The Unusual Union That Led to the World’s First Feminist Government
When patriarchy and feminism joined forces, it put Sweden on the path to becoming one of the most gender-equal countries in the world
While the word “feminism” can be divisive in many parts of the world, in Sweden it has been intimately paired with the country’s government since 2014. That year, Sweden’s new prime minister, Stefan Löfven, declared that the country would have the world’s first feminist government. A look at the official government website reveals statements like:
“Women and men must have the same power to shape society and their own lives. This is a human right and a matter of democracy and justice.”
Meanwhile, in the United States, the statement at the crux of the Equal Rights Amendment, “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex,” is still too much for some. Even in 2018, almost a century after the amendment was introduced by Alice Paul, it still doesn’t have enough support for ratification.
How is it that a country with a history of high-profile women’s rights movements has been…
