A Discussion on Gender Equity and Women of Color

Abstract

Establishing women’s equality took center stage of the Women’s Movement during the 1970s as women focused their attention on political institutions and the distribution of public resources to advance women’s equity. One signifi cant achievement marking the period was the passage of the Women’s Educational Equity Act of 1974 (weea). weea followed the landmark Title IX legislation and was designed to provide the programmatic funding to carry out many of the principles set forth in Title IX. Th e gender equity legislation craft ed at that moment centered on establishing women’s equal access to education, with the understanding that greater access to educational opportunities would result in a range of opportunities opening for women across society, including increasing their access to employment in both the public and private sectors. Th is legislation, introduced by the late congresswoman Patsy Mink of Hawaii, contributed to the political energy around ensuring women’s equality under the law. Together with its sister legislation, the popular Title IX, weea set out to level the playing fi eld for women in society by fi rst attending to one of the critical areas in which women needed to gain greater access— quality education. 1 weea had three stated goals that overall speak to the level of societal transformation the legislation aimed to achieve. First and foremost, the legislation sought to “promote gender equity in education.” Second, weea was designed to off er the funds to make women’s equality a reality. Whereas Title IX set forth the policy goals, weea addressed the need to fund programs to support the policy goals outlined in Title IX. In other words, weea set out to fund the road to women’s equality. It appropriated funds for activists and advocacy groups working in the fi eld of education equity for women and girls.