Which states are best for women
By Annette Richmond
 Did you know that Sunday, August 26th was Women's Equality Day here in the States? Established in 1974 by Congress, Women's Equality Day marks the day in 1920 when the 19th Amendment was ratified by 36 states and adopted to the Constitution. That's the day women got the right to vote.
Contrary to popular misconception, the women's movement did not begin in the 1960s. The first Women's Rights Convention was held over 100 years earlier, July 19-20, 1848. The move towards equality, however, may have started in 1776 when Abigail Adams wrote to her husband, John, who was attending the Continental Congress in Philadelphia. In one letter, she asked that he, and the other men working on the Declaration of Independence, "remember the ladies." According to One Hundred Years Toward Suffrage: An Overview, his response was " the Declaration's wording specifies that 'all men are created equal.'"
Over the years, we've made great strides towards equality. Women can vote and own property. We can attend college. We're even allowed to practice professions like medicine and law. But, despite many advances, we still have a long way to go.
In the United States, women have yet to achieve equal footing with men, according to The Status of Women in the States; from the Institute for Women's Policy Research. Further, the summary points out that women's status often varies greatly from state-to-state. In this report, each state is ranked in five areas related to women's standing in the States:
- Political Participation - which includes voter registration, voter turnout, representation in political office, and women's institutional resources
- Employment and Earnings - including women's earnings, the wage gap, women in managerial and professional jobs, and women's participation in the labor force
- Economic Autonomy - which includes health insurance, college education, business ownership and poverty rates
- Reproductive Rights - scores states on a composite index
- Health and Well-Being - rates states on indicators of women's health status
To illustrate the research results, The Status of Women in the States divides the country into three sections - Best, Middle and Worst - in each of the five areas. California, for example, is rated as one of the Best states for women in terms of Employment and Earnings, but, it's ranked as one of the Middle states for Economic Autonomy. Kansas, however, is counted as one of the Best states for Economic Autonomy, but only as one of the Middle states for Employment and Earnings. Here are some of the report's findings:
- Women earn more in the Pacific West, New England and Middle Atlantic states. They earn less in the Southeast and Mountain states.
- The wage gap is smallest in Washington, DC where women earn 85.7 percent of men's earnings. Wyoming has the widest wage gap: women earn only 62.8 percent of men's earnings.
- Increasing numbers of women are employed in professional and managerial positions, areas once dominated by men. Washington DC had the highest percentage of women in these fields, while Idaho had the lowest.
- Women are earning colleges degrees and starting their own businesses at higher rates than ever before.
Despite these advances, more women than men live in poverty and more women are without health insurance than in past years.
Best and Worst
As a resident of the Nutmeg state, I was happy to learn that Connecticut is rated as one of the Best states for women overall. Connecticut tied with Vermont for the number one spot. Both ranked among the top ten states in four out of the five areas (Political Participation, Employment and Earnings, Economic Autonomy, Reproductive Rights and Health and Well-Being).
Ranked among the bottom ten in four areas, Mississippi was rated the lowest in terms of status for women. I found this particularly interesting since Mississippi passed the first Married Woman's Property Act back in 1839. Which, among other things, allowed married women to retain their property rights after marriage. Here are the Best and Worst States for women, according to The Status of Women in the States.
Best Overall
Connecticut, Vermont, Washington, Hawaii, Colorado, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Alaska
(None of these states ranked below the midpoint in any area)
Worst Overall
Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Arkansas, Kentucky, South Carolina, Oklahoma, Florida, Pennsylvania
(None of these states ranked above the midpoint in any area)
What to do if your state isn't counted as one of the best? Before you start packing your bags, remember that you can change things.
One way is to get out there and vote. Evaluate your officials. Elect more women to office. While women are more likely than men to vote, as of October 2000 six states - Alaska, Delaware, Iowa, Mississippi, New Hampshire and Vermont - have never sent a woman to Congress, according to The Status of Women in the States.
You can also help by lending a hand. Support other women in your workplace. Join a mentoring program. Most women in top positions say that having a mentor played an important part in their success.
Women have come a long way over the last 200 years. But, we still have a long way to go to level the playing field. Looking at the great strides we've made over the last 100, 50, even 20 years, I wonder what leaps we'll make over the next 20.
Want more information on your state? Visit the Institute for Women's Policy Research. You'll find a summary of The Status of Women in the States under PDF reports.
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