2023 Wrapped: Our Top 10 Moments

December 18. 2023

A lot of work went into holding the line this year to protect equal rights and advance gender justice. While the fight continues, we can and must celebrate our victories! Below are 10 of Equal Rights Advocates’ favorite moments of 2023.

ERA 2023 Wrapped: Top 10 Moments

In August, we filed a class action lawsuit against Vassar College over long-standing pay discrimination against women professors compared to male professors. The lawsuit sparked student protests and received national coverage in The Washington Post, New York Times, and more. We also provided amici support to major tech pay equity cases: an action against Google resulted in a $118 million settlement benefitting 1,500 workers, and a similar suit against tech giant Oracle on behalf of 3,000 women IT workers is pending. Shout out to the firms leading these cases!

The Equal Pay Today (EPT) campaign celebrated its 10th anniversary as the nation marked the 60th anniversary of the federal Equal Pay Act and the passage of 150 stronger equal pay laws over the past decade. EPT released a bold 2023-2024 Equal Pay Policy Agenda with 25+ state and federal policy initiatives to close gender, racial, and LGBTQ+ wage gaps. ERA proudly partnered with 40 EPT member organizations to engage millions of people across the country behind policy reforms, strategic enforcement, and community education on Equal Pay Days throughout the year. Learn more.

After months of advocacy, 5 of our Stronger California bills for women, workers, and families were signed into law this fall, setting a new pace of progress for states across the country. We led 60 organizations in successfully reducing childcare costs; protecting workers who report labor violations; ensuring more paid sick days; and shielding sexual violence survivors from baseless defamation lawsuits. Learn more.

We supported 2 important education cases with amicus briefs this year. First, the CA Supreme Court ruled college survivors of domestic and sexual violence are no longer required to endure live cross-examination in hearings—a Trump-era rule that singled out victims for interrogation. In the second, we supported students in a 9th Circuit Title IX case that will determine whether college athletes can join forces across sports teams to collectively show gender discrimination in their school’s athletics program.

A proud contingent of ERA staff, volunteers, and supporters marched in the San Francisco Pride Parade this June! We celebrated our LGBTQ+ identities, shared information with the crowd about their rights at work and school, organized collective action, and—of course—we danced.

In September, we were invited to a special meeting of advocates at the White House to speak with Biden Administration officials about closing wage and wealth gaps for Black women. We and other advocates shared information with officials about how to address occupational segregation, lack of access to affordable childcare and paid leave, workplace discrimination, and other barriers. Learn more.

We launched our Women Rebuilding America initiative to disrupt occupational segregation by increasing equity in infrastructure industries. With new transformative federal legislation disbursing $4 trillion to state and local governments across the country, millions of new high-paying trades jobs will be created. ERA is co-leading a coalition to help ensure women and people of color fill these jobs.

Our team welcomed 5 new people in 2023, each a treasured leader in the gender justice movement: Deborah J. Vagins, National Campaign Director; Melvina Ford, National Legal Director; Nupur Soni, Assistant Digital Marketing Manager; Ayn Hinojosa, Office Coordinator; and Comfort Siodlarz, Director of Finance.

On 7 days of action throughout the year, we facilitated online conversations spotlighting movement leaders who are Native American women, Black women, tradeswomen, and Latina women, who shared insights on community-specific issues and possible solutions to economic disparities and unfair access to opportunities. Tune in to learn from these community leaders by clicking the links above.

Our annual Gala in June focused on the necessity of innovative partnerships across states and sectors to successfully defend rights and advance equality. The event featured a fascinating conversation with journalist Dahlia Lithwick, and awards for honorees Rep. Nancy Pelosi, Hon. Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye, and Cassandra Welchlin of the Mississippi Black Women’s Roundtable. Watch a free recording of the event here!