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The first sexually integrated jury hears cases in Albany, New York.
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All states pass laws which take away women’s right to vote.
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“persons,” “people” and “electors”
United States Constitution ratified. The terms “persons,” “people” and “electors” are used, allowing the interpretation of those beings to include men and women. -
The first state (Mississippi) grants women the right to hold property in their own name, with their husbands’ permission.
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Seneca Falls
At Seneca Falls, New York, 300 women and men sign the Declaration of Sentiments, a plea for the end of discrimination against women in all spheres of society. -
Missouri v. Celia
In Missouri v. Celia, a Slave, a Black woman is declared to be property without a right to defend herself against a master’s act of rape -
14th Amendment
The 14th Amendment is passed by Congress (ratified by the states in 1868), saying “Representatives shall be apportioned among the several States according to their respective members, counting the whole number of persons in each State, excluding Indians not taxed. . . .But when the right to vote . . .is denied to any of the male inhabitants of such State . . . the basis of representation therein shall be reduced in proportion.” -
The first woman suffrage law in the U.S. is passed in the territory of Wyoming.
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15th Amendment
The 15th Amendment receives final ratification, saying, “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.” By its text, women are not specifically excluded from the vote. -
Bradwell v. Illinois
Bradwell v. Illinois, 83 U.S. 130 (1872): The U.S. Supreme Court rules that a state has the right to exclude a married woman (Myra Colby Bradwell) from practicing law. -
Minor v Happersett
The U.S. Supreme Court declares that despite the privileges and immunities clause, a state can prohibit a woman from voting. The court declares women as “persons,” but holds that they constitute a “special category of nonvoting citizens.” -
The first state (Wyoming) grants women the right to vote in all elections.
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Muller v State of Oregon
The U.S. Supreme Court upholds Oregon’s 10-hour workday for women. The win is a two-edged sword: the protective legislation implies that women are physically weak -
Margaret Sanger tests the validity of New York’s anti-contraception law
Margaret Sanger tests the validity of New York’s anti-contraception law by establishing a clinic in Brooklyn. The most well-known of birth control advocates, she is one of hundreds arrested over a 40-year period for working to establish women’s right to control their own bodies. -
New York v. Sanger
Margaret Sanger wins her suit in New York to allow doctors to advise their married patients about birth control for health purposes. -
The Nineteenth Amendment
It declares: “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.” -
The National Recovery Act forbids more than one family member from holding a government job, resulting in many women losing their jobs.
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The Fair Labor Standards Act establishes minimum wage without regard to sex.
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Fay v. New York
the U.S. Supreme Court says women are equally qualified with men to serve on juries but are granted an exemption and may serve or not as women choose. -
Equal Pay Act
The Equal Pay Act is passed by Congress, promising equitable wages for the same work, regardless of the race, color, religion, national origin or sex of the worker. -
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act passes including a prohibition against employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, or sex. -
Executive Order 11246
prohibits sex discrimination by government contractors and requires affirmative action plans for hiring women. -
Bowe v. Colgate-Palmolive Company
the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals rules that women meeting the physical requirements can work in many jobs that had been for men only. -
Reed v. Reed
The U.S. Supreme Court holds unconstitutional a state law (Idaho) establishing automatic preference for males as administrators of wills. This is the first time the court strikes down a law treating men and women differently. The Court finally declares women as “persons,” but uses a “reasonableness” test rather than making sex a “suspect classification,” analogous to race, under the Fourteenth Amendment. -
Title IX
Education Amendments prohibits sex discrimination in all aspects of education programs that receive federal support. -
Roe v. Wade
The U.S. Supreme Court declares that the Constitution protects women’s right to terminate an early pregnancy, thus making abortion legal in the U.S. -
Taylor v. Louisiana
denies states the right to exclude women from juries. -
Pregnancy Discrimination Act
The Pregnancy Discrimination Act bans employment discrimination against pregnant women. -
Roberts v. U.S. Jaycees
sex discrimination in membership policies of organizations, such as the Jaycees, is forbidden by the Supreme Court, opening many previously all-male organizations (Jaycees, Kiwanis, Rotary, Lions) to women. -
Johnson v. Santa Clara County
The U.S. Supreme Court rules that it is permissible to take sex and race into account in employment decisions even where there is no proven history of discrimination but when evidence of a manifest imbalance exists in the number of women or minorities holding the position in question -
Webster v. Reproductive Health Services
Supreme Court affirms the right of states to deny public funding for abortions and to prohibit public hospitals from performing abortions -
Harris v. Forklift Systems, Inc.
The U.S. Supreme Court rules that the victim did not need to show that she suffered physical or serious psychological injury as a result of sexual harassment -
United States v. Virginia
affirms that the male-only admissions policy of the state-supported Virginia Military Institute violates the Fourteenth Amendment. -
United States v. Morrison
The U.S. Supreme Court invalidates those portions of the Violence Against Women Act permitting victims of rape, domestic violence, etc. to sue their attackers in federal court. -
Nevada Department of Human Resources v. Hibbs
The Supreme Court rules that states can be sued in federal court for violations of the Family Leave Medical Act. -
Hillary Clinton
Hillary Clinton becomes the first First Lady to be elected to public office as a U.S. Senator from New York. Condoleezza Rice becomes the first black female Secretary of State. -
ACA
The Affordable Health Care Act is signed into law. Under this law, private health insurance companies must provide birth control without co-pays or deductibles. The law requires private insurance companies to cover preventive services. -
Women in combat
The ban against women in military combat positions is removed; this overturned a 1994 Pentagon decision restricting women from combat roles.