Women are more likely to gain injuries in a car crash because safety features in cars were designed to protect the average male. When safety isn’t universal, equality isn’t either.
March may be Women’s History Month, but awareness can’t be limited to a single month or campaign.. If we want a fairer future, we have to recognize everyday injustices women face—many of which are so normalized that we barely question them.
One of the clearest examples is how society values men’s autonomy over women’s. Sophomore Cadence Rhoades explains that this inequity becomes obvious whenever men and women make personal choices. Women who don’t follow the traditional path of motherhood are often regarded as “violating their civic duty,” states the University of Chicago. Yet, men who choose not to have families face no such judgement.
Similarly, women still aren’t taken as seriously as men. Science teacher Mrs. Casey Banh recalls that while coaching girls volleyball, “I felt like I needed to prove myself more, to be taken seriously, or looked as a legitimate coach.” Why must women constantly have to prove their worth while men are assumed competent from the start? These inequities show how deeply gender norms are woven into society—and why the next generation must work to unravel them.
This isn’t just a local issue. According to the UN Women, no country in the world has granted full legal equality for girls. Globally, women hold only 64% of the rights men do, and closing that gap could take more than a century. Even beyond our school and the United States, women’s rights struggle to stay afloat.
For example, in Afghanistan, women can only receive essential services from other women—yet females are banned from education beyond 6th grade. When knowledge is restricted, power is restricted. With the access and awareness we do have, we should use them to stand up for those who can’t.
CVHS student Narine Gasparyan (10), compares female perception in Armenia and the U.S.: “The U.S. is strong in many areas and offers a lot of opportunities for women, but I think there are still some issues like unequal pay and fewer women in leadership positions compared to men.” Her perspective reinforces the pattern that appears everywhere we look: progress for women is real, but it’s uneven and constantly challenged.
These experiences, whether in our classrooms or across the world, reveal that women are still navigating systems that were never built with them in mind. Awareness is not enough, it must move us to action, advocacy, and a refusal to accept “almost equal” as good enough. Rhoades reminds us, “If a woman does something brilliant, it should be recognized too.”
Gender Equality Remains an Unfinished Promise
By Angel Obispo ‘27
Women are more likely to gain injuries in a car crash because safety features in cars were designed to protect the average male. When safety isn’t universal, equality isn’t either.
March may be Women’s History Month, but awareness can’t be limited to a single month or campaign.. If we want a fairer future, we have to recognize everyday injustices women face—many of which are so normalized that we barely question them.
One of the clearest examples is how society values men’s autonomy over women’s. Sophomore Cadence Rhoades explains that this inequity becomes obvious whenever men and women make personal choices. Women who don’t follow the traditional path of motherhood are often regarded as “violating their civic duty,” states the University of Chicago. Yet, men who choose not to have families face no such judgement.
Similarly, women still aren’t taken as seriously as men. Science teacher Mrs. Casey Banh recalls that while coaching girls volleyball, “I felt like I needed to prove myself more, to be taken seriously, or looked as a legitimate coach.” Why must women constantly have to prove their worth while men are assumed competent from the start? These inequities show how deeply gender norms are woven into society—and why the next generation must work to unravel them.
This isn’t just a local issue. According to the UN Women, no country in the world has granted full legal equality for girls. Globally, women hold only 64% of the rights men do, and closing that gap could take more than a century. Even beyond our school and the United States, women’s rights struggle to stay afloat.
For example, in Afghanistan, women can only receive essential services from other women—yet females are banned from education beyond 6th grade. When knowledge is restricted, power is restricted. With the access and awareness we do have, we should use them to stand up for those who can’t.
CVHS student Narine Gasparyan (10), compares female perception in Armenia and the U.S.: “The U.S. is strong in many areas and offers a lot of opportunities for women, but I think there are still some issues like unequal pay and fewer women in leadership positions compared to men.” Her perspective reinforces the pattern that appears everywhere we look: progress for women is real, but it’s uneven and constantly challenged.
These experiences, whether in our classrooms or across the world, reveal that women are still navigating systems that were never built with them in mind. Awareness is not enough, it must move us to action, advocacy, and a refusal to accept “almost equal” as good enough. Rhoades reminds us, “If a woman does something brilliant, it should be recognized too.”
Sources:
weforum.org
unwomen.org
npr.org
unwomen.org
forbes.com
uchicago.edu
equalityinsights.org