Two-Minute Activist

Send emails and texts to your legislators to fight for equal pay, family leave, stopping sexual harassment, equality in education and more. Sign up to get regular alerts to be able to take timely action.

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You provide the voice. We'll provide the megaphone.

We provide all the tools you need to call or send messages to your members of Congress, contact your state legislators about pressing issues, and more.

Support Economic Security for Student Loan Borrowers

Women hold two-thirds of the country’s nearly $1.7 trillion student debt. In order to make a meaningful difference for women in education and the workplace – and thereby benefit the entire economy – Congress must protect efforts to lessen the economic burden of education debt.

It Only Takes Two Minutes!

Join AAUW in urging Congress to improve and expand legislation protecting our civil rights, economic security, and access to education.

Workplace & Economic Equity

Support Julie Su as Secretary of Labor

Julie Su is the best choice for the position of U.S. Secretary of Labor to achieve an inclusive economy. As her candidacy nears a final vote in the U.S. Senate, urge your senator to support Julie Su’s confirmation!

Pass a Budget with Paid Leave & Child Care

As Congress drafts the budget reconciliation bill, it must address key issues, including making child care more accessible and affordable, expanding the Child Tax Credit, providing universal pre-kindergarten to every 3- and 4-year-old and guaranteeing paid family and medical leave.

Pass the Paycheck Fairness Act

The gender pay gap is persistent. To address it, women need the right tools to challenge discrimination and employers need incentives to comply with the law. It’s time for Congress to make real change for all families by passing the Paycheck Fairness Act.

Pass the FAMILY Act

Unlike the majority of developed countries worldwide, the United States does not guarantee paid annual leave, paid time off for illness or family care, or paid parental leave. And for many Americans, this unpaid time off work is untenable and it threatens their economic security. That’s why AAUW is calling for passage of the Family and Medical Insurance Leave (FAMILY) Act, which would create a national self-funding paid family and medical leave insurance program.

Raise the Federal Minimum Wage

Raising the minimum wage is an important part of ensuring women’s economic security and that of their families. Women make up nearly two-thirds of minimum-wage workers nationwide, and women of color in particular are over-represented among tipped workers and other low-wage workers. The country supports higher wages — urge your members of Congress to fight for working women.

Pass the BE HEARD Act

The far-reaching effects of workplace harassment cannot be overstated, as this pervasive problem often impacts an employee’s pay, advancement and well-being. The Bringing an End to Harassment by Enhancing Accountability and Rejecting Discrimination (BE HEARD) in the Workplace Act would build on existing civil rights laws to provide new protections against harassment.

Support the EMPOWER Act

When workers face harassment, it impacts their success in the workplace, and ultimately, their economic security. The Ending the Monopoly of Power Over Workplace Harassment through Education and Reporting (EMPOWER) Act would make it easier and safer for people to speak out when they experience workplace harassment and make it harder for employers to avoid accountability.

Support the Healthy Families Act

Too many American workers are forced to face the choice between a job and their health or the health of a loved one every time they get sick or a family member needs care. That’s because at least 34 million private-sector workers — nearly one-third of the workforce — don’t have access to paid sick days.

Education

Support Economic Security for Student Loan Borrowers

Women hold two-thirds of the country’s nearly $1.7 trillion student debt. In order to make a meaningful difference for women in education and the workplace – and thereby benefit the entire economy – Congress must protect efforts to lessen the economic burden of education debt.

End the Student Debt Crisis

Women hold two-thirds ($929 billion) of the country’s $1.7 trillion student debt. As a nation, we rely on women to add to and strengthen our economy. That can’t happen under mountains of student debt. Ask your members of Congress to support legislation that would make college more affordable for all students and help millions of borrowers across the country pay off their student debt.

Support the Gender Equity in Education Act

In the 47 years since its enactment, Title IX has opened doors for girls and women from classrooms to playing fields. But despite tremendous progress, challenges to equity in education still exist. That’s why we need the Gender Equity in Education Act (GEEA) to ensure schools and educational institutions have the resources they need to comply with civil rights law.

Civil Rights

Fight the Attacks on Reproductive Rights

AAUW trusts that every woman has the ability to make her own informed choices regarding her reproductive life within the dictates of her own moral and religious beliefs. Tell your members of Congress to oppose any efforts to restrict women’s access to reproductive health care.

Support the Freedom to Vote Act

With so much at stake each time we head to the ballot box, it’s crucial that everyone is able to make their voice heard. Our democracy works when everyone can fully participate — and our electoral participation needs the protections in the Freedom to Vote Act.

Support the Voting Rights Advancement Act

Our democracy works when everyone can fully participate. Elected officials routinely make decisions about issues that directly impact all of us. From our paychecks to paid leave, access to reproductive health care to access to education, our lives are on the line — and our vote is our voice.

Ratify the Equal Rights Amendment

The majority of Americans mistakenly believe that women and men are guaranteed equal rights under the U.S. Constitution. The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) would, once and for all, guarantee constitutional equality between men and women. Its ratification would provide the constitutional guarantee that all men and women are truly equal under the law and that these rights cannot easily be abridged.

Pass the Equality Act

All people should have equal rights. America’s civil rights laws should reflect that promise and protect everyone. That’s why it’s critical that Congress pass the Equality Act, which would amend existing federal civil rights laws to provide explicit protection against discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in a number of key areas.

group of 7 young protesters near the U.S. Capitol holding signs encouraging the promotion of civil rights.

Advocacy Toolkit

AAUW has always stood for solutions that work for all women and families — and we do not intend to stop now. AAUW’s advocacy has made women’s voices heard from the White House to Congress to the statehouse, and your voice is needed now more than ever! That’s why AAUW has compiled a set of resources to guide you in advocating for women and girls through a variety of tactics and actions.

AAUW Action Fund

The AAUW Action Fund provides GOTV and voter education resources, in addition to lobbying on Capitol Hill for the issues affecting women and girls. Learn more about our work to advance gender equity and how you can get involved.

Take Action

There are lots of ways to get involved with AAUW’s work to advance gender equity. Together, we can make a difference in the lives of women and girls.