--- title: Meet Women's Equality Day Founder Bella Abzug description: In 1971, Congresswoman Bella Abzug, a Democrat from New York, introduced the bill that would formally establish the day of recognition. canonical: https://time.com/4459168/womens-equality-day-bella-abzug/ author: Eliza Berman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-08-26T12:30:35.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:41:57.249Z article:section: History og:title: Meet the Woman Behind Women’s Equality Day og:description: Bella Abzug introduced the bill in 1971, and that was just the beginning og:url: https://time.com/4459168/womens-equality-day-bella-abzug/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt90d05d41fcb75170/6988a30b97cdff7bbd6ad821/abzug.jpeg?branch=production&width=522&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 522 og:image:height: 294 og:image:alt: Benefit for Bella Abzug og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Meet the Woman Behind Women’s Equality Day twitter:description: Bella Abzug introduced the bill in 1971, and that was just the beginning twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt90d05d41fcb75170/6988a30b97cdff7bbd6ad821/abzug.jpeg?branch=production&width=522&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Meet the Woman Behind Women’s Equality Day > Sponsored content. 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They are at time.com/newsletters and are separate from a paid subscription. ## Video: What Ever Happened to the Equal Rights Amendment? [Watch (HLS stream): What Ever Happened to the Equal Rights Amendment?](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/Wp2zFoLt.m3u8) (2:10)  _Published 2015-08-25. There is still no constitutional guarantee for equal rights for women._  by [Eliza Berman](https://time.com/author/eliza-berman/)  ## Eliza Berman Berman is a senior editor at TIME. Aug 26, 2016 12:30 PM UTC  Bella Abzug benefit for Bella Abzug on Feb. 1, 1971 at Katz's Deli in New York City. Bella Abzug benefit for Bella Abzug on Feb. 1, 1971 at Katz's Deli in New York City. Ron Galella—WireImage/Getty images  by [Eliza Berman](https://time.com/author/eliza-berman/)  ## Eliza Berman Berman is a senior editor at TIME. Aug 26, 2016 12:30 PM UTC On Aug. 26, 1970, 50,000 women marched down New York City’s Fifth Avenue in an undeniable display of the strength of second-wave feminism. They were celebrating the 50th anniversary of the [19th Amendment](http://time.com/3986075/19th-amendment/), which granted American women the right to vote, but they were also protesting the limits and expectations placed on American womanhood, demanding changes to childcare and abortion policies and education and employment opportunities. Many abandoned their usual domestic duties for the day, with spiritual sisters across the country staging sit-ins and takeovers of all-male bars. One year to the day after the [Women’s Strike for Equality March](http://time.com/4008060/women-strike-equality-1970/), Congress passed a resolution designating Aug. 26 as [Women’s Equality Day](http://time.com/4010645/womens-equality-day/), and 45 years later, the day continues to be a moment to reckon with how far women’s rights have come, and how far they have yet to go. Though in truth there are many women to thank for establishing Women’s Equality Day—dating back to the suffragists who gathered at Seneca Falls in 1848—the woman most directly responsible was Congresswoman [Bella Abzug](http://time.com/3747970/hillary-clinton-bella-abzug/), a Democrat from New York, who introduced the bill that would formally establish the day of recognition. [_Get your history fix in one place: sign up for the weekly TIME History newsletter_](http://time.com/newsletter) Abzug’s push for Women’s Equality Day was, in fact, far more symbolic than many of the more concrete policies she made a reality in her six years in Congress, not to mention in the two decades prior to her election, which she spent as a lawyer fighting for human rights and civil rights. While in Congress, she co-founded the National Women’s Political Caucus along with Betty Friedan, Gloria Steinem and [Shirley Chisholm](http://time.com/4359610/shirley-chisholm-nominee/), working to secure more elected positions for women in politics. She later introduced the first federal gay-rights bill, along with future New York City mayor Ed Koch. Failed bids for Senate and New York City mayor hardly slowed her roll, and she would continue fighting for equal rights until her death in 1998. But Abzug is remembered as much for her accomplishments as for the way she went about realizing them: neither quietly nor politely, thank you very much. She was known for being brash and outspoken, described in the [pages](http://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,877192,00.html) of TIME as “truculent and courageous,” with a New York City accent Norman Mailer said “could boil the fat off a taxi driver’s neck.” She spoke, almost always, from beneath a wide-brimmed hat which she began wearing in her early days as a lawyer when she was repeatedly mistaken for a secretary. As TIME wrote of her just 10 days before that 1971 resolution was passed: “No one, friend or enemy, denies that Bella Abzug has a certain presence.” ### Bella Abzug, Co-Founder of the National Women's Political Caucus  Caption from LIFE. Bella announces her candidacy. Applauding are supporters Gloria Steinem, left, and former Ms. publisher Elizabeth Forsling Harris. Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Bella Abzug, 1972. Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Bella Abzug speaks to supporters, 1972. Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. Bella and her primary rival, Rep. William Ryan, are miles apart as they wait to try to sell their candidacies to the Village Independent Democrats club. After a bitter debate, Bella won the club's support 89 to 57. Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Caption from LIFE. In her do-or-die primary, Bella makes no unimpassioned appearances. Here she demands support from a Manhattan Democratic club. Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Bella Abzug, 1972. Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Bella Abzug, 1972. Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Bella Abzug at her desk, 1972. Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Bella Abzug, 1972. Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Bella Abzug during a peace march, 1972. Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Bella Abzug on the campaign trail, 1972. Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Supporters of Bella Abzug, 1972. Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Supporters of Bella Abzug, 1972. Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Bella Abzug and supporters, 1972. Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images  Bella Abzug by the Capitol Building, 1972. Leonard McCombe—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images ## Transcript [ MUSIC ] It's been 95 years since women in the US gained the right to vote. And since then, the fight for women's rights has come a long way. In the 70s, Title IX outlawed discrimination [ MUSIC ] A combination based on sex and public schools and government programs. And yet, there's actually no general Constitutional guarantee of equal rights for women. In 1972, Congress passed the equal rights Rights Amendment, or ERA, which simply states equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States, or by any state, on account of sex. But in the end, that amendment never became part of the constitution. The amendment was introduced by women's' rights activist Alice Paul in 1923. She argued that the then recent passage of the nineteenth amendment, which gave women the right to vote, would not protect women against discrimination in other areas of life. Between 1923 and 1972, the amendment was introduced in every Congressional session. Many famous feminists like Betty Friedan and Gloria Steinem staunchly supported the idea. Even First Lady Betty Ford voiced her support. It will help knock down those restrictions that have locked women in. But the Amendment was not without its opponents. And surprisingly the head of the stop ERA campaign was not a man. [ MUSIC ] But a woman leading the charge against the ERA was conservative activist Phyllis Schlafly. She argued that it would actually hurt women by forcing them to be part of the military draft and ending certain protections such as alimony after divorce. When the ERA made it out of Congress and was sent to each state to be ratified, Schlafly led a campaign to stop its momentum. Whether by her intervention or not, the amendment was only ratified by 35 of the 38 states needed to amend the Constitution. But despite the fact that it still hasn't been ratified, the Equal Rights Amendment has not been completely forgotten. The amendment has been introduced all over again in every Congress since then. 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