Happy Women’s Equality Day!

From the beginning, women have fought an uphill battle for equality and rights in this country.

And, even today, the peak of the mountain still seems very distant. When we turn around, though, to look at the earth below us, we can see just how far we’ve really come.

From Seneca Falls in 1848, where women gathered for the first time to truly discuss their rights (or lack thereof), to the debut of the Woman’s Journal in 1870, a publication focused on women’s suffrage and education, and from the 19th Amendment being passed in 1920, finally giving women the right to vote, all the way to today, where women are constantly breaking through glass ceilings, our history is rich with women who never, ever gave up.

There have been so many women behind equality, but as TIME magazine stated, there was one woman in particular who can be thanked for Women’s Equality Day –  Bella Abzug. She was “a Democrat from New York, who introduced the bill that would formally establish the day of recognition”. A lawyer, a politician, and an activist, Bella had an outspoken personality that caught the eye and attention of everyone she came across. It is because of her push to recognize this day that we are able to remind this country of the great things women have done.

The fight is far from over, but it is shifting. And on this day, we’re thankful for those who came before us and for the courage and inspiration they instilled into us. We still have a ways to go – for women, for race, for equality – but it’s amazing to see how far we’ve come. Happy Women’s Equality Day, and may we see many more changes from the incredible women around us.