Pop Quiz: What Do the US, Iran, Somalia, Sudan and Tonga Have in Common?

by Mindy Townsend · 2010-11-19 16:31:00 UTC
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Nothing gets my blood pumping like a good congressional hearing.

Ok, maybe that’s a bit of a generalization. But in the case of the CEDAW hearings, it rings true. Because, you see, I’m a woman, and I have rights.

The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women – or the pithier acronym, CEDAW – is the international human rights treaty that specifically addresses the rights of women. As a western woman, this seems like a no-brainer. Surely the United States, what with being the leader of the free world an all, was the first to sign on?

Oh wait, no, the US was not in fact #1. Well, former US President Jimmy Carter signed the thing, but it’s been sitting in committee ever since. That’s right, for decades the United States has not ratified CEDAW.

It has been ratified by 186 countries. Which countries are not members? Iran, Nauru, Palau, Somalia, Sudan, Tonga, Niue, Vatican City and yes, The United States.

In fact, the upcoming Senate hearings on CEDAW will mark the first time in eight years that the US government has even talked about the global treaty.

Nice, real nice.

The critics argue that since countries like Saudi Arabia are on the list, the treaty can’t be that effective, or that the United States doesn’t need to be a party to the treaty because things are so awesome for women in the United States.

But that sort of misses the point. Sure, there are ways in which the United States is currently out of compliance with the treaty, and we should keep working to make sure fifty percent of the population are not discriminated against because of sex or gender. But as Justice Sandra Day O’Connor pointed out in her letter to Senator Richard Durbin, our absence on the list of countries who have ratified CEDAW only gives ammunition to countries that tolerate – even encourage – gross abuses of women’s human rights.

Every woman in the world could benefit if the United States would just ratify CEDAW.

Even if the Senate does ratify the treaty, there are plenty of nuances of international law that would need to be hammered out. But ratifying this treaty would send the message that the United States really cares about women.

Sign the petition below to pile the pressure on the US senate.

We’re all waiting.

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Mindy Townsend
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