GoWomen: Continuing the Fight for Gender Equality GoWomen:

Continuing the Fight for Gender Equality  

March is Women’s History Month, and a good time to reflect on the significant strides women have made towards equality while also planning for what lies ahead.  

More than 100 years after the ratification of Women’s Suffrage–a tipping point in paving the way for the monumental progress we’ve seen–organizations that support key women’s issues continue to grow in ways that inspire us all. The fight for equal rights continues, however, making the need for these organizations even more essential. New stories appear daily about the ongoing challenges to women’s autonomy all over the country. It’s imperative, now more than ever, to work to protect the progress we have made thus far in our fight for gender equity.  

For example, the recent ruling by Alabama’s Supreme Court, classifying frozen embryos as children and threatening those who destroy them, is something that should concern us all. Not only does this set another precedent for undermining women’s reproductive freedom, but it also adds to the mounting obstacles women face in accessing essential healthcare services.  

Illinois Senator Tammy Duckworth also recently acknowledged the threat posed to reproductive justice. She introduced the Access to Family Building Act in Congress, aiming to create federal protections for IVF access nationwide, overriding state limits and protecting the rights of women everywhere.  Sen. Duckworth said, “They aren’t just going to stop in Alabama. Mark my words, if we don’t act now, it will only get worse.”  

The increasing trend of politicizing women and transgender individuals’ bodies and healthcare have been used as tools to advance narrow agendas. We continue to see alarming legislation in many states’ legislatures that would block critical medical care and take away life-saving health care decisions from women, their doctors, and their families and, instead, putting it in the hands of the government.  

The targeting of transgender individuals’ access to critical gender-affirming medical care by politicians represents a dangerous intrusion into personal healthcare decisions and disregards the recommendations of medical experts. International Transgender Day of Visibility is later this month on March 31st and as we celebrate transgender people, we must also raise awareness of discrimination they face.  

In light of these challenges, women’s rights organizations play a crucial role in providing support  and advocating for policies that promote gender equality and reproductive justice. Despite their invaluable contributions, however, these organizations often face chronic underfunding.  When CFW started nearly 40 years ago, we were one of only seven organizations in the country solely dedicated to funding women’s organizations. According to the fifth annual Women & Girls Index from the Women’s Philanthropy Institute, nationally, women’s and girls’ causes received $8.8 billion in philanthropic support in 2020. But that was only 1.81 percent of total charitable giving. Clearly, we need to catch up. CFW funds hundreds of organizations doing work across the Chicagoland area to fight for a world in which all women, girls, trans, and gender nonbinary people can thrive in safe, just and healthy communities. The need is greater than our capacity to respond. 

We have many grantee partners that are doing the work to advocate for gender equality. Just to highlight a few, Mikva Challenge, holds in their philosophy that “democracy is a verb that you learn by doing”. They’re developing youth to be empowered, informed, and active citizens who will promote a just and equitable society moving forward. One of our other grantee partners, BA NIA is a comprehensive reproductive rights organization working to educate, encourage, and advocate for women of color to become informed about their reproductive health.  Being educated about and engaged in civic life is key to progress. When we’re educated on the world around us, we are better able to stand up for our rights. As we look to the future, it’s imperative that we stand together in solidarity to defend women’s rights and work towards building a more just and equitable society for all.  

Please keep up with what happens not only in Illinois, but across the country in the fight for gender equity, to make informed voting decisions. And please consider making a donation to CFW and to women’s organizations working to uphold the rights and dignity of women and girls, transgender and non-binary individuals everywhere. 

Hope to see you at the IMPACT AWARDS on March 20th! Check our website for information about the inspiring women whose work gives us all hope. 

Together we will persist,

Sunny Fischer

CFW’s co-founder, and interim President & CEO