Women's Equality Day and the Anniversary of the 19th Amendment

August 26, 2020 - Gabby Wahla

Today is Women's Equality Day. In conjunction with today's celebration of women, this year we are also celebrating the 100 year anniversary of the passing of the 19th amendment, which gave "women" the right to vote. However, as intersectional feminists, we highlights that the celebration of both these events does not include all womxn. 

As we remember the Suffrage movement and the centennial of the 19th amendment, let’s take a moment to acknowledge who got the right to vote. White women got the right to vote 100 years ago, and many other minoritized groups did not. The battle for equality is FAR from over, even 100 years later. While we remember influential womxn who dedicated their lives to the Suffrage movement, we can not forget that there are still so many steps for us to take as a nation to promote equity and equality. 

Women's Equality Day does not complicate the term "women," and implies that we are only celebrating cisgender women. Instead, as we celebrate this day by honoring all the powerful womxn in our lives, let's remember to include ALL womxn, including transgender womxn and folx outside the binary. 

Overall, in our celebrations of both Women's Equality Day and the 19th Amendment, let's remember to be inclusive of all, and remember that everyone in this world is not equal, but we should all be working toward an inclusive and equitable world.

Want to read more about this? Check out this article from NBC News Know Your Value here.

 

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