Jennifer Gerson, The 19th
that found that men were perceived as being better fits for leadership positions when a masculine job title was used in a job description as evidence of the importance of having a mandated shift away from gendered language in the U.S. legal code. A 2019 research project conducted by the World Bank found thatrates for women and the reinforcement of regressive gender norms.
The Equality in Our Laws Act would direct the Office of Law Revision Counsel to to make non-substantive, gender-neutral revisions to many portions of the legal code. Laws like the Violence Against Women Act and the statute establishing the Women-Owned Small Business Federal Contracting Program would continue to be able to use gender-specific language in an effort to create rights and protections.
Should the bill pass, it would change “he” to “the Secretary” when referring to the head of a federal agency and “fireman” and “policeman” to “firefighter” and “police officer.” But its passage at this time is unlikely. Lee acknowledges the reality of the current makeup of the House of Representatives, where Republicans hold the majority. Still, she said, “if we’re not proposing fixes, if we’re not proposing legislation that’s going to help people, we can expect to stay in the minority.