It’s pretty crazy that in 2020 women still have to fight for equal rights in America — that 100 years after the passage of the 19th Amendment guaranteeing and protecting women’s constitutional right to vote, nearly half a century since Roe v. Wade, and 57 years since the Equal Pay Act was enacted requiring employers to pay women equally to men for doing the same work, that women are still not paid fairly, that all women still do not have the right to choose, and that the marginalization of women and girls in this country still exists.
While there are many issues we women in the United States are speaking out against and fighting for, women and girls in other parts of the world are desperately needing our help. According to the UN 143 out of 195 countries guarantee equality between women and men in their constitutions as of 2014 but discrimination against women continues in many areas directly and indirectly through laws and politics, gender-based stereotypes, and social norms and practices.
“Gender equality before the law does not necessarily mean that women in practice have equal opportunities,” writes UN Women. Yes, that is the unfortunate truth and why it’s so important that we raise our voices together and do all that we can to help create change.
In honor of Women’s History Month, let’s see how some of Hollywood’s most famous women are fighting to change HERstory now.
Oprah Winfrey
Since the begining of her career Oprah has been an advocate for women. Winfrey was a major force in the drafting, lobbying and passage of the National Child Protection Act, signed into law by President Clinton in 1994. The billionaire philanthropist has also donated millions of dollars to various charities and organizations, with most of her money going to three foundations The Angel Network, The Oprah Winfrey Foundation, and The Oprah Winfrey Operating Foundation.
Using her many platforms as a way to publicize her charitable efforts Winfrey has said that 100% of any donation given goes directly to cause — examples include the creation of The Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa.
Natalie Portman
The Harvard graduate and Oscar winner has been a longtime advocate for women from speaking at protests to speaking up for women during awards acceptance speeches.
Portman is one of the founding women of Time’s Up and has worked with many organizations who fight for causes dear to her heart. She became an ambassador for Free the Children as well as WE, a charity that acts as a resource for those looking to create positive change. In 2011 she joined the WE’s the Power of a Girl campaign and encouraged youth in North America and the UK to fundraise for girls’ education in Kenya’s Maasai Mara.
“Being so united, like a large sisterhood, is a big part of the fight for women’s empowerment. That’s where our power is. We are half of the population, so joining together really is the key to all of it.”
Rose McGowan
Having been one of the first women alongside Ashley Judd to come forward against Harvey Weinstein after The New York Times story detailing decades of allegations of sexual harassment was exposed, McGowan helped to ignite the #MeToo movement.
In addition to the #MeToo movement empowering women to speak up it has been a catalyst for a lot of real change — some states have banned nondisclosure agreements that cover sexual harassment and have introduced protections for more workers. Congress has also reformed some of its process for employees reporting sexual harassment. The movement was also a catalyst for the creation of the Times Up movement helping survivors of sexual misconduct get legal representation as well helping push through a bill to raise the federal minimum wage.
Alicia Keys
Keys is the co-founder and Global Ambassador of Keep a Child Alive, an organization with a focus on combating the physical, social and economic impacts of HIV/AIDS providing financial and programmatic support to 9 community organizations in Kenya, Rwanda, South Africa, Uganda and India, serving over 120,000 people each year.
Charlize Theron
Named Glamour 2019 Woman of the Year, Charlize Theron has been passionate about standing up for women’s rights for many years — she is the founder of the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project helping to fight HIV in her home country of South Africa and was designated United Nations Messenger of Peace focusing on HIV prevention and the elimination of violence against women.
Alyssa Milano
The actress has demanded equal rights for women before Congress advocating for the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) saying, “My name is Alyssa Milano, and I do not have equal rights under our Constitution. I have a three-year-old daughter named Bella. She does not have equal rights under the Constitution, either.”
Milano is also UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador has traveled far and wide lending her voice to issues that matter — from trips to Angola to speak with HIV-positive women to India to meet displaced mothers following the 2004 tsunami.
She is also a founding ambassador for the Global Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases, helped launch UNICEF’s Trick or Treat campaign helping kids affected by World War II.
Angelina Jolie
The actress, director, and Special Envoy to the United Nations has visited over 20 countries around the world shining a light on important issues. She was named a UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador in early 2001, was the first recipient of the Citizen of the World Award by the United Nations Correspondents Association in 2003, and in 2005 was awarded the Global Humanitarian Award by the United Nations Association of the USA and the Business Council for the United Nations for her work with refugees.
Jolie continues to shine a light on the rights of women and girls in conflict zones around the world.
Jennifer Lopez
The superstar has been empowering women and girls through her music for quite some time in addition creating the Lopez Family Foundation with her sister Lynda which aims to improve access to quality health care services and education for women and children. Lopez was also named the UN Foundation’s first-ever Global Advocate for Girls and Women, became the first national celebrity spokesperson for the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals and the BC Children’s Hospital Foundation (BCCHF).
Beyoncé
While the superstar singer and mom of three has aimed to empower women through her music with intentional lyrics, song titles and performances she also has spoken out against women’s poverty trying to help women and girls abroad. The songstress also created BeyGood which aims to highlight stories of women and girls as well as partner with other organizations like Global Citizen and many others to help aid in numerous causes from natural disaster relief to homlessness.
Jane Fonda
The Oscar winner was a prominent civil rights activist before advocating for women’s rights. In an essay Fonda wrote that she had viewed women’s issues as a distraction but then realized that “women are the issue, the core issue”.
The 2019 National Women’s Hall of Fame inductee is an active supporter of the V-Day movement, which works to stop violence against women and girls. Fonda established the Jane Fonda Center for Adolescent Reproductive Health, which aims to help prevent teen pregnancy, has advocated for women’s rights internationally, and has been on the front lines of many protests often finding herself behind bars in pursuit of the cause.
Reese Witherspoon
Witherspoon is a longtime supporter of Save the Children, an organization that helps provide children around the world with education, health care and emergency aid. She also serves on the board of the Children’s Defense Fund, a child advocacy and research group and was among a group of actresses who went to New Orleans, Louisiana in a CDF project to publicize the needs of Hurricane Katrina victims.
The actress is also an honorary chair of the Avon Foundation, a charitable organization that supports women and focuses on breast cancer research and the prevention of domestic violence.
The actress is also involved in the World Young Women’s Christian Association, a movement working for the empowerment, leadership and rights of women, young women and girls in more than 120 countries. And has worked with UN Women, and Time’s Up, which she helped launch in 2018.
In addtion, Witherspoon actively works to elevate female voices, more diverse female voices in Hollywood through Hello Sunshine, her women-centric production company.
Kerry Washington
Frequently tackling topics such as equal pay, reproductive rights, education, affordable health care, and domestic violence, Washingon is a real-life gladiator.
As a founding member of Time’s Up, Washington has promoted women’s safety from sexual harassment, discrimination, and abuse. Washington sits on the board of V-Day, an organization that works to end violence against women, and continues to amplify important mesages through the story.
Michelle Obama
Former U.S. first lady Michelle Obama advocated for Let’s Move!, an initiative dedicated to solving the problem of obesity within a generation, so that children born today will grow up healthier and able to pursue their dreams.
Michelle has rallied behind girls education with the creation of Let Girls Learn, an initiaive working to open the doors of education for girls around the world and with the Girls Opportunity Alliance taking action to help adolescent girls and the grassroots leaders working to educate them.
Meghan Markle
Meghan Duchess of Sussex has been a counselor for One Young World international charity that identifies, promotes and connects the world’s most impactful young leaders to create a better world, with more responsible, more effective leadership.
Meghan has spoken out on the topics of gender equality and modern-day slavery, toured Afghanistan and Spain with the United Service Organizations, is a Global Ambassador for World Vision Canada and has advocated for gender equality and the empowerment of women with the UN.
Stellabration party, New York, USA – 09 Dec 2019
The comedian and actress was one of hundreds arrested during a sit-in on the floor of the Senate protesting Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court bid. And raising her voice through film and comedy Schumer has been able to fight for a number of issues for women and girls.
Jennifer Lawrence
The board member for the nonprofit anti-corruption organization Represent.Us helping bring together conservatives, progressives, and everyone in between to pass powerful anti-corruption laws that stop political bribery, end secret money, and fix our broken elections.
Lawrence is a proud supporter of Planned Parenthood, has and continues to promote body-positivity amongst women, and with her essay on Hollywood’s wage gap has helped move the needle for equal pay.
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