Gloria Allred and the Battles We Thank Her For

Feminists often say that the struggle for equality is a never-ending battle. And, this continues to be fact from the time women marched the streets in suffrage to even now when women march the streets in protest for their rights. After the 2016 elections, the movements for equality among men and women has never been stronger. Hundreds of thousands of people have shown up for women’s marches around the United States in January, and the marches will continue it seems. In times like these, when we come to our wit’s end through protesting and frustration, it is important to reflect on the impact of those who came before us.

Women’s equality has tackled many tough issues like voting, and some tough issues are being contested today such as a woman’s right to decide what to do with her own body. But, when the Supreme Court could potentially have the ability to review their decision on Roe v. Wade (1973), we anticipate the potential setback for our rights with fear and anxiety. Could we be degraded into the Handmaid's Tale society? Have we experienced the peak of the rights we were able to gain? Fortunately, many a generation of women have been in our shoes and we can look on the career of one women to prove to us that there is fight still left fighting for. This woman would be none other than attorney and women’s rights activist Gloria Allred.

From early on in her life, it was clear she was a bright, highly motivated individual with three high-profile institutions under her belt; she is an alumnus of University of Pennsylvania, New York University, and Loyola University School of Law. She set to work immediately by creating her own law firm with colleagues from her school. From early on in her work, Gloria Allred was noted by popular media for taking on very difficult cases and working on cases in which she won millions of dollars for women. Her work on Roe v. Wade (1973) proved to us that she was willing to take on cases that no one else would, and allowed her to move the Supreme Court to make one of the most monumental decisions when it came to women’s rights.

But, Roe v. Wade (1973) is not the only high profile case Gloria Allred has worked on. In fact, she’s famous for taking on several other cases involving women’s rights and minority issues.  One of these famous examples is when she won a case dealing with when Aaron Spelling fired actress Hunter Tylo for being pregnant, laying the foundation for not only actresses’ working rights, but also working rights for the modern working women. Gloria Allred is a queen of the media, using it to bring light to issues that many people would not have been able to fight for without her popular support. In addition to being an attorney, Allred has hosted television and radio shows, winning as prestigious awards for these shows as she has for her work as an attorney. Truly, the repertoire of accomplishments is something to marvel at by any person and she had truly worked her hardest for each.

However, women like Gloria Allred are not just meant to be appreciated. A powerful women such as Allred serves as an inspiration to women across the country, from those who are just growing to up to those who are towards the end of their careers. Because it really takes just a little bit of each and every one of us to realize that it is our duty to make sure that equality means something to the future generation. Women’s equality is still not something that people in this world can take for granted because we haven’t achieved it yet. But, from the work of more people like Gloria Allred, we may see the future finally swinging in a direction that’s favorable.