Women's Equality Isn't Just for Liberals

Many of us working in the women's equality movement are frustrated that our message of women's empowerment resonates considerably better with liberals than conservatives. I frequently hear from liberals that you can't be a women's advocate if you are not a pro-choice Democrat, and from conservatives that any group with the word woman in it is de facto liberal leaning.

As American politics threatens to divide the country now as never before, I feel real urgency for women to find common ground and to come together over the issues that unite us. Women's equality should not be a partisan issue – it should be seen as a human rights issue that transcends party politics. Women share so many circumstances in life that differ from men. Here are some of the things we have in common:

• We are predominantly the caregivers, both of our children and eventually our parents;
• Our ability to reproduce means our early lives are dominated by concerns including pregnancy, birth control, maternity leave, nursing, in vitro fertilization and child care.
• We face domestic violence and sexual assault in vastly larger numbers than men;
• Our careers are affected by maternity leaves, elder care concerns, glass ceilings, glass cliffs, pregnancy discrimination and sexual harassment;
• We are stuck at 20 percent leadership in most fields, except politics where the percentage is slightly lower; and
• We are judged by the way we look and dress and whether we have children or not in a way that men rarely are judged.

The large number of studies showing that when women are in power, we get better results are not partisan in nature. Add women to leadership in a company, and the company increases profits. Add women to leadership in politics and more bills are passed and more collaboration occurs. Around the world, there is recognition of the need for women's leadership in all sectors. This isn't about feminism or fairness: it is about doing the smart thing.

So what can we do to bring liberal and conservative women to the table to work together? For starters, we need a more civil dialogue. We need to respect each other's choices and agree to disagree on the issues that we will never find common ground on (abortion, for starters). We need for both sides to recognize that all of us are being held back by a system that no longer serves anyone well.

In the organization I lead, we bring together women of all ideologies around a common goal – to increase the number of women in political leadership. The conversations we have around the table at our Friday seminars don't touch partisan issues; they revolve around how to overcome the many barriers that these young women face on their path to leadership just because they are women. The friendships that are created in our programs cross ideological lines, and I know that when these women do rise to power they will have a deeper respect for how the other side thinks about issues because they've gotten to know each other as people.

So regardless of who you voted for or how you feel about the most contentious political issues, there is value in finding common ground with other women because of the many similarities our lives share. Imagine the power women would have if we worked together on the issues most affecting our lives. So, conservative women, please check out the nonpartisan women's empowerment groups and see how you can get involved. And liberal women, when conservative women want to get involved, you need to open the door wide and receive them with open arms. Now is the time for us all to work together!