Inclusive Growth

Women’s Initiative

The Women’s Initiative develops robust, progressive policies and solutions to ensure all women can participate in the economy and live healthy, productive lives.

A woman introduces her newborn baby to her grandmother, November 2020, in Los Angeles. (Getty/Brandon Bell)

What We're Doing

Advancing a proactive abortion agenda

Abortion rights are under attack. Our proactive agenda provides a road map for state and federal lawmakers to develop and enact policies that ensure equitable, safe access to abortion. In coalition, we will push back against restrictions that impede access to this critical health care service.

Addressing the maternal health crisis

People are more likely to die from pregnancy-related causes in the United States than in any other high-income country. Working closely with partners, we develop policy interventions to curb the maternal health crisis, eliminate racial disparities, and advance investments in maternal health care.

Closing the gender wage gap

To address pay disparities, especially for women of color, our comprehensive work advocates for measures such as the Paycheck Fairness Act (PFA). The PFA would strengthen equal pay protections, prohibit employer retaliation, and limit employers’ reliance on salary history to make hiring decisions.

Building a stronger economy by prioritizing women

Women are crucial to a thriving economy and families’ economic stability and must be at the heart of any economic recovery. We research solutions that maximize women’s economic participation and respond to competing demands of work and family, such as a national paid family and medical leave program.

About us

The Women’s Initiative works to secure women’s health and bodily autonomy, economic stability, equality, and access to equitable opportunities and uphold other reproductive, civil, and human rights. We firmly believe that the diverse experiences of women across race, ethnicity, disability, sexuality, faith backgrounds, and other factors—and the challenges they face—must be at the center of the national policy debate.

Latest

Compact View

1 Year Without Roe Personal Story

1 Year Without Roe

This CAP story collection details the experiences of doctors, doulas, and nurse practitioners since the overturn of Roe v. Wade and their fears in the rapidly evolving legal landscape of abortion care.

the Center for American Progress

Expanding Access and Protections in States Where Abortion Is Legal Article
Abortion rights advocates holding a large sign that reads

Expanding Access and Protections in States Where Abortion Is Legal

Abortion is protected by state law in more than 20 states, many of which have expanded access to abortion by making it more affordable, codifying state-level reproductive rights, broadening the types of providers able to offer care, and protecting abortion providers and access to clinics.

Center for American Progress

Kierra B. Jones

How State Attorneys General Can Protect Abortion Rights Article
Woman wearing face mask that says

How State Attorneys General Can Protect Abortion Rights

As some states seek to criminalize abortion within their borders, attorneys general can take many actions to ensure access to abortion care in at least some states.

the Center for American Progress

Maggie Jo Buchanan, Elyssa Spitzer

How Americans Can Fight Back Against a Radical Supreme Court Majority Article
The U.S. Supreme Court.

How Americans Can Fight Back Against a Radical Supreme Court Majority

Responding to the judicial overreach of a radical Supreme Court majority will require long-term structural reforms to the courts and immediate action to mitigate the harms caused by their wrongly decided decisions.

the Center for American Progress

Ben Olinsky, Grace Oyenubi

‘You Might See People Digging In’: Can Joe Biden Actually Sway Obama-Trump Voters? In the News

‘You Might See People Digging In’: Can Joe Biden Actually Sway Obama-Trump Voters?

Author Jodi Enda visits two counties in suburban Pennsylvania to interview white, working-class women—the constituency that helped elect Donald Trump in 2016—about their faith in the president and the upcoming election.

Vanity Fair

Jodi Enda

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