THE MONUMENTAL MOMENTS OF 2022

This past year was filled with monumental moments which have left their mark in the fight for women’s rights and gender equality around the world. Let’s take a look at these historic developments!

JANUARY

Source: Council on Foreign Relations
Marking the end of a 12 year reign by the National party of Honduras, politician Xiomara Castro assumed the presidency of Honduras and became the country’s first female president.

February

Source: UNICEF
Celebrating 10 years, the International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) was designated by the United Nations to increase awareness and advocate for the elimination of this practice. The United Nations, alongside UNICEF, are jointly working towards ending the practice of FGM by 2030.

MARCH

Source: International Women's Day
Dedicated to Women’s History Month, on March 8th we celebrated the 113th International Women’s Day. Advocating for a gender equal world free of stereotypes and discrimination, this year’s theme was #BreaktheBias.

APRIL

Source: NBC News
The Senate confirmed Ketanji Brown Jackson’s nomination as Supreme Court Justice. The appointment passed by 53 to 47 votes, making Jackson the first Black woman to serve on the Supreme Court.

MAY

Source: Aljazeera
Hungary swore in its first female and youngest president ever, Katalin Novak. Prior to becoming President, Novak served as a minister for family policy.

JUNE

Source: Reuters
Ukraine made strides in the advancement of women’s rights by ratifying the Istanbul Convention, an international treaty to address violence against women by setting legally-binding minimum standards for governments in Europe for the prevention, protection, and prosecution of domestic and sexual violence.

JULY

Source: Harvard University
Claudine Gay was appointed as the 30th President of Harvard University. Previously a dean at Harvard, Claudine is the second woman and only black person to assume the position of president.

AUGUST

Source: Tribeza
Every year on August 26th, Women’s Equality Day is observed to celebrate the certification of the 19th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. This year marked over 100 years since the Amendment was ratified in 1920, granting women the constitutional right to vote. Women’s Equality Day was first observed in 1972 and has since highlighted the continuous efforts made towards equal rights.

SEPTEMBER

Source: TIME
Following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who died in the custody of Iran’s morality police after she was detained for “improper hijab”, women and girls all over Iran have been protesting since September, creating a national movement which has spread worldwide elevating the voices of women. The Iranian protestors also won TIME’s 2022 Person of the Year reader poll and were named TIME’s 2022 Heroes of the Year.

OCTOBER

Source: The Sun Daily
In a historic election, Brazil became the first South American country to vote in two trans politicians to its national parliament. The candidates were Erika Hilton who campaigned to fight for education, social housing, and LGBTQ+ rights in the country and Duda Salabert who received the highest number of votes in her state’s history, respectively.

NOVEMBER

Source: Massachusetts/Oregon Official Government Websites
The U.S. midterm elections held the highest number of LGBTQ+ candidates ever recorded – 678 out of which 340 won their races. Both Massachusetts and Oregon elected their first openly lesbian governors, Maura Healey and Tina Kotek, respectively.

DECEMBER

Source: The Guardian
President Biden signed the Respect for Marriage Act into law, making it the ‘biggest legislative win in the fight for LGBTQ+ pro-equality legislation in history’. This Act requires that all states recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states and federally recognizes these marriages.

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