How people think about gender equality

This week marked International Women’s Day and the start of Women’s History Month. A lot has happened in the lead-up to this week. Nikki Haley, the first female candidate to enter the 2024 race for the White House, announced her candidacy a few weeks ago. Comments about her gender and age began soon after.

Outside of that, gender is playing an enormous role in politics globally and domestically. The overturn of Roe v. Wade in the U.S. pushed questions of gender and bodily autonomy to the front of the national debate and factored heavily into the midterms. Globally, protests over the detainment and death of Masha Amini began in Iran and spread throughout the world in recent months too.

At the same time, the legacy of the pandemic on work, life, and gender inequality is still percolating in the background. With these factors at play, The U.N. chief now warned that gender equality is 300 years away.

In light of all of this, this week, we take a look at how gender and age frame attitudes and approaches to gender equality in the U.S. and around the world.

1. Gender inequality is a global problem. Most people in the U.S. and around the world still feel like gender inequality is a problem. Globally, women, regardless of age, are more likely than men to agree. In the United States the picture is more complicated. Women over 40 are more likely than younger women and men of any age to agree that gender inequality is still an issue. However, a majority of women and men under 40 still feel that gender inequality is an issue.
2. Naming gender inequality. Younger Americans are far more likely than older Americans to report witnessing sexist moments. Four in five Americans over 50 have not been in any situation where they saw a sexist exchange. Compare that to the roughly one in three Americans under 35 (36%) who say the same. Being able to name the experience is the first step to addressing it.
3. Younger Americans taking action. Likewise, younger Americans are the most likely to report doing something to address gender inequality in the past year. A majority of people under 35 (62%) say they’ve done something to this end, while just one in four Americans between the ages of 50 to 74 (24%) say the same. Not feeling gender inequality is relevant to them, never being in a situation where gender inequality was an issue and feeling that nothing they can do will make a difference are the top barriers to action. Even more don’t know why they didn’t act.
4. Who benefits from equality? Overall, many Americans, regardless of age and gender, feel that gender equality benefits both women and men. Though, men are almost twice as likely to say that gender equality mainly helps women. Experiences also vary slightly by life stage. The benefits of gender equality for all are not a settled issue.
5. The future of equality. Looking ahead, Americans are split on whether gender equality is an attainable goal in their lifetime. Half of men and those under 35 say it is possible. Women and those over 35 are more likely to disagree.

Gender inequality splits the public in many ways. On one hand, many see it as a problem and feel that reaching for gender equality will benefit everyone. Yet, at the same time, many can’t name sexist exchanges they’ve seen, and few have done something in the past year to address gender inequality.

Promisingly, younger Americans are acting on this issue, and many feel that equality is attainable in their lifetime. These are important conversations to have; Join us in a few weeks on March 29^th, where we will keep the conversation going as we explore nuances around gender in the workplace at our in-person DC Salon.