International

“How do we compare to other countries?”

  • Gender equality is included in 168 international constitutions but not in ours (source, Southern Legal Counsel as filed in their DC Circuit amicus brief). Our state department required Afghanistan to add gender equality to their constitution but it is missing in ours.
  • In 2018, the United States was ranked as the 10th most dangerous country in the world for women. We tied for third with Syria for countries where women most risked sexual violence, harassment and coercion into sex, and sixth regarding non-sexual violence such as domestic and mental abuse (source, Reuters).
  • Every year the World Economic Forum measures gender equality in countries around the world and America
    • In 2020 America ranked 53rd of 153 countries (source, World Economic Forum)
    • In 2023 America ranked 43rd of 146 countries (source, World Economic Forum)
      • RANK 21: Economic Participation and Opportunity
      • RANK 59: Educational Attainment
      • RANK 78: Health and Survival
      • RANK 63: Political Power
  • The World Bank Group’s Women, Business and the Law examines laws and regulations affecting women globally, the United States scored 91.3 percent out of 100 falling behind countries like Peru and Albania. The United States looses points every year because we lack of laws guaranteeing equal pay and equal pensions in addition to lacking laws for parental leave. (source, World Bank Group).
  • Of the 29 members of OECD , America is ranked 18th in the Glass Ceiling Index. (source, summary in Axios / details in The Economist (subscription required).
  • At the current rate of progress, the gender equality gap will not close for another 95 years in the United States (source, World Economic Forum ). Although nobody living today will see gender equality in their lifetime, we can work to ensure constitutional gender equality now.

It will take 286 years for the world to achieve gender equality.

World Economic Forum
  • Eighty-five percent of U.N. member states have constitutions that explicitly guarantee equality for women and girls and United States is not one of these countries. (source, Smith College)
  • For more information on gender violence please see our FAQ “Gender Violence.”

ADDITIONAL FAQs


Contracts

“Won’t women contractors lose enhanced status for contract bids?”

Draft

“Does constitutional equality mean women will be drafted?”

History

“What is the history of the 28th Amendment (Equal Rights)?”