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Equity feminism is a form of liberal feminism that advocates the state's equal treatment of women and men without challenging inequalities perpetuated by employers, educational and religious institutions, and other elements of society.^[1]^[2] The concept has been discussed since the 1980s.^[2]^[3] Equity feminism has been defined and classified as a kind of classically liberal or libertarian feminism,^[1] in contrast with social feminism,^[4]^[5] difference feminism,^[6] gender feminism,^[7] and equality feminism.^[3]

Overview

The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy refers to Wendy McElroy, Joan Kennedy Taylor, Cathy Young, Rita Simon, Katie Roiphe, Diana Furchtgott-Roth, Christine Stolba, and Christina Hoff Sommers as equity feminists.^[1] Camille Paglia also describes herself as an equity feminist.^[8]^[9] Christina Sommers, in particular, explored the topic of equity feminism in her book Who Stole Feminism? In this text, Sommers summarizes how the aim of equity feminism is to attain economic, educational, and political equality of opportunity.^[10] Sommers claims that feminists are separated between two categories: equity feminists and gender feminists. She states that the difference between the two is that gender feminists focus on changing societal norms based on gender, while equity feminists focus more on achieving fairness in both genders.^[11]

Steven Pinker, an evolutionary and cognitive psychologist, linguist, and popular science author, identifies himself as an equity feminist, which he defines as "a moral doctrine about equal treatment that makes no commitments regarding open empirical issues in psychology or biology".^[12]

Distinctions have been made between conservative and radical forms of equity feminism.^[13] Many young conservative women have accepted equity feminism.^[14]

The "Gender Equity Starts in the Home" article uncovers one of the many reasons equity is not being enforced in the home.^[15] Jack Koban contributes to this, as being a stay at home dad, while his wife works as a medicine physician.^[15] He mentions how him and his wife have reached a work-life balance by helping each other at work and at home.^[15] This example brings equity in the home and not only is it helping Koban and his wife successful in their relationship, but also teaches their kids equity at an early age.^[15] The article "What Is Gender Equity?" mentions that a way to help all their children understand the concept of equity is to teach them all basic chores around the house to maintain this balance in the future with their own family.^[16]

Equity in Workplace

"4 Real Ways to Embrace Equity for Women in the Workplace" states that companies should accommodate their employees by providing the tools necessary for each employee to create an environment with equal opportunities.^[17] Equity feminism is all about treating men and women equally because they are created equally and should be treated as so.^[18] Multiverse enlists examples on how employer's can make a change in their hiring process as it tends to be bias. They state jobs hiring should focus on candidate's skills rather than the individual's name or background, include diversified language in their job listings, and pay woman the money they should be getting.^[17] Women can perform men's jobs just as well or even better than men and vice versa. The difference in how women are treated differently from men has a correlation on why companies will not consider women for higher-paying positions.^[18] Equity in the workplace can increase women's roles in higher positions but as long as their rights are being ignored and pushed away there will continue to be this unjust way of life for women.^[17]^[18] Equity feminist also push for equally shared responsibilities within households to again lessen the burden on women and push for that equity towards women.^[18]

Theorists

Anne-Marie Kinahan claims that most American women look to a kind of feminism whose main goal is equity.^[19] Louis Schubert et al. claims "principles of equity feminism remain in the vision of the vast majority of women in the United States".^[20]

United States

In the United States, Alice Paul and Crystal Eastman, two women in the National Women's Party, were involved in drafting the Equal Rights Amendment, with the goal of achieving "constitutional protections from discrimination" for all women.^[21]^[22]

The Equal Rights Amendment was proposed originally in 1923 by the National Women's Party. The amendment was first proposed in Seneca Falls and former suffragist Agnes Morey presided at this event alongside Alice Paul.^[23] That year it was introduced in congress before being approved by the U.S. House of Representatives in March 1972 that would give both women and men the constitutional right to equity.^[24]

Equity in feminism is a branch of liberal feminism that creates a political stance assuring women's rights within or under the law.^[25] The battle for equity becomes political as many argue women and other groups who are considered oppressed are denied the same opportunities of cis-gender white males.^[25] Since the rejection of the ERA in 1972, the fight for equity has continued to grow in America and pushed for new laws that would protect women as it would have. Equity in feminism is important because it notes that women deserve the same rights. If there is no political push for a feminist equitable society, it would create a statement that women are lesser than men and don't deserve the same treatment regardless of education or social class.

The Equal Rights Amendment guarantees equal rights for all American citizens. This would assure to dispute any distinctions between sexes.

Europe

In many respects, Europe has a more progressive stance than the United States when it comes to feminist and gender equity support.^[26] Organizations in Europe were made to promote not only equality and equity, but they also aimed to promote diversity while being an ally for women across the continent. Compared to the European Union, the lack of publicly identified feminists in the Americas poses some political challenges for the movement. Integrating feminists' methods into institutions is how European countries have been able to advance the interests of equity and feminism.

References

^ ^a ^b ^c "Liberal Feminism". Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. 18 October 2007. Retrieved 24 February 2016. (revised 30 September 2013)
^ ^a ^b Black, Naomi (1989). Social feminism. Ithaca: Cornell University Press. ISBN 9780801422614.
^ ^a ^b
Halfmann, Jost (1989). "Social change and political mobilization in West Germany". In Katzenstein, Peter (ed.). Industry and politics in West Germany: toward the Third Republic. Ithaca, N.Y: Cornell University Press. p. 79. ISBN 9780801495953. Quote: Equity-feminism differs from equality-feminism in the depth and scope of its strategic goals. A feminist revolution would pursue three goals, according to Herrad Schenk:
- Citing:
  - Schenk, Herrad (1980). Die feministische Herausforderung: 150 Jahre Frauenbewegung in Deutschland. München: Beck. ISBN 9783406060137. English translation: ...the abolition of the gender-specific division of work in the family, the dissolution of the psychic foundations of different gender roles, and the feminization of the societal system of norms and values.
^ Buechler, Steven M. (1 September 1990). "3: Ideologies and Visions". Women's Movements in the United States: Woman Suffrage, Equal Rights, and Beyond. Rutgers University Press. p. 118. ISBN 9780813515595. Equity feminism, whether liberal, Marxist or socialist, relies on male classifications…Social feminism, whether maternal, cultural or radical, appeals to female values
^ Black, Naomi; Brandt, Gail Cuthbert (16 April 1999). "7: Towards a New Analysis". Feminist Politics on the Farm: Rural Catholic Women in Southern Quebec and Southwestern France. McGill-Queen's University Press. p. 200. ISBN 9780773518285. we found two strands, both of which we wanted to include as political: an equity feminism seeking equal rights…and women's collective action that looked more like a social feminism
^ Kramarae, Cheris; Spender, Dale, eds. (16 April 2004). "Equality". Routledge International Encyclopedia of Women: Global Women's Issues and Knowledge. Routledge. p. 672. ISBN 9781135963156. There are two dominant strains within the equality debate: "equity feminism" and "difference feminism".
^ Kuhle, Barry X. (January 2012). "Evolutionary psychology is compatible with equity feminism, but not with gender feminism: A reply to Eagly and Wood". Evolutionary Psychology. 10 (1). SAGE: 39–43. doi:10.1177/147470491201000104. PMC 10480852. PMID 22833845.
See also Eagly, Alice H.; Wood, Wendy (May 2011). "Feminism and the evolution of sex differences and similarities". Sex Roles. 64 (9–10). Springer: 758–767. doi:10.1007/s11199-011-9949-9. S2CID 144177655.
^ Paglia, Camille (2018). "The modern battle of the sexes". Free women, free men: sex, gender, feminism. Edinburgh: Canongate Books Ltd. ISBN 9781786892171. Quote: I am an equity feminist - that is, I believe in equality of the sexes before the law and the removal of all obstacles to women's advance in society. However, I oppose special protections for women, which had been sought from the start by some leading feminists... I represent the pro-sex wing of feminism that has turned the tide and that is close to winning the culture wars of the past fifteen years.... And I think that a younger generation of women are no longer in sympathy with the censorious, anti-pleasure wing of feminism.
^ Smith, Rich (22 March 2017). "Who's worse: Camille Paglia, sanctimonious liberals, or my sniveling self? (blog)". thestranger.com/slog. SLOG. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
^ "Who Stole Feminism?". 18 October 2007. Retrieved 25 January 2019.
^ "What is the Difference Between Gender Feminism and Equity Feminism?". Language Humanities. Retrieved 2022-10-18.
^ Pinker, Steven (2002). "Gender". The blank slate: the modern denial of human nature. New York: Viking. p. 341. ISBN 9780142003343.
^ Almeder, Robert F. (13 August 2003). "Equity Feminism and Academic Feminism". In Pinnick, Cassandra L.; Koertge, Noretta (eds.). Scrutinizing Feminist Epistemology: An Examination of Gender in Science. Rutgers University Press. p. 183. ISBN 9780813532271. I defend the stronger or more conservative form of equity feminism…I identify these latter more radical forms of equity feminism with academic feminism
^ Iannello, Kathleen (18 August 2010). "8: Women's Leadership and Third-Wave Feminism (in Part II: History of Women's Public Leadership, in Volume One)". In O'Connor, Karen (ed.). Gender and Women's Leadership: A Reference Handbook. SAGE Publications, Inc. p. 76. ISBN 9781412960830. The concept of equity feminism has taken hold among many younger conservative women
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Smith, David G.; Johnson, W. Brad (2020-05-04). "Gender Equity Starts in the Home". Harvard Business Review. ISSN 0017-8012. Retrieved 2022-10-18.
^ "What Is Gender Equity? Definition & Examples | United Way NCA". United Way NCA. Retrieved 2023-10-12.
^ ^a ^b ^c "4 Real ways to embrace equity for women in the workplace". www.multiverse.io. 2023-03-09. Retrieved 2023-10-12.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Kramarae, Cheris; Spender, Dale (2004-04-16). Routledge International Encyclopedia of Women: Global Women's Issues and Knowledge. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-135-96315-6.
^ Kinahan, Anne-Marie (3 August 2004). "One: Foundations: Women Who Run from the Wolves: Feminist Critique As Post-Feminism". In Prince, Althea; Silva-Wayne, Susan (eds.). Feminisms and Womanisms: A Women's Studies Reader. Canadian Scholars’ Press. p. 120. ISBN 9780889614116. Most American women subscribe philosophically to that older "First Wave" kind of feminism whose main goal is equity… A First Wave, "mainstream," or "equity" feminist wants for women what she wants for everyone…equity feminism has turned out to be a great American success story.
^ Schubert, Louis; Dye, Thomas R.; Zeigler, Harmon (2014). "13: Civil Rights: Diversifying the Elite: Women's Rights in the United States". The Irony of Democracy: An Uncommon Introduction to American Politics (17th ed.). Cengage Learning. p. 331. ISBN 9781305537491. The principles of equity feminism remain in the vision of the vast majority of women in the United States.
^ "The Equal Rights Amendment Explained". www.brennancenter.org. Brennan Center for Justice. 9 October 2019. Retrieved 2022-03-16.
^ "Alice Paul". National Women's History Museum. Retrieved 2022-03-16.
^ "Women Adopt Equal Rights Resolution". The Buffalo Times. July 22, 1923.
^ "The Equal Rights Amendment". Women's Studies Quarterly. 43 (3/4): 271. 2015. ISSN 0732-1562. JSTOR 43958572.
^ ^a ^b Baehr, Amy R. (2007-10-18). "Liberal Feminism". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
^ Guenther, Katja M. (2011). "The Possibilities and Pitfalls of NGO Feminism: Insights from Postsocialist Eastern Europe". Signs. 36 (4): 863–887. doi:10.1086/658504. ISSN 0097-9740. JSTOR 10.1086/658504. S2CID 146711537.