Adele Cassola

Where do Women Stand? New Evidence on the Presence and Absence of Gender Equality in the World's Constitutions

In countries around the world, constitutional protections of womens rights have provided a legal foundation to combat discriminatory laws, customs, and actions and a catalyst for advances in gender equality. This article draws on newly available data from 191 countries to analyze womens constitutional rights across the spheres of general equality and nondiscrimination, political participation, social and economic rights, family life, and customary and religious law. We examined how gender-specific and universal protections differed according to a constitutions year of adoption and last amendment, and identified regional patterns that persisted across all decades. Women were explicitly guaranteed general equality or nondiscrimination in 81% of constitutions, some aspect of political equality in 32%, marital equality in 27%, some aspect of work equality in 26%, and equal educational rights in 9% of constitutions. Protection of womens rights increased substantially between 1980 and 2011. As of June 2011, however, no constitution in the Middle East and North Africa guaranteed gender-specific protection in education, work, or marriage, and there were no guarantees of marital equality in South Asian constitutions. Of the constitutions that protected some aspect of gender equality, 5% stated that customary or religious laws could prevail over constitutional provisions.

Making equal rights real : taking effective action to overcome global challenges

Part I. Conventions and Constitutions: 1. Forging effective international agreements: lessons from the UN convention on the rights of persons with disabilities Michael Ashley Stein and Janet E. Lord 2. Ensuring equal rights in constitutions: public participation in drafting economic, social and cultural rights Jill Cottrell Part II. Laws and Policies: 3. Putting economic rights into practice: strategies from labor and employment law Benjamin Sachs 4. Promoting equity in economic rights: the case of gender and land rights Elisa Scalise and Renee Giovarelli 5. Equalizing social and cultural rights: approaches to equity across ethnic and racial groups Grace-Edward Galabuzi Part III. Budgets and Information: 6. Public access to information: the keystone to claiming and defending rights Agnes Callamard 7. Government budgets and rights implementation: experience from around the world Ann Blyberg 8. Budgets, information and participation: civil society approaches to increasing rights accountability Roberto Bissio Part IV. Case Studies of Successful Cross-Cutting Approaches: 9. An integrated approach to advancing childrens rights and participation in Jordan Samia Bishara-Rizeq, Sirsa A. Qursha and Laila S. Abdul Majeed 10. Working within communities to increase gender equity in Zambia Robyn Wisken 11. Realizing equal rights in practice for people with disabilities in Argentina and the United States Mary MacLennan 12. Guaranteeing legal rights for sexual and gender minorities in Nepal Alexandra Lesnikowski.

Do constitutions guarantee equal rights across socioeconomic status? A half century of change in the world’s constitutions

For those disadvantaged by bias and barriers based on socioeconomic status (SES), constitutions can provide a defense against discrimination and a foundation for greater equality in social, economic, and political life. In light of the near-global commitment to a multi-dimensional poverty reduction agenda and the increased inclusion of marginalized groups in constitution-drafting processes, this article examines how 193 constitutions address SES and how this has changed over time. The majority of constitutions guarantee equal access to primary education across SES (59%) and prohibit discrimination on this basis (58%). Fewer guarantee access to healthcare (20%), equal rights in employment (15%), eligibility for legislative office (4%), and voting rights (4%) across SES. Constitutions adopted after 1990 are considerably more likely to protect equal rights across SES than older ones. However, 25% of constitutions – including 17% of those adopted since 1990 – restrict political participation based on socioeconomic characteristics.

Making Equal Rights Real: Budgets and Information

Part I. Conventions and Constitutions: 1. Forging effective international agreements: lessons from the UN convention on the rights of persons with disabilities Michael Ashley Stein and Janet E. Lord 2. Ensuring equal rights in constitutions: public participation in drafting economic, social and cultural rights Jill Cottrell Part II. Laws and Policies: 3. Putting economic rights into practice: strategies from labor and employment law Benjamin Sachs 4. Promoting equity in economic rights: the case of gender and land rights Elisa Scalise and Renee Giovarelli 5. Equalizing social and cultural rights: approaches to equity across ethnic and racial groups Grace-Edward Galabuzi Part III. Budgets and Information: 6. Public access to information: the keystone to claiming and defending rights Agnes Callamard 7. Government budgets and rights implementation: experience from around the world Ann Blyberg 8. Budgets, information and participation: civil society approaches to increasing rights accountability Roberto Bissio Part IV. Case Studies of Successful Cross-Cutting Approaches: 9. An integrated approach to advancing childrens rights and participation in Jordan Samia Bishara-Rizeq, Sirsa A. Qursha and Laila S. Abdul Majeed 10. Working within communities to increase gender equity in Zambia Robyn Wisken 11. Realizing equal rights in practice for people with disabilities in Argentina and the United States Mary MacLennan 12. Guaranteeing legal rights for sexual and gender minorities in Nepal Alexandra Lesnikowski.

Making Equal Rights Real: Conventions and Constitutions

Part I. Conventions and Constitutions: 1. Forging effective international agreements: lessons from the UN convention on the rights of persons with disabilities Michael Ashley Stein and Janet E. Lord 2. Ensuring equal rights in constitutions: public participation in drafting economic, social and cultural rights Jill Cottrell Part II. Laws and Policies: 3. Putting economic rights into practice: strategies from labor and employment law Benjamin Sachs 4. Promoting equity in economic rights: the case of gender and land rights Elisa Scalise and Renee Giovarelli 5. Equalizing social and cultural rights: approaches to equity across ethnic and racial groups Grace-Edward Galabuzi Part III. Budgets and Information: 6. Public access to information: the keystone to claiming and defending rights Agnes Callamard 7. Government budgets and rights implementation: experience from around the world Ann Blyberg 8. Budgets, information and participation: civil society approaches to increasing rights accountability Roberto Bissio Part IV. Case Studies of Successful Cross-Cutting Approaches: 9. An integrated approach to advancing childrens rights and participation in Jordan Samia Bishara-Rizeq, Sirsa A. Qursha and Laila S. Abdul Majeed 10. Working within communities to increase gender equity in Zambia Robyn Wisken 11. Realizing equal rights in practice for people with disabilities in Argentina and the United States Mary MacLennan 12. Guaranteeing legal rights for sexual and gender minorities in Nepal Alexandra Lesnikowski.

Making Equal Rights Real: Making Equal Rights Real

Part I. Conventions and Constitutions: 1. Forging effective international agreements: lessons from the UN convention on the rights of persons with disabilities Michael Ashley Stein and Janet E. Lord 2. Ensuring equal rights in constitutions: public participation in drafting economic, social and cultural rights Jill Cottrell Part II. Laws and Policies: 3. Putting economic rights into practice: strategies from labor and employment law Benjamin Sachs 4. Promoting equity in economic rights: the case of gender and land rights Elisa Scalise and Renee Giovarelli 5. Equalizing social and cultural rights: approaches to equity across ethnic and racial groups Grace-Edward Galabuzi Part III. Budgets and Information: 6. Public access to information: the keystone to claiming and defending rights Agnes Callamard 7. Government budgets and rights implementation: experience from around the world Ann Blyberg 8. Budgets, information and participation: civil society approaches to increasing rights accountability Roberto Bissio Part IV. Case Studies of Successful Cross-Cutting Approaches: 9. An integrated approach to advancing childrens rights and participation in Jordan Samia Bishara-Rizeq, Sirsa A. Qursha and Laila S. Abdul Majeed 10. Working within communities to increase gender equity in Zambia Robyn Wisken 11. Realizing equal rights in practice for people with disabilities in Argentina and the United States Mary MacLennan 12. Guaranteeing legal rights for sexual and gender minorities in Nepal Alexandra Lesnikowski.