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We use the law to change the world. Join us.

Social change often begins with legal change and so we use the power of the law to create enduring equality for women and girls everywhere.

Unlock Women’s Potential. Unlock the World.

WHAT WE DO

At Equality Now, we believe in creating a just world for women and girls. Since 1992, our international network of lawyers, activists and supporters have tackled the most difficult issues, challenged ingrained cultural assumptions and called out inequality wherever we see it.

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In 2022 we made 30 expert submissions to the UN and regional bodies advocating for law and policy reform

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In 2022 we worked in tandem with 147 partners worked across 34 countries.

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Almost 55% of the discriminatory laws we’ve highlighted since 1999 have been fully or partially reformed

EXPLORE OUR WORK

A lack of legal equality promotes violence and discrimination, yet almost every country in the world has laws that treat people differently on the basis of sex and/or gender.

Sexual exploitation, a form of sexual abuse, is when someone abuses or attempts to abuse another person’s vulnerability or their own position of power or trust for sexual purposes.

Sexual violence is a human rights violation that predominantly affects women and girls as a consequence of systemic and structural inequality.

The term 'harmful practices' covers forms of violence or ritual discrimination, primarily committed against girls and women, that have become culturally normalized.

Join Equality Now’s Changemakers Network

Join Equality Now's international network of changemakers, from government ministers and UN bodies to civil society and human rights lawyers, to learn from one another and drive forward the vital work to make gender equality a reality.

Latest News and Insights

Photograph of a statue of Lady Justice

Beyond A Reasonable Doubt: Legal Arguments & Justice for Survivors 

No matter how many times we talk about the urgent need to address the culture of impunity as rape and sexual assault cases make headlines around the world, survivors and advocates continue to witness men, ...

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Why Women’s Rights Are Vulnerable in America

By Shivangi Misra, Global Legal Advisor at Equality Now The US government often takes a strong and vocal position on international human rights violations in other countries. But when it comes to upholding the legal rights of women ...

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Why Legal Equality Is Key to Women’s Economic Rights and Well-Being

By Antonia Kirkland Global Lead, Legal Equality and Access to Justice and Bryna Subherwal, Global Head of Advocacy Communications, Equality Now New York, USA, March 6, 2023 – Women’s economic ...

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Make Equality Reality

DONATE TODAY

None of us can afford to sit back and wait for equality to arrive – we need to act now.

With the power of your support, we can challenge injustice; we can stand against sexual violence; we can protect and advance hard-won rights, and we can amplify the voices of survivors – so every girl can enjoy the safety, choice, and respect she deserves.

None of us can afford to sit back and wait for equality to arrive – we need to act now.

With the power of your support, we can challenge injustice; we can stand against sexual violence; we can protect and advance hard-won rights, and we can amplify the voices of survivors – so every girl can enjoy the safety, choice, and respect she deserves.

Our Resource Center

Explore in-depth resources on women’s rights issues, including sexual violence, sexual exploitation, harmful practices, and legal discrimination from our expert network of lawyers and activists.

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I need the ERA because… economic rights are human rights

05 March 2024

In the United States, women do not have protections nor an explicit guarantee of equality on the basis of sex or gender withi...

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Words And Deeds: Sex Discrimination In Economic Status Laws - 2024 Update

05 March 2024

The 4th UN Conference on Women in 1995 was the birth of The Beijing Platform for Action, the most progressive blueprint ever ...

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I need the ERA because...without the ERA, the US violates international law

08 March 2024

In October 2023, the United States was reviewed by the United Nations Human Rights Committee, and for the first time, a UN tr...

Listen to our podcast We Change the Rules

A bold, six-part audio series, hosted by Samira Ahmed, exploring the history and global impact of legal inequality on women and girls. We Change the Rules is essential listening for anyone interested in achieving legal, political, and systematic gender equality everywhere.