America was founded on the dream of freedom, hence the “American Dream.” It’s exactly what the founding fathers wanted when they broke free from King George, and they succeeded; people can be anything they dream to be in America. Well, that is true if you are a straight white man.
Minority groups, like women, black people, and LGBTQ+ people, have had to fight for a place in this country. Women, in particular, have been fighting hard and without fail. In the past 100 years, women have made considerable progress from where it started.
1920: Women were given the right to vote
1925: The American Indian Suffrage was recognized by Congress, which was a controversial step toward progress
1936: Women were granted the medicinal use of birth control
1946: The United Nations establishes a group to safeguard women’s rights
1963: Congress passed the Equal Pay Act which promised equitable wages for the same work, regardless of sex
1969: California becomes the first state to adopt the “no fault divorce law”
1973: The Supreme Court states that the constitution protects women’s rights to terminate an early pregnancy
1993: The Family and Medical Leave Act goes into effect and states how long a woman may take off after giving birth
2008: Hilary Clinton becomes the first woman to run for president
2018: California becomes the first state to pass an act requiring that women must be included on companies’ boards of directors
2023: A record of 128 women are elected to Congress
It’s shocking that some of these landmarks happened so recently. Unfortunately, with progress comes backtracking. Roe v. Wade was a landmark Supreme Court Ruling in 1973 that provided women with support. However, as of 2022 it was overturned and many states made abortions completely illegal. This also contradicts the right to birth control that was given in 1936. It does not make sense to grant people the use of birth control that may not work, but then take away the one form of safety that was available. Women were granted the right to vote, but it feels as though women’s votes do not really matter when the world is stacked against them. It never should have taken until 1969 to recognize that women should be able to leave their husbands without proof of abuse. 
Thankfully, important figures like Ida B. Wells, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, and Helen Keller have helped the cause and put every fiber of their life into helping women’s rights. Susan B. Anthony is arguably the most famous suffragist, and she fought for women her entire life. There can be great expectations for the future of women’s rights because of the activists still fighting for rights today. As long as there are people like Malala Yousafzai, America Ferrera and Coretta Scott King speaking up and out for women’s rights, the world has hope.
