The Role Of Gender Equality In The United States

In 1963, the thought of gender equality was looked down upon. Most Americans didn’t think it was possible or even desirable. Women were all looked at as housewives—stay at home wives who cooked, cleaned, and took care of children while their husbands worked and provided for the family. They were not allowed to make a living for themselves. They were kept from from pursuing jobs, careers, and even making simple decisions in their own home. Society believed that everything should have been done by the “man of the house.” In 1979, the U.N. passed the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, which requires all signed to promote gender equality in law and practice. But the U.S. was one of many countries who never