This is an article from the 2026 Civitas Examiner (Volume 3, No. 2) and was written by one of our students, Leanna. The opinions expressed herein do not reflect those of Civitas other than respect for the value of open dialogue. To read more Civitas Examiner stories or to submit your own, click here.
Women’s rights have always been and continue to be an important social, economical, and political movement, especially in the United States. Although great accomplishments have been made throughout the course of the movement, one cannot help but wonder if some of those accomplishments are in the process of being undone. While women have more equality than ever before, the current political climate raises the concern: Are we moving forward or backward?
After the relentless efforts of women across America, women finally obtained the right to vote thanks to the 19th Amendment to the US Constitution in 1920. Recently, however, the Trump Administration attempted to pass the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act. It would, in a nutshell, make it significantly harder for many people to vote by eliminating mail-in voting and online registration, on which 42 states currently rely. Voters would also be required to bring a form of a qualifying document to prove citizenship. This Act was originally proposed in 2024 and was passed by the House of Representatives in 2025, but not the Senate. The Act was then rebranded and expanded as the SAVE America Act 2026. This rebrand expanded to include strict voter photo mandates and to require citizens to re-verify their citizenship status in order to cast a ballot. Today, it has once again passed the House, and now Trump is heavily pressuring the Senate to approve it. This is notably stalling other important bills such as the Housing Affordability Act, which would be able to help countless Americans.
“The House of Representatives passed the SAVE America Act, which would bar eligible voters from registering if they have documents that no longer match their name. If enacted, the law could disproportionately affect married women who have changed their last names and transgender people whose documents may not reflect their gender identity.” – ACLU
Supporters of the SAVE Act say that it would strengthen election security, but opponents, like me, are steadfast in our belief that it could create unnecessary barriers to voting. Regardless of one’s position, the debate surely highlights ongoing concerns about equal access to the ballot box.
Another example of women’s rights being pushed back is how, in the year 1960, the first contraceptive pill was made available. This was an incredible feat as this gave women the power to take charge of their own bodies and engage in sexual activities as they pleased without worrying about getting pregnant when they were not ready, expanding opportunities for women in education and in the workforce. However, although the contraceptive pill still exists today, reproductive rights are heavily contested. Following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022, several states enacted laws that significantly restricted or banned abortion access. This could be considered a reversal because it forces women to have children when they’re not ready, an opposite parallel to the prior statement. Additionally, Trump approved “defunding” Planned Parenthood while also attempting to take it further, which led to the recorded closing of approximately 60 clinics across 20 states, as well as the economic struggle of many others. This is a removal of body autonomy by giving pregnant women no option but to bear a child, even if it is not plausible for the mother economically, may interfere with future plans, or even could cause harm to the mother and/or baby. This is un-constitutional, as it infringes on the woman’s rights to life and liberty as stated by the 14th amendment:
“All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”
Women’s role in the workforce also demonstrates both progress and ongoing challenges. Since the 1800s, women have been fighting their way into the workforce. They worked their way up from the textile industry during the Industrial Revolution, to the factories during the World Wars, to office jobs in the 1970s after the aforementioned contraceptive pill. After fighting tooth and nail to make their way into the workforce, they were paid almost 20% less than men. To put this into perspective, if a man gets paid 25 dollars an hour for eight hours, he makes 200 dollars in a day; however, a woman, who would be paid 20 dollars an hour, would only make 160 dollars for working the exact same hours as the man. On top of this, the infamous “glass ceiling” is known to keep women from moving up in companies due to the painfully persistent idea that women are inferior to men or undeserving of higher positions. Essentially, although women are in the workforce, they are not being treated fairly within it. Women are paid less for positions that do not exhibit their full potential and are stuck between a rock and a hard place. While opportunities for women have expanded dramatically, advocates, like me, argue that true workplace equality has not yet been achieved.
Even so, smaller, non-political things also impact women’s daily lives and mitigate the effects of modern feminism, like offhanded statements such as “you would be prettier if you didn’t have opinions” and “she was asking for it, wearing that outfit.” These phrases along with many, many others diminish the respect for which women have fought by undermining their intelligence and general existence as anything other than an object of a man’s desire. These remarks reinforce stereotypes that women have spent generations working to overcome.
This ultimately shows the fact that women’s rights in the United States present a pressing issue. Significant progress has been made in voting rights, education, employment, and personal freedom. At the same time, ongoing debates surrounding voting access, reproductive rights, workplace equality, and cultural attitudes demonstrate that the struggle for gender equality is far from over. Women’s rights are being slowly stripped from them, which reminds us that progress is not always permanent. Women have come a long way in history, but if we don’t fight against the reversal of these great changes, they very well may become history themselves. Protecting and expanding these achievements requires continued awareness, engagement, and advocacy from each new generation.
