miya Iwataki taken by the Center of Oral Public History at California State University, Fullerton.
In Little Tokyo, women in the community were three times more oppressed experiencing racism,sexism and classism.The women organically came together to serve the people by advocating for social justice. They marched wearing red masks calling attention to Seconal abuse and organized a health fair. Such collaborative efforts achieved a path to equity by tackling institutional racism by building community programs and engaging in Asian American empowerment modeled by the Black Panthers and the Brown Berets.
Gender Gap Politics by Bonnie Eisenberg which was written in 1984 and published in a magazine called Women’s voices in 1994. The article calls attention to the gap in politics and the disadvantages women have based on their gender. For political change the one thing that inhibits women is the allocation of funds for their causes. There is a discrepancy in how male politicians react to women issues and lack attention to such causes. Women out number the amount of male voters but are ignored.
Karen Clark
Karen Clark is a founding member of Women in Leadership (WIL), a bi-partisan PAC dedicated to helping pro-choice women gain spaces and stay in political leadership roles. Karen has been a pro-choice activist for decades, from door to door campaigning for pro-choice laws in Michigan to convincing a law firm she worked for in California to regularly donate free legal services to Planned Parenthood. With WIL, she has helped support pro-choice women running for political offices throughout the state.
“An activist seems a lot more involved than I was.” – Karen Clark, pg 9
Karen Clark helped found Women in Leadership in 1993. Since its beginning, WIL has been focused on supporting pro-choice candidates run for political office, local and state-level. They are a bipartisan organization and support women of both Democratic and Republican parties.
The United States political landscape is often divisive. However, women have always been able to come together to push for bipartisan support in situations where their equity was threatened. Bipartisan support has been necessary when it comes to both passing legislation for gender equity and to preventing the passing of legislation that would go against equity.
Whether going door to door like Karen Clark did in college, or supporting an organization like WIL that helped Loretta Sanchez be elected as Karen did later in life, there are so many types of activism that women can be a part of. The fight for reproductive rights and gender equity is far from over, but constant activism by every day women like Karen are helping to change things for the better.
Katherine Spillar
“If women aren’t free to control their own reproduction, they have no freedom.” Kathy Spillar, pg. 53, 1:30:02.
Women continue to fight for equitable rights for reproductive health and control over their own bodies. Through legislation, organizations, and grassroots movements, Katherine Spillar made waves and continues to do so within N.O.W, The FMF, and Ms. Magazine.
Advocacy and Leadership
When it comes to reproductive health equity, Katherine Spillar takes one of the lead roles in each of these foundations by becoming the president, co-founder, and executive editor. While in these positions, she helped N.O.W focus on women getting into power holding positions and made sure to keep the organization democratic so that everyone could come to a consensus. With the FMF, Kathy organized abortion marches by paper sign up and went to college campuses in order to bring new people into the movement. The counter movement against Operation Rescue involved training of all sorts ranging from escorting patients to general peacekeeping. As for legislation, Spillar had collaborated with law agencies around the country.
As the executive editor of Ms. Magazine, Spillar continues to push articles discussing topics of equitable rights for reproductive health and takes the podium at organized events.
Change on a Larger Scale
In 1989, Katherine Spillar and the members of the Feminist Majority Foundation set out to create a project in opposition of Operation Rescue. This response was known as the National Clinic Access Project (NCAP), which sought to work against anti-abortion protestors and keep clinics open. Through this project came F.A.C.E in 1994. Also known as the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, this new legislation made it illegal to use force, block, or otherwise interfere with individuals seeking reproductive health services at Clinics. Through this event, legislation was key in providing more steps toward equitable rights for reproduction health.
The topic of Reproductive Rights has always been a one of interest and debate for both the past and present. . Though great progress has been made over the years, there still seems to be conflict over whether or not women should have full autonomy over their own bodies. Through Women’s Marches and other organizations, such as the Feminist Majority Foundation and N.O.W, women still continue to advocate for this right. Will you?
Peggy Yorkin
Peggy Yorkin women's rights activist and Co-Founder and Chair of the Feminist Majority Foundation. The Feminist Majority Foundation works for social, political, and economic equality for women by using research and education. By co-founding this organization, Peggy Yorkin continued her work as an activist as more women were starting to get more involved with issues dealing with women equity.
“NOW is, you know, National Organization for Women, not of women. It’s very clear it’s for women.”
Co-founding an organization like the Feminist Majority Foundation allowed Peggy Yorkin to be involved more in women activism. With her donations she was able to form a stable organization that would fight for women equity. Creating such organizations have allowed women to continue to fight for things like reproductive rights and equal pay. Women will continue to fight for equity as long as they have the support of organizations like NOW and the Feminist Majority Foundation.
By being able to create their own organizations, women will be able to speak up about certain issues that involve them. Organizations like N.O.W. created by women for women is an example of how they are fighting for gender equity. The National Organization for Women is an American feminist organization founded in 1966. The organization consists of 550 chapters in all 50 U.S. states and in Washington, D.C. Among the issues that NOW addresses are child care, pregnancy leave, abortion rights, and pension rights.
Bibliography
"National Clinic Access Project": https://www.feminist.org/rrights/ncapabout.asp
Picture of Katherine Spillar: Wikimedia Commons- SharAlike international 4.0
(CC By-SA 4.0)
Picture of "Reproductive Rights are Non Negotiable": Wikimedia Commons- Public Domain.
Katherine Spillar and Peg Yorkin interviewed by Natalie Fousekis, April 6, 2017, Beverly Hills, California, Oral History #5963.1, transcript, Women Politics, and Activism Since Suffrage, Center for Oral and Public History, California State University, Fullerton. http://www.fullerton.edu/wpaarchives/narrators/index.php/133
O.H 5963 page 9 and 17
Clark, Karen. An Oral History with Karen Clark, transcript of an oral history conducted 2013 by Kate Tello. Women, Politics, and Activism Since Suffrage Oral History Project, Center for Oral and Public History, California State University, Fullerton.
"Peg Yorkin was the housewife of the ‘50s. Now, she’s an activist with clout and money. : $10-Million Woman" https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-10-04-vw-3462-story.html
National Organization for Women https://now.org/issues/