Tipping the Balance: Women Legislators, Reporters, and Voters

Observers of the 2020 U.S. elections can’t help but have noticed the increased visibility of women in all aspects of our political process, particularly as office holders, voters, and news pundits. What effect might this visibility have on legislation and legislative paralysis, on candidate success, and on understanding of current events? Elizabeth Gregory will guide us in an exploration of the recent history of women’s expanding representation in policy-making roles in business and government. Why did it take so long, how do gender, race, and ethnicity intersect here, and what could this expansion of voices mean for the future?

Elizabeth Gregory directs the Women’s Gender & Sexuality Studies Program and the Institute for Research on Women, Gender & Sexuality at the University of Houston. A professor of English, she publishes on American modernist poetry and received her Ph.D. from Yale. Her book Ready: Why Women Are Embracing the New Later Motherhood (Basic Books, 2007) was based on interviews with more than 100 new later mothers. Her next project—on building a culture and economy of care—explores the intersectional economics of gender, race, and age, and the way forward.