Law Commons^™

The Failure Of Gender Equality: An Essay In Constitutional Dissonance, Wendy E. Parmet, Judith Olans Brown, Phyllis Tropper Baumann

Wendy E. Parmet

Feminists agree that gender equality remains elusive; they disagree about why. A critical question is whether gender equality can be accomplished by treating men and women interchangeably. Stated another way, the debate has been between those who deny that women need "special treatment" in order to achieve equality, and those who argue that "real" equality demands that the legal system recognize the unique role which women play in society. Each side of this similar treatment/special treatment debate has assumed that the correct doctrinal formulation of equality will lead to some form of "true equality." This article will examine and critique …