What Do Americans Say about Gender Equality?

A survey commissioned for the US Index report by YouGov and PerryUndem finds a solid majority of Americans support gender equality, including reproductive rights, equal pay, parental leave, and affordable child care.

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Only 1/3 of Americans Think It's a Good Time To Be a Woman

Most Americans say that gender inequality is persistent:

  • Two thirds – 66 percent – believe there is not full equality for women in work, life, and politics.
  • Almost half – 46 percent – of women report feeling unsafe sometimes or often in their daily life because of their gender. This rate increases to 53 percent for Black women and 59 percent for Latinx women.
  • A solid majority – 59 percent – believe men have more opportunities than women when it comes to getting good-paying jobs.
  • More than half – 55 percent – believe that women in the U.S. are only sometimes or rarely/never treated with dignity and respect.

Percentage who say it's a good time to be a "________" in America

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Graph Description

This graph highlights the percentage of people who say it’s a good time to be a “_____” in America. The highest-ranking demographics given as answers by survey participants include being a “Man”, “White Woman”, “Woman”, “Black Woman”, “Latinx Woman”, and “Pacific Islander Woman”. Results show that 47 percent of survey participants said that it is a good time to be a Man in America, 40 percent of survey participants said that it is a good time to be a White Woman in America, 32 percent of survey participants said that it is a good time to be a Woman in America, 26 percent of survey participants said that is is a good time to be a Black Woman in America, 25 percent of survey participants said that is is a good time to be a Latinx Woman in America, and 24 percent of survey participants said that it is a good time to be a Pacific Islander Woman in America.

Do You Think There is Full Equality...Or Is There Still More Work To Be Done?

Behind these national averages are major differences by both gender and race/ethnicity. Most starkly, just over half of white men recognize that there is more work to be done to achieve gender equality, compared to 86 percent of Black women. Similarly, 73 percent of the Latinx community believes there is more work to do, compared to 62 percent of all white people. The racial/ethnic divide emerges as larger than the gender divide on whether we have achieved gender equality in the U.S. When asked which factors most affect gender equality in the U.S., several drivers were frequently cited by at least 60 percent of participants, specifically:

  • Sexual harassment: 74 percent
  • Domestic violence: 70 percent
  • Equal opportunities in the workplace: 70 percent
  • Unequal pay: 67 percent
  • Equal protection under the constitution: 63 percent
  • Women still doing more caregiving and household than men: 62 percent
  • Access to affordable childcare: 60 percent

Nearly two-thirds (65 percent) of respondents also believe that access to abortion is important to women’s rights. Support was especially strong from Black women at 84 percent, and support was lowest from white men at 58 percent.

Equality Survey

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  • Yes, there's full equality now
  • No, there's still work to be done
Graph Description

This graph highlights survey results asking participants if they think that there currently is full equality in America or there’s still work to be done. Demographic groups surveyed include Democratic Women, Democratic Man, Black, Independent Women, Women, Latinx, With College Degree, Without College Degree, White, Men, Independent Men, Republican Women, and Republican Men. 33 percent of Democratic Women think there is full equality now while 67 percent say there is still work to be done. 45 percent of Democratic Men believe there is full equality now while 55 percent say there’s still work to be done. 45 percent of Black people say there is full equality while 55 percent say there’s still work to be done. 32 percent of Independent Women say there’s full equality now while 68 percent say there’s still work to be done. 12 percent of Women say there’s full equality now while 88 percent say there’s still work to be done. 25 percent of Latinx say there’s full equality while 75 percent say there’s still work to be done. 23 percent of individuals With College Degree say there’s full equality while 77 percent say there’s still work to be done. 55 percent of individuals Without College Degree say there’s full equality now while 45 percent say that there’s still work to be done. 48 percent of White people say there’s full equality now while only 52 percent say there’s still work to be done. 35 percent of men say there’s full equality now while 65 percent say there’s still work to be done. 43 percent of Republican Women say there is full equality now while 57 percent say there’s still work to be done. Lastly, 87 percent of Republican Men say there’s full equality now while only 13 percent say there’s still work to be done. Overall the median results from all survey participants show that 45 percent of participants think that there is full equality right now while 55 percent of participants say there’s still work to be done.

4 in 5 adults believe that it is important for elected officials to work on issues affecting gender equality

Almost three quarters (73 percent) report that gender equality issues are important factors in deciding who to vote for in state-level elections. However, views vary greatly – with 87 percent of Black and Latinx women believing women’s rights and well-being are important when considering who to vote for in state-level elections, compared to 68 percent of white men. Almost two thirds of U.S. adults (65 percent) agree that the country would be better off if we had more women in political office. Americans generally believe that female rather than male politicians will be better at addressing gender equality (50 vs. 5 percent), although 45 percent did not think politicians would differ on this by sex.

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Learn more about our survey commissioned by YouGov and PerryUndem.

US Survey Results

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