Catalyst Blog

On the night of July 20, 1848, the first convention to discuss the rights of women drew to a close at the Wesleyan Chapel in Seneca Falls, New York. Lucretia Mott, an outspoken Quaker deeply influenced by the Iroquois, was first to sign the closing document. The Declaration of Sentiments listed an array of “repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman,” chiefly:

He has never permitted her to exercise her inalienable right to the elective franchise.

Sixty-eight women and 32 men signed the original declaration, yet only one woman, Charlotte Woodward, would live long enough to vote in a U.S. election. It took more than 70 years to secure this inalienable right.

Women’s Equality Day, held annually on August 26^th, commemorates this long struggle and reminds us of the challenges still ahead. The 1848 Declaration railed:

He has monopolized nearly all the profitable employments, and from those she is permitted to follow, she receives but a scanty remuneration.

Generations have passed since these words were written—and gaps in pay and employment persist. But I draw strength from Lucretia Mott and other trailblazers, who pledged their faith in “the final triumph of the Right and the True.”

Full equality will be achieved.

American women got the vote 90 years ago this month. It wasn’t easy. After 70 years of hard state-by-state campaigning, suffrage came down to a final vote in the Tennessee Legislature. The deciding ballot was cast by Harry Burn, a 24-year old who switched to “yes” after receiving a last-minute nudge from his mother. “I know that a mother’s advice is always the safest for a boy to follow,” Burn later said.

Read more about this historic struggle, plus all the news about women and work, in C This.

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Three’s a Charm

Elena Kagan joined the U.S. Supreme Court, and ForbesWoman asked: “Will three finally be the magic number that effects real change for women in terms of pay parity, access to education and sexual harassment in the U.S.?” I hope so, but let’s not stop there. Women make up roughly 51% of the U.S. population. To really reflect America’s diversity on the Supreme Court, let’s see at least one more woman—ideally, a woman of color.

READ: “And Kagan Makes Three,” by Meghan Casserly, ForbesWoman, 8/8/10

Know Before You Go

What can you do to counter gender biases that influence hiring decisions? In this article, Amy Williams lays out four rules, including learning about “illegal questions” and sex discrimination before you go in for the interview.

READ: “Four Ways to Fight Sexist Interviewers,” by Amy Williams, Ms., 8/16/10

Mentored to Death

In the latest edition of the Harvard Business Review, INSEAD’s Herminia Ibarra and Catalyst’s Nancy M. Carter and Christine Silva reveal how high-potential women are not getting enough from mentors. Many are under-sponsored and over-mentored. “I am being mentored to death,” said one exasperated respondent. Are you?

READ: “Why Men Still Get More Promotions Than Women,” by Herminia Ibarra, Nancy M. Carter, and Christine Silva, Harvard Business Review, September 2010

Hear Them Roar

Who are the “new feminists”? The Guardian profiles seven courageous women “who dare to articulate what others would rather not see.” “I receive death threats all the time, but I’m not afraid,” said Shahla Farid, a lawyer who challenges the Taliban.

READ: “The New Feminists: Still Fighting,” by Susie Orbach and Shahesta Shaitly, The Guardian, 8/15/10

Rocking the Vote

What was the biggest obstacle to women’s right to vote in the United States? The U.S. Congress. Gail Collins recounts the long, hard slog to suffrage in this New York Times column. While we celebrate Women’s Suffrage Day on August 26, Collins prefers to commemorate August 18—the day of a tense final showdown in the Tennessee Legislature.

READ: “My Favorite August,” by Gail Collins, The New York Times, 8/13/10