The Working Mom

The ability of women to participate equally in the economic and social life of the Nation has been facilitated by their ability to control their reproductive lives. - Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pa. v Casey

The culmination of grassroots movements and labor organization comes in the form of mandates—legislation, executive orders, Supreme Court decisions—because most often, people must be forced to abandon practices of prejudice. This timeline demonstrates the legislative and judicial journey of mothers fighting to be treated as equals in the workplace. It spans from slave laws, where a mother had no right to her child yet passed her enslaved status to them, to landmark court cases that guaranteed mothers and potential mothers equal protection under the law. Although the timeline is organized chronologically, it is a mistake to assume that progress in time equates to progress in rights. Freedoms and protections have come at different rates for working women based on race and economic freedoms, and disparities continue to exist today. Victories for equal treatment can never be taken for granted as permanent, and what is considered a victory to some women is a loss to others. In the present, women in the workplace continue to fight for the ability to be treated equally, regardless of whether or not they choose to become mothers.